Best Man Speeches Should Sound Effortless

By Author: speech-writers
Total Articles: 44
Comment this article

Best man speeches are a bit like yeast in a cake. They should help the best man rise to the occasion. That means that he has to prepare his speech really well. Unless he is a really talented public speaker he should not leave preparing that speech until the last minute.

Best man speeches are not meant to be comical. Best men are not meant to be comedians either because that requires excellent timing and wonderful jokes and most men don't possess either. Their speeches should, instead, be light-hearted and sincere. They should express his feeling for his friend and his new wife. They should be warm, happy speeches.
Such speeches don't happen by chance. They take a lot of research, and usually, a lot of rewriting. They are the product of many hours labour. If that sounds daunting remember that all the preparations for a wedding take months to get it just right and best man speeches are no exception.

He should begin preparing his speech with the basics. He will know the bride and groom of course but does he know the names of the bridesmaids? Does he know the names of the parents of the bride and groom? He ...
... should because he should mention these people in his speech. Obviously there is no point in knowing that the bride's mother is called Mary if you don't know anything else about her. The fact that the groom's father is called John doesn't say much about him. So the best man has to find out what sort of people they are. He should know something about their hobbies or talents or careers. He can then slot that information into his speech.

Does he know who will be attending? Are there any V.I.P's going to be present? If the groom is a soldier for instance will there be a four star general at the reception and how should he be addressed? Titles are important if you want to get things right and it would be politic to mention the fact that the general or say an archbishop has found time from his busy schedule to attend.

All of this means consultation with the couple. They will know if there is someone or indeed something they want mentioned and they will be able to tell him about their own parents. A clever best man though will get sound bites from peers of the couple or a close cousin or relative. Best Man's speeches should not be last ditch efforts. If they are to do justice to the couple on their special day they should be well prepared in advance. In that way the best man's speech will be, as it should, very personal indeed.

Niamh Crowe has written thousands of Speeches for every event including Groom Speeches, Father of the Groom Speeches, Best Man Speeches and more.