When you begin to communicate with your wedding crowd, be sure to maintain eye-contact with the guests. Smile while you are speaking to them. You will find that your friends and family smile back at you the same way. Even if you have to glance away at prompts on cue cards, once you raise your head again, you need to try to hold eye-contact with your crowd. This personal element helps build a bond those enjoying the speech. When discussing certain individuals during your speech (including when praising the Bride) it is advisable to look in her direction while mentioning her, speaking as though you are having a personal one-on-one conversation with her.
You have three options on how to deliver this specific speech to make it the most effective for your crowd:
1) Give the speech from memory. You can even practice the speech while delivering it from memory by practicing it in front of a mirror in the house. This will give you a different experience than giving it on the Big Day, because your nerves on that day will make you anxious and that could affect your current delivery if you don’t take the opportunity to practice in advance. You could even use a mock audience (friend, siblings, dog, soft toys) and get used to the ‘performance’ element.
2) Read it from a prepared copy. This is possibly the “safest” option for some Best Men who are not used to public speaking. However, these speeches often are delivered in a monotone and will cause the viewers to rapidly become bored with what that you are saying. It is also easy to get mixed up, ‘jump’ lines, or lose pages – then you’re in real trouble!
3) Use cue cards to prompt your speech. Cue cards are the recommended way and are additionally your best option for a smooth and natural speech. You should have “prompt words” highlighted on the cards so that if you want to be reminded of points to say next, you only need to take a quick glance at the words to remind yourself of what you should say next.
If you decide on the cue-card option you should remember that you now have two sections on your speech that you must deliver from memory: opening initial lines and closing statements. You should be able to rely on the opening lines to help your speech catch the attention of your crowd and give you a surge of confidence, providing the momentum which you will rely on throughout the remainder of your speech. Your closing line is the finale – the main line you want the guests to remember as you finish. This would usually be the ‘toast’ to the bride and groom so make sure you have this well prepared and deliver it with confidence and clarity.
Refine your speech by practicing on a trusted friend and by generally reading around for good best man advice.
As you stand-up and deliver your speech keep your abdominal muscles tight and firm (though some older speakers elect to sit while they speak).
Remember two key elements: poise and style. Concise, confident speeches make a better impression when compared with long rambling speeches. Visualise and practice staying at ease in front of your audience. The Best Man has the opportunity to deliver one of the best and most meaningful speeches. Click here for a set of conveniently downloadable Best Man speeches that will have the guests roaring their approval – and to make things even better, when you purchase the professional material, I get some beer money (though not enough to buy a pony)! Either way I do hope you have found this blog helpful…
Now picture yourself delivering that top performance and look forward to the standing ovation that your speech will receive!