Wedding Speech Tips

Whether you are a family member or a member of the wedding party, making a wedding speech can seem like a daunting task. If you are a nervous public speaker or not confident in your writing capabilities, it can seem impossible.

While it may seem scary at first, making a wedding speech can be fairly straightforward. By following a simple wedding speech guide and asking yourself some leading questions, you can make speech writing much simpler and approachable.

At the end of the day, the most important things are that you convey your love for the bride and groom and feel confident that you delivered a speech you are proud of. One way to ensure these things come to fruition is to plan well in advance.

Having your wedding speech written and rehearsed well in advance can be the difference between triumph and embarrassment. Make sure you give yourself plenty of time to plan and prepare.

Really, by following a simple wedding speech guide and with the right resources, anyone can write and deliver the perfect wedding speech. At the end of the wedding, you will be able to look back fondly at your wedding speech.

Determining the style of your speech: A wedding speech guide

Before you actually put pen to paper, you should determine the style of your speech. There are two factors to base the style on: your relationship to the couple and the style of the wedding as a whole.

If you are an immediate family member, you will want to use that relationship to your advantage. In particular, if you are a parent of the bride or groom, the tone of your speech will most likely be more sentimental than humorous.

If you are a member of the wedding party such as the maid of honor or best man, your speech will likely have a more lighthearted feel. As the bride or groom’s best friend, you can be a bit more jocular with your speech.

The other important factor for the style of your wedding speech is the style of the wedding as a whole. The best way to determine this aspect is by asking the bride and groom themselves.

If the wedding is more on the formal side, you will want to stay in that category yourself and deliver a more traditional speech. If the wedding is more on the non-traditional side of the spectrum, you have a bit more leeway.

No matter what your relationship with the couple or the style of the wedding, there are some general rules to keep in mind. For instance, weddings are family affairs so none of your jokes or stories should be off-color at all.

Additionally, remember that your wedding speech is not about you. It is about the bride and groom and their love story. Make sure the style of your speech respects that and focuses on them more than you.

Step-by-step guide:

Once you have determined the style of your speech, you can get to the nitty-gritty writing and planning. By following a step-by-step wedding speech guide you will ensure that your speech will be a fond memory for everyone.

The first thing you will do is introduce yourself. Even if you are related to the bride or groom, not everyone at the wedding will know who you are. Introducing yourself gives your speech context for the guests.

After your introduction, thank everyone present at the wedding. If you are a parent, this is also your opportunity to welcome everyone to the wedding and put everyone at ease.

Even if you are not a family member and therefore not the host, a thank you and welcome statement is still important. A wedding speech should always put people at ease and make them feel at home.

Depending on which member of the couple you are closest to, you will primarily focus on either the bride or groom. For instance, if you are the maid of honor, you will spend the majority of your time speaking about the bride and your relationship with her.

Even though you will focus primarily on one half of the couple, remember that the day is for both of them. After you have regaled the guests with a story or two of the person you know best, you will want to bring their new spouse into the picture.

Your comments about your friend’s new spouse should be complimentary. Even if you do not know them well, make sure all your comments are kind. You can even use this time to talk about how your friend has changed positively since meeting them.

To close out your speech, propose a toast. This is the universal signal of the end of a wedding speech. The toast can be as complicated or simple as you want. Going with a common quote or blessing is always an excellent choice.

Conclusion and recommendations:

Even if you are unbelievably nervous, following a basic wedding speech guide will ensure that your wedding speech goes off without a hitch. If you are still concerned, however, there are a number of resources available to ease your pain.

Wedding Speeches for All, for instance, is an excellent service to help you with writing and delivering your speech. They offer a number of different packages focusing on different relationships to help everyone deliver the perfect speech.

Not only will Wedding Speeches for All guide you through the writing of your speech, but they will guide you through delivering it as well. Their method and advice will guarantee that your speech is everything you wanted it to be.

Since each of their packages is designed for a different specific person (i.e. father of the bride, best man, etc.), you will receive a customized speech perfect for the occasion. Wedding Speeches for All also provides guidance for using quotes and how to make a toast.

Ultimately, you want your wedding speech to reflect your care for the bride and groom. Following a wedding speech guide or taking the help of Wedding Speeches for All will make the process painless and memorable.

As with pretty much every aspect of a wedding, the speeches are optional nowadays. Although they may be the traditional route, wedding speech alternatives have become more popular in recent years.

Traditional wedding speeches typically happen during the dinner portion of the reception. Though there is some variation, typically the father of the bride, the mother of the groom, the best man, and the maid of honor all deliver speeches.

While wedding speeches can be a lovely addition to a reception, they also have their drawbacks. Some couples find them boring and some people are uncomfortable with public speaking.

With more and more non-traditional weddings out there, it seems only necessary to reevaluate the wedding speech tradition. If you are foregoing other traditional aspects for a less uptight approach, a wedding speech alternative may be your best bet.

There are of course alternatives that are hybrids between a wedding speech and something else altogether. These can serve as a valuable bridge that will make all guests and participants comfortable.

No matter if you choose to do traditional wedding speeches or to go with a wedding speech alternative, consider the style of your wedding first. Consider some alternatives and you might find your perfect choice!

What is a traditional wedding speech and why to forego: Wedding speech alternatives

As already mentioned, a traditional wedding speech takes place during the dinner section of the reception with usually several people delivering speeches. These speeches serve two purposes: to welcome the guests and to wish the couple well in their marriage.

Parental speeches are often on the sentimental side of the spectrum and are usually tear-jerkers. Maid of honor and best man speeches tend to be on the more lighthearted side of things. Both sets can be impactful in their own right and serve a good end at the reception.

Although wedding speeches can be lovely, alternatives have been on the rise. Since weddings are meant to reflect the personality and style of the bride and groom, the rise of alternative reception activities is not surprising.

Other than the personalities of the bride and groom, there are other great reasons to consider an alternative to the traditional wedding speech. One of the biggest ones is the fear of public speaking.

You will most likely ask your wedding party and family to do many things at your wedding. If you ask them to speak, they will most likely feel obligated to do so. They may, however, be so nervous that they cannot fully enjoy your wedding.

Another reason for seeking out wedding speech alternatives is the tone of your wedding. If you are going for a more casual feel, then wedding speeches may be too stodgy for your taste.

Using an alternative to a wedding speech is also a good way to get the guests more involved in your wedding day. Speeches are more like performances to be watched than participatory activities for your guests.

No matter if you choose to do the traditional wedding speeches or go with an alternative, you will want to weigh your options fully. Who knows, you may even want to do a combination of the two!

Possible alternatives:

Should you decide to go with a wedding speech alternative, there are still many choices out there. If you do choose to go with an alternative, you could also give your wedding party some leeway in choosing what to do. This way their personalities will shine as well!

One great alternative is a video or slideshow. If you are uncomfortable with giving a speech in person, videos allow you to perfect your thoughts beforehand.

Additionally, videos and slideshows can be more visually creative than a simple speech.

Another good alternative is doing some sort of trivia game with the guests. The questions can be about the bride and groom or even their relationships with the wedding party.

Games are a great way to get the guests involved and avoid feeling uptight.

While we are on the subject of getting the guests involved, another great alternative is to have a sort of confessional booth where the guests can record their own well wishes. Rather than having the wedding party and family only share their thoughts, the booth gets everyone involved.

If you are dead set on having speeches, a simple alternative is to move them to the rehearsal dinner. This takes a good deal of the pressure off of your wedding party because it is a smaller crowd. Uncomfortable public speakers will probably appreciate it.

Another semi-alternative to wedding speeches is to have selected readings. If the wedding party or your family are nervous about coming up with a speech of their own, having them select and read poetry takes some of the pressure off.

No matter the alternative you choose, involving your wedding party and family in the decision is a good idea. They are the ones who will execute the plan, so their input is invaluable.

Conclusion and recommendations:

Although there are many alternatives available, wedding speeches are still an expected part of a wedding. If you do choose to have them at either the rehearsal or the wedding in some form, there are many great resources to ease the process.

Wedding Speeches for All offers a number of great packages to help with writing a wedding speech. They not only coach you in writing the speech but also in delivering it.

Included with all their packages, Wedding Speeches for All also offers a number of suggestions for quotes and styles. Their programs take the guesswork out of the equation and make the wedding speech process pain-free.

Even if you do choose a wedding speech alternative, Wedding Speeches for All can still help prepare you for the wedding. Most alternatives do involve some sort of explanation and speaking, so having some guidance is certainly welcome.

If for instance, the wedding party makes a video, they will need to speak in the video. Wedding Speeches for All can prepare them to do so and make the best presentation possible.

At the end of the day, the wedding speeches or alternatives should reflect the personality of the bride and groom. Wedding Speeches for All can help craft an option that is perfect for your situation.

Wedding speech quotes can be an excellent way to fill out your speech. If you are nervous about your writing skills, they can also take some of the pressure off of you.

As far as choosing quotes for the wedding speech, a lot depends on the tone you are going for with the speech. If you are going for a sentimental tone, a humorous tongue-in-cheek quote will seem out of place.

If you are a nervous speaker or simply do not think well on your feet, using the words of poets, writers, or pop culture can give you peace of mind. Additionally, reading the various common wedding quotes can help give you some direction.

Quotes can also add a layer of authority to your quote. Maybe you want to give some marriage advice but have never been married yourself. Well, a quote from a reliable source can offer some credibility even if you do not have personal experience to rely on.

No matter the aim of your speech, there are many great quotes out there. A good quote can lend some outside authority and also take some of the pressure of public speaking off of you, reducing your pre-speech stress.

Choosing appropriate quotes:

The first question you should ask yourself when choosing wedding speech quotes is what tone you are going for. Based on if you are going for a humorous, sentimental, or advisory tone, you will choose different quotes.

For best man and maid of honor speeches, humorous quotes can be a nice touch. These quotes can really be found anywhere, but songs and movies can be an especially good resource for humor.

For parental speeches, sentimental or advisory quotes are especially appropriate. Adding someone else’s wisdom to your own advice can help give it more credence than it already had.

Another important consideration when choosing wedding speech quotes is your relationship with the bride and groom. This concern falls into the audience category. If you have a lighthearted relationship, light quotes are the most appropriate.

Whether or not the wedding is religious can also affect your choices. If the couple was married in a religious ceremony, Biblical quotes can be a nice touch. This will not only tie into their ceremony, but also please their extended family.

If the couple was married in a non-traditional ceremony, religious quotes may not be the best option. Instead, try quotes from pop culture or literature.

Determining how many quotes to include:

One big question when writing in quotes for a wedding speech is how many to include. While quotes can be a great way to take some of the pressure off your own speech writing abilities, too many quotes will look a bit sloppy.

You do not want the bride and groom to think you did not have anything personal to say. The quotes you choose need to be balanced against your own thoughts and words.

While choosing the number of quotes to include is totally up to you, you will want to base it on how long of a speech you are giving. If you are giving a short, two to four-minute speech, probably limiting yourself to one or two quotes is a good idea.

There are no hard and fast rules to how many quotes you should include. Instead, base the number around the length of your speech. You want the couple to remember what you said rather than what the quotes were, so choose the number accordingly.

Popular wedding speech quotes:

After determining the length and tone of your speech, you can begin choosing the quotes you want to include. Keep in mind the style of the wedding and your speech to help you choose.

One popular quote for religious weddings comes from 1 Corinthians 13. It is the Biblical section about love (“love is patient, love is kind,” etc.) which often makes an appearance at weddings. If you are speaking at a religious wedding, this one is a crowd pleaser.

“You know you’re in love when you can’t fall asleep because reality is finally better than your dreams,” by Dr. Seuss is another good quote that can really be used for any style of speech. This quote would be especially pertinent if you attach it to the couple’s love story.

Poetry also offers a wealth of great wedding speech quotes. Elizabeth Barret Browning’s quote of “Love doesn’t make the world go round, love is what makes the ride worthwhile,” is an especially nice option.

Shakespeare can also offer a wealth of options. From the sonnets to the plays, a quick search of Shakespearian quotes about love will offer you a large group to choose from.

Movies can also be a good resource for wedding speech quotes. Maybe pick a quote from the bride’s favorite romance movie. That way, the quote will also carry some sentimental weight for the couple particularly.

Conclusion and recommendation:

Even with a few quotes peppered in, writing and delivering a wedding speech can be an anxiety inducing responsibility. Wedding Speeches for All can help you eliminate the stress completely and deliver a memorable and impactful speech.

One of the best advantages of Wedding Speeches for All is that they help you choose wedding speech quotes as part of their packages. No matter if you select the father of the bride or the maid of honor option, they will help you select the perfect quotes for your speech.

Another way they can help you is by determining the appropriate number of quotes for your speech. Even though wedding speech quotes can help ease the pressure of the speech itself, selecting them and narrowing them down can be an equally troublesome task.

Selecting and incorporating quotes into your speech can also be time consuming. Wedding Speeches for All will streamline the process and take the guesswork out of the equation.

Whether you decide to use Wedding Speeches for All or not, remember that wedding speech quotes can help alleviate some of the pressure of a speech. Adding quotes will give you an added authority and also help flesh-out your speech.

If you have to speak at a wedding, a wedding speech jokes is a good idea because it will add zing to your wedding speech and lighten up the crowd.

It will also reduce some of the nervousness felt by the couple as they face the new chapter in their life and recall some of the fun times of their relationship. You can start off your wedding speech with a joke, or end it with one.

Laughter is the best medicine if you feel down or if the place needs a little livening up. Several studies have cited that laughter is very beneficial to one’s health since it allows the body to relax and allow the body to function flawlessly.

Some even see it as a good exercise and others see it as an alternative way to do aerobic exercises. It is also said that it can add to one’s life span if they laugh even for a few seconds.

However, there is always a limit as to the kind of jokes you should include in your wedding speech.

Here is some advice you can consider when it comes to adding jokes in your wedding speeches: A wedding speech jokes

• Choose the right joke: When you draft, it is important you consider the jokes available for you to use. Check out the net or even joke books for an idea. You can even ask your friends and people you know who do speeches regularly for ideas.
• Put some twists in your speech: When you find your perfect joke or funny story, construct your speech in a way that people will be paying attention to your every word for the maximum fun factor.
• Do not do use taboo jokes: In the wedding reception, your speech should not include anything that falls under sex, religion and politics. Adding a joke about any of those subjects will only cause disagreement in the reception. Some may even be offended by your joke. When giving a wedding speech or any other type of speech, it’s best to complement your guests rather than make a joke that they may find offensive.
• Do not make jokes about the groom or the bride: It’s their special day and making a joke about their most embarrassing activities and the like is a big no no. Also, do not joke about their past because this will just insult them.
• Balance the jokes with the sincere lines: Make sure that you don’t turn your wedding speech into a one-man comedy stand up routine. Make sure that your speech also has parts that will inspire the couple.
• Practice your jokes with an audience: Before the big day or a few weeks before it, try out your jokes and the entire speech on some friends to see if you will get the reaction you want. If they do not like it or it’s not funny enough, you have time to revise it.
• Rewording is cool: If by any chance you want to adapt a joke to the audience, you can reword it. Just remember to retain its essence and use words which are not offensive.

For jokes you can try out, why not add one of these cool quotes/jokes?

• “I love being married. It’s so great to find that one special person you want to annoy for the rest of your life.” – Rita Rudner
• “The best way to get most husbands to do something is to suggest that perhaps they’re too old to do it.” —Anne Bancroft
• “By all means marry; if you get a good wife/husband, you’ll be happy. If you get a bad one, you’ll become a philosopher.” —Socrates
• Want to remember your wife’s birthday and never forget it? Try forgetting it once and wait for her reaction.
• Groom, remember this piece of advice: when you argue with your wife and reach an agreement, always add in the end “Yes dear.”

If these tips and examples are not enough and you are still afraid to add a joke in your wedding speech for fear of insulting someone in the guest list, ask for some advice from the guys and girls at Wedding Speeches and Toasts.

Just by signing up, you will receive free advice on how you can make your wedding speech the talk of the night and ensure that everything you want to add in your speech will be in it. Give the most fun-filled wedding speech without worries with the advice you get from Wedding Speeches and Toasts!

When preparing for your wedding, you should not just focus on the reception but also on the main ceremony itself. This is the time when you become husband and wife officially and celebrate your love in front of your family, friends and, depending on your wedding ceremony type, in front of the law or the church.

Although there are couples who use the standard format for their wedding ceremony, others tend to make their own. When planning the wedding ceremonies and the speeches that will be included in the main ceremonies, there are some things you have to think about.

What type of wedding ceremony will you hold?

Weddings can have different themes and styles and be of different lengths. Talk to your fiancé about what kind of wedding ceremony you want to have.

Should it be long? Traditional? Civil? Catholic? Mixed? When deciding on the style or theme you select, make sure that you are both comfortable with it and make sure that the length is something you and your guests will be ok with.

What is the message of your wedding?

You need a premise when it comes to making wedding ceremonies and writing your speeches. This will make sure that everyone will see the underlying theme of the ceremony or the theme of the couple’s relationship. It will also bind the entire ceremony together perfectly.

Do you want it to be a blast from the past? Do you want it to be contemporary? Talk about the message you want to convey because this will help you plan your entire wedding ceremony, make sure the vows match the theme and help the officiant direct you to the correct path when writing your wedding ceremony speeches.

What parts will the wedding ceremony include?

Nowadays, wedding ceremonies are varied in terms of what is included and what the speeches are like.

Here are the most notable wedding ceremony parts that you should remember: Wedding ceremony speeches

– Introduction: Welcome each and every guest and do the usual things such as telling guests to put their phone on silent or turn it off throughout the ceremony.

– Sermon/Sharing: Depending on the type of ceremony you have, this may be done by the officiant of the ceremonies. In church weddings, this will be given by the priest or the minister.

In civil weddings and other types of weddings, it is done by a family friend or even the civil official who officiates the ceremony. The speech may be about a reading from the Bible, a proverb, song or even your very own written story.

– Readings: For this part of the wedding ceremony, the officiant will call on a reader or readers who will share a Bible passage, short story or poem that has a message for the couple in their early years.

– Declaration of intent and vow: The declaration of intent is very important and must not be exempted from your wedding ceremony. The couple will be asked if both parties will take the other as their legally wedded half with an answer that can range from “Yes Father” to “Yes definitely.”

After declaring their intent, the couple share their vows which can be done impromptu or prepared. Just make sure you stick with your theme or add something that means a lot to both of you.

– Ring ceremony and the vow: Afterwards, the ring ceremony is done where the couple exchange rings and seal their marriage. You can even say a second vow as you put the ring to your love’s finger.

– Pronouncement: In this part, the officiant will declare that you and your fiancé are now husband and wife. He may say something completely random for this part like ‘Presenting Mr. and Mrs. Han Solo’ if by any chance you like Star Wars.

– Kiss: End with the big kiss to make things official!

What can make it special?

Don’t be afraid to add something random but completely dear to you and your partner in your wedding ceremony speeches. If you are a fan of a hit television or movie franchise, add a reference from it to your vows or your wedding ceremony speeches.

Just make sure that it blends well with your ceremony and the message you want to convey. Try to mix and match the way you can deliver the ceremony. Your wedding is your moment and it has to be something that you feel very comfortable with.

Learn more about wedding ceremonies and how to write and deliver speeches that will be accepted and enjoyed by guests with the help of Wedding Speeches and Toasts.

When you sign to their newsletter, they will send you a list of the do’s and the don’ts when it comes to wedding speeches. If you want to prevent yourself from being a laughing stock in the wedding ceremony, check out the tips from this site and start drafting!