Wedding Etiquette - Are E-Vites Appropriate?

With email as a primary mode of communication for many individuals, it is no wonder that wedding website and e-vite companies are experiencing tremendous growth. Both brides and grooms are personalizing their wedding websites or social networking pages to include e-vites, photographs, Power Point slide shows, video, music, gift registries, and information on travel & lodging.

But are these online invitations really appropriate? As yet, there is no consensus among wedding consultants as the topic is heatedly discussed in wedding magazines, online forums, and in private conversations between wedding planners and brides. Most wedding etiquette experts strongly dissuade couples from using technology as the sole means of invitation to a wedding.

Though wedding e-vites are economical, they do have their drawbacks as well. Consider the following:

1. The invitation serves as the first overall impression of your wedding. More conservative guests may negatively perceive e-vites as a display of the couple's lack of respect for the occasion, traditional etiquette, and/or their guests.


2. Close friends and family will be denied a sentimental keepsake of the occasion.


3. Not all guests may be computer literate or have email addresses.


4. It may be labor intensive to gather all the email addresses of each guest.


5. E-vites run the risk of being deposited in SPAM folders. If they are not received by guests, it could result in hurt feelings as friends and family will wonder why they were not invited.


6. If indeed your guests do not receive the invitation online due to SPAM interception or offline servers, guests will need to be contacted individually. As a result, you could find yourself in a time crunch to provide head counts for catering, cake, favors, or programs.

For most couples, a tasteful compromise may be in order. Why not combine a thoughtfully designed website for the convenience of your guests with traditional invitations that request an RSVP online? In this way, the costs of printing and mailing RSVP notes are eliminated. Likewise, additional savings can be incurred by forgoing the inclusion of extra travel and accommodation information with the invitation. Such detailed data can be easily posted and updated on the web.

However, if your wedding is informal or nontraditional it may be acceptable to send invitations electronically. By searching through the templates at websites such as E-vite or Pingg, you should have a good grasp of what is appropriate for your nuptials. Whichever electronic means of invitation you choose, be sure to be specific about how your guests are to respond with the appropriate contact information. And most of all, enjoy personalizing your invitations in whichever form they take!