How to Nail Your Wedding Thank-You Speech
Trying to get your wedding thank-you speech just right? Let this be your guide to delivering some serious props.
You’ve said your wedding vows and now you’re ready to move onto partying! Before you start blaring the Backstreet Boys and showing off your finest dance moves, you’ve got to give a wedding thank-you speech to acknowledge all of your guests for coming to your wedding. They played a big role in making this day so special, so they deserve some serious props in your bride and groom thank you speech.
Here’s how to nail your wedding thank-you speech.
Keep it short
Before you begin penning a full-blown lecture, know that a wedding thank-you speech is typically only a few minutes long. Why? Because by the time the two of you walk up to the mic, your guests will have already heard wedding speeches from your MOH, best man, dad and maybe a few others where they’ve likely cracked jokes and shared anecdotes about you. They’ll probably be yawning if you pass the five-minute mark, so try your best to keep it short and sweet.
Write it as a team
One of you shouldn’t be putting in all the work. Sure, this joint wedding speech is short, but you’ll want to tackle it together. Start off by doing a little brainstorming, then move onto the writing it out and deciding who will say what. Keep in mind that if one of you is a more confident speaker, he or she can take most of the lines.
Practice makes perfect
Not many people can perfectly wing a speech, so be sure to give your wedding thank-you speech a few run-throughs before the big day rolls around. Remember, it won’t be very long, so ideally you shouldn’t have to rely on any notes to get you through it.
Start with a story
Now, you shouldn’t use this time to tell your friends and family your entire love story - that’d probably take ages - but you may want to share a cute anecdote to kick things off. This will warm up the crowd and serve as an introduction to your thank-yous.
Remember to thank everyone
The point of this wedding speech is to thank all of your guests for joining you, so don’t forget to do it. Begin by giving your inner circle (AKA your parents, bridal party and anyone who played an important role in making your wedding so special) mentions by name, then thank the rest of your guests as a collective. Finish things off by saying thank-you to each other - after all, this day is about the two of you and you’ve both put a lot of work into making it happen.
End it on a high note
You’re almost done! Finish your wedding thank-you speech by saying how #blessed you feel that all of your guests could make it out and how you’ll remember this day for the rest of your lives. Then raise your glasses to the sky and let the revelry begin.
