This being the Information Age everything from dating to family reunions has been touched by the Internet, so as expected weddings can’t escape the long arm of technology either.  And although automating a few aspects of your wedding may seem a bit cold to some people, the Web is definitely a money-saving tool you should consider. 

Start with your wedding stationery.  Traditionally you go to a printer and order engagement announcements/party invitations, wedding invitations, hen’s night (or kitchen tea) invitations, RSVP cards, and thank-you notes.  That’s a lot of paper and postage to pay for.  What many couples are now doing instead is creating wedding websites or blogs as a Central Station for their wedding plans.  From your wedding website you can post all your invitations, your bridal registry, general travel tips for out-of-town guests, and your RSVP list.  After the wedding use your website to post your pictures, show your video, display your gifts (accompanied by your thoughtful comments), and even share your honeymoon travel journal.  All of this costs a fraction of the literally hundreds (or thousands) of dollars you spend on extra photo processing, printed paper, and postage (plus, in the end there’s nothing to throw away, so it’s environmentally green).

Sound great?  So how do you set up a wedding website?  First you have to purchase a domain name (for example, www.BobandJaneGetMarried.com).  After that, you can either hire a web designer (or even check in with your Girl Friday Consultant) or if you’re feeling brave and have the time, why not build the website yourself?  The advantage of building it yourself is that you can update your website as often as you like without having to rely on someone else.  But, if you’ve never created a website before, don’t worry.  You can take an HTML class, or use web design programs like Dreamweaver or Adobe GoLive, which interactively walk you through designing your web pages using style sheets that you can modify. 

You can also create your wedding website on social networks such as Facebook or MySpace, which are free and even easier to use.  However, these sites don’t allow you to customize your pages nearly as much as you can with your own website.

If you think you’ll be posting new wedding information often, you might consider a blog. This entails using blogging software such as blogger.com or movabletype.com, both of which are popular and free for personal use. 
All this sounds wonderful, but so far we’ve completely ignored the elephant in the room, which is:  Is it proper etiquette to forego printed stationery completely and send out e-wedding invitations and e-thank-you notes instead? The jury is still out on that, but the trend is moving toward Yes.  However, you have to take into account how you personally feel about merging your wedding with the Web and if your guests can accommodate you doing that.

If you like the tradition of mailing out printed invitations or you get personal satisfaction out of going the extra mile to handwrite thank-you notes, then spend the money to do it, because it’s important to you.  However, if a paperless wedding (and the idea of saving trees and money) eases your mind, then do some or all of your wedding correspondence via the Internet.  Both options are totally acceptable.

However, not all your guests will embrace this new technology.  Your older guests might not even be on the Internet.  And even if they are, they may never come around to the idea of using the Web for wedding correspondences, so instead of trying to change these people, it’s just easier to respect them. Therefore, even if you plan to invite and thank people via the Web, be prepared to purchase a few printed invitations, RSVP cards and thank-you notes to send to your technology challenged guests.  It will still cost you less than if you sent printed stationery to everyone.

So in the end you have to ask yourself, where do you want to spend your wedding dollars?  If you really can’t live without that Vera Wang wedding gown, then the Web can help you cut back in other areas.  New trends have to start somewhere, and if they can save you a little money on your wedding, why not let them start with you?