Tejas Kotecha

  1. Close the bar for the speeches – it means people will be seated rather than standing. Let the toastmaster tell the bar manager know 10 mins in advance – that way he can give the drinks to those at the bar, before closing it. With this there is a better chance your speeches will be heard in silence by everyone
  2. One of the most worrying things for guests is what to do with the wedding card/envelope when they arrive. Often it’s not clear, so if I see someone who has an envelope I will show them where to place it. That way they are less likely to lose it, and won’t worry about keeping an eye on it!
  3. Making the best of your occasion. If you’ve hired a Photo Booth, or magician, or are serving cake and tea at a certain time, a good toastmaster will make sure you get the most out of it. That could be telling people when cake is being served, encouraging guests (who are less likely to) to make use the Photobooth, directing the magician to impress the VIPS like family members who are from abroad, to sorting out anything that will make your special day memorable for everyone involved.
  4. Requests. It’s great to offer your wedding tables a chance to be involved. So if you’ve hired a DJ, string quartet, or band, encourage your guests to request some songs. They can write it on a piece of paper, tell the musician, or pass on the message through a toastmaster.
  5. Use the toastmaster to make the most of your speeches. Whether it’s telling a joke, or getting people quiet or doing something slightly different. At a recent wedding the toastmaster took the microphone to three different relatives who had come from abroad, they were asked to give some advice/thoughts to the special couple. It took less than 2 minutes, but was a lovely surprise for the couple and was a lovely genuine “oohhh how lovely” moment for all the guests to hear amazing words from relatives who had travelled thousands of miles to celebrate the wedding.