Tips For Short Best Man Speeches

The joy of a thunderous applause and standing ovation after giving a Best Man speech is a wonderful experience, the cornerstone to achieving that goal relies chiefly on the quality of the material in your speech, particularly if you are giving a short Best Man speech. The length of the speech should be no less than 3 minutes anything less will seem like a lack of effort has gone into your toast, with that in mind today we look at 4 tips that are vital for a short speech.

1.  Don’t blurt out your words.

In the rush of nerves and excitement you might be tempted to speak too quickly which may mean the wedding guests don’t fully understand what you are saying and the speech will be delivered in far too short a time.

2.  Don’t rely on one long joke or story.

As Best Man you are expected to have humor in your speech but if you are giving a short speech and you rely on one joke then you are banking on that being a hit with the guests otherwise it will tarnish your entire speech. You are better served by including 3 or 4 funny jokes throughout your speech that will not take up as much time.

3.  Don’t forget the essentials.

Just because you are giving a short speech does not exempt you from covering the essential aspects so know the format of a Best Man speech and tailor your toast accordingly.

 4.  End with an uplifting Best Man toast.

Another common mistake Best Men make when ending their speech is by saying “here’s to the Bride and Groom” rather than offering a proper fitting toast that everyone will enjoy.

A good speech not only leaves a lasting impact on those who hear it, it will remain forever in hearts of the Bride & Groom and will leave a lasting memory with you. If your Best Man speech is both short and sweet then you should look forward to an amazing day, one that you will find yourself reliving over and over again.

The Magic Of Using Props In A Best Man Speech.

As regular readers will know I am a great believer in the use of props during Best Man speeches, the right prop combined with a great Best Man speech will have the wedding guests scrambling to their feet in unison celebrating the toast. One of the great advantages of using a prop is that they lighten up speeches and if used correctly can elevate speeches to “legendary” status.

A great way for a Best Man to incorporate a prop into his speech is by announcing that the Groomsmen (mention each of them by name )have bought a gift for the Groom and have asked you to present it, this will not only have the Groom nervously waiting to see what you have in for him it also incorporates the unsuspecting Groomsmen into the joke.

If there are 3 Groomsmen then you need 3 props, one from each of them, it goes without saying that the Groomsmen should be kept in the dark on the prank until it actually takes place. Each prop should be an inexpensive item with a note attached (which you have written of course) and as you announce each gift read out what the note says. You should have a bag hidden under your table or left at reception with these “gifts” in them. For the examples below our Groomsmen are John, Jack and Joe.

Make sure the gifts are unwrapped so they are there for all to see as you unveil them, examples to consider include;

A light bulb.

Present a light bulb on behalf of “John” saying that “John thought you might need this because as you are now a married man the light at the end of the tunnel has been switched off.”

A pillow.

Present a pillow on behalf of “Jack” saying “Jack is a married man himself and speaking out of experience he thinks that the many nights you will spend sleeping on the sofa will be eased with this comfortable pillow.”

A pair of shorts.

Present a pair of shorts on behalf of “Joe” and say “Joe thought this would be an appropriate gift given that you are now officially a husband and no longer get to wear the trousers in the relationship.”

Props can provide welcome comic relief for everyone so be sure to include them in your speech, using the Groomsmen as “stooges” will set the stage for a Best Man speech to remember.

The key to giving a funny Best Man speech is in the preparation today I outline 25 tips that will help you find ideas and see examples of how you can go on to give a funny Best Man speech that will be adored by all.

1. Tell a few funny Best Man jokes, keep them short and have them filtered throughout your speech.

2. Use some famous funny quotations about love and marriage.

3. Tell at least one funny story that will embarrass the Groom, be sure that it doesn’t offend mind you.

4. Introduce some props into your speech, such as a blown-up photograph.

5. Funny opening lines are important so make sure to choose openers suitable for your speech and deliver them with confidence looking straight at the wedding guests.

6.  Make up some funny anagrams relating to the couple, they can be based around their names or referring to marriage such as “a grim era” is an anagram of “marriage”.

7. Offer humorous advice on marriage to the Bride and Groom irrespective of whether you are married or not.

8. Poke fun at the Groomsmen by warning the Bridesmaids in advance about their inability to dance.

9. Tell some cute,yet funny, anecdotes about the Bride and Groom.

10. Make funny references to how the Bride and Groom complement each other such as “Jane loves cooking and we all know that John certainly loves his eating.”

11. Refer to the Groom’s date of birth and comment on funny things in history that happened during the same year.

12. Make sure to hook the audience before telling a funny story, this can be achieved by beginning your stories with “Not many of you know this but…” or “I’m going to share a little secret with you about the Groom…”

13. Paint a picture of the Groom from his younger days, let the guests know about his funny haircuts, his questionable music taste, or anything funny traits from his youth.

14. Hilarious anecdotes about your friendship with the Groom will always be welcomed by the wedding guests, just make sure to keep them short.

15. Add some deliberate errors into your speech like “The Groom is dark and handsome” then look at the guests in mock-embarrassment and say “Sorry, I meant when it is dark he is handsome.”

16. One-liners work extremely well in the Best Man’s speech so ensure your speech includes some witty puns in your speech.

17. Funny poems are another way of grabbing the guests attention, so write a short poem, an example would be a funny nostalgic poem about the last drink you shared with the Groom as a single-man.

18. Make a funny reference to how your joy and pride at being asked to be Best Man was very quickly overtaken by the stark reality and sheer panic of having to give the Best Man speech.

19. The Best Man normally gives his speech after the Groom’s so say something along the lines of “I always knew it would be difficult to follow the Groom’s speech and I was right, I could hardly follow a word of it.”

20. Engage with the guests by saying how wonderful it is to see so many people in attendance before ending with a quip of “it never ceases to amaze me the lengths people will travel for a free meal.”

21. Include a lighthearted honeymoon joke in your speech.

22. Tell a humorous story about how the Groom has changed since meeting his new Bride.

23. Convey to the guests that “we are here for a wedding, pure and simple, the Bride is pure and the Groom is simple.”

24. Read out some funny (fictitious) faxes.

25. End with a witty Best Man toast wishing the happy couple all the best for the future.

My mailbag has been extremely busy throughout the Summer thanks to the success of my Best Man speeches, there are fewer things more rewarding than giving a funny Best Man speech and listening to the laughter and joy that it brings to those listening, so prepare well and look forward to a moment that you will never forget.