Its important to understand that the best man speech is probably the lightest side of the formalities of a wedding. The groom speech and the father of the bride speech tends to be very “heavy” and emotional. This is understandable though. Its also your opportunity to add a bit of lightness to the otherwise somber formalities of the wedding.

With that in mind, always be respectful of your entire audience. Its the golden rule. Your speech is not aimed at the groom and your mates. Its aimed ate everyone and should involve and appeal to your entire audience. Here are some best man speech ideas that can get you off to a great start.

1. Quotes
Starting a speech with a powerful quote from a great person can be a special way to start any speech. Quotes have the power to grab our attention and it can hook your audience from the very first minute. Try and find something relevant though. By starting your speech with “Abraham Lincoln once said that relationships are like…” can immediately engage your audience. You can also use quotes just as effectively in the closing of your speech. The only thing I will say is that you should not overdo it. One or two quotes is probably the limit.

2. Stories
Most people hate listening to speeches but we all love hearing stories. Using stories in your speech can be a powerful way to engage your audience and touch them emotionally. Telling a famous story in a new way or telling a story that evolves the groom can be a great way to start your speech. You can use it very effectively anywhere in your speech. Try and tell stories that make a point and convey something that you would like to “say” about the groom or about the couple.

3. Humor
You need to treat carefully if you intend on introducing humor in your speech. While it can work very well it can also backfire. If jokes don;t work it can leave you embarrassed and potentially spoil your entire speech. If jokes work well it can really fire up your audience and have them warm to you in a way that will make your speech truly memorable. Try and be as natural as possible if you use humor and don;t rehearse your jokes too much. Also, steer away from any jokes that are may offend anyone. Its a big no-no and is frowned upon by older people.

4. Props
This is probably one of the more crazy best man speech ideas but its actually quite popular these days. Some of the best speeches I’ve seen uses slide shows. It can make things very entertaining and with technology its actually quite easy to do. Apart from slide shows you can use virtually any prop. Great public speakers use props with great effect because it gets people interested.

5. Call in the troops
Just because you are the best man does not mean that you are the only one who has to make the speech. If you are very nervous then roping in one or two of the grooms other friends to assist you can be a great idea. A “group speech” can be good but you need to rehearse it very well and make sure that it will add a little something special.

These are 5 simple best man speech ideas that you can use without thinking too hard. Try and be calm and relaxed about it and don;t take it too seriously. There are many other speeches at the wedding that will be very serious. Bring a lighter side to it and make it fun without making it a spectacle.
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Before we look at the speech itself its worth mentioning that there is a common belief in the culture that its okay to play pranks on the groom. Although this started out in good taste, its certainly crossed the boundary quite a few times in recent years. If you are inclined to participate in this, let me remind you that the real duty of the best man is to be the groom’s right hand man. You are there to be by his side – not ruin his big day with elaborate pranks and silly jokes.

We all have an inherent fear of public speaking. Great speakers have learned to deal with it and are able to speak comfortably without any problems. For the majority of us this does not come naturally. Humor is a great way to help you cope with this.

If you can get your audience to laugh it does amazing things for you as a speaker. The value of a funny best man speech is first and foremost the ability to relax you and put you in a good mindset. Being relaxed with your audience immediately creates a very different attitude. It also opens up your audience and helps them to relax and be comfortable with you.

There are some basic guidelines to going the funny route with your best man speech. Here are a few guidelines to follow at all times:

1. Be tasteful
The temptation to use dirty jokes will always be there. Resist it. You may draw a few laughs but it will immediately alienate your audience. Its also that a wedding is not the place to do this. Be respectful of all your audience.

2. Start off well
Your best joke should be the opening of your speech. If you can get people giggling right from the get go then you will draw them in and have their attention for the duration of the speech.

3. Use props
Although this is a bit controversial, you certainly can use props in your speech. If you make it fun it certainly adds an element of surprise. I’ve seen some great best man speeches from guys who used slide shows of funny picture of the groom. It added a personal element that was both classy and funny.

4. Be serious
Remember that your best man speech is not a stand up comedy routine. Humor is good but always remember to add the serious part to it. Work it into the ending of your speech and conclude on a serious note by raising a toast.

5. Avoid cliches
This is a pet hate of mine and one that I would recommend you steer well clear of. Do not use some of the old cliches regarding weddings and the jokes around it. Come up with fresh and original jokes. The best way to do this is to make it all personal and always relate your humor to the groom.

To be honest with you, funny best man speeches can be a gamble. If you can draw the laughs and get the audience going then it will be great. If you can’t and it flops then you will look silly. This is why its always good to add a serious element to what your speech.
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I’ve seen far too many wedding ceremonies spoiled by embarrassingly bad best man speech. In stark contrast to this I’ve seen entire wedding ceremonies be moved to tears by awesome speeches that often comes from guys you would never expect. The most important aspect of a killer best mans speech is SINCERITY. It can’t be fakes and it can’t be learned or taught. Its just something that’s got to come from you. A bad speech that’s sincere will be good. A good speech without sincerity will be boring and feel fake.

So, how can you use this quick-fix for delivering a killer speech? Well, you simply need to be sincere in what you say but for many it can be a challenge. So, let me help you. Here are 3 easy ways to use sincerity in your best mans speech.

1. Stories
Stories are universally appealing. Everybody loves a story and our entire entertainment industry revolves around stories. True stories are extremely powerful simply because its believable and people tend to connect with it on an emotional level. If you want to deliver a killer best mans speech, all you have to do is to tell a great (true) story that either relates to the groom or illustrates something about the groom. This is guaranteed to hit hard with the wedding party.

2. Secrets and Confessions
When you make a confession and divulge a secret you instantly get people’s attention and evoke a sense of trust. I’m not talking about secrets that are best kept a secret. I’m talking about something that you can share about the groom that you’ve never told anyone before – preferably something that illustrates what a great guy he is. This level of sincerity will instantly hit home with your audience.

3. Honesty
The best form of sincerity is honesty. Making up stories can be a great way to give an entertaining speech but if you really want to make a memorable best mans speech you need to be brutally honest with everything you say. How can you use honesty to say something about the bride or groom to honour them at their wedding day?
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Virtually every western culture uses toasts as a form of celebration and an expression of goodwill. It’s a ritual we use to confirm and recognize people and its been a practice since the middle ages. Off course, it had a very different function back then since the clinching of glasses was meant to spill wine from one cup to the other – just in case one of them was poisoned and by doing this you actually demonstrated your friendly intentions.

When it comes to best man toasts there aren’t too many rules these days. It really isn’t a big deal. All you really do with the toast is to wish the newly weds a happy future together and your duty as the best man is to lead in this ritual.

You can start your toast with something like “I would like to propose a toast to…” or you can even lead into it with a little story or a funny joke (keep it clean please – this is the serious part of the wedding).

Most toasts follow the format of “May you…” followed by well wishes. What you choose to add is up to you, but some proven ones are “…grow old together” or even “…God bless you and …”. Its really up to you what you choose to focus on.

Keep in mind that as a best man your primary duty is to help and assist the groom and at this point of the wedding ceremony you really need to say what you want to say to your best friend. Being sincere is the best advice I can give you and finding something genuine to say is one sure way to get the entire wedding party involved.

Best man toasts need not be a long and dragged out affair. Keep it short and keep is remember that you are leading the wedding party in raising a glass. As you get to the end of your toast you might say something like “please join me as we raise a glass to…”. This will prompt everyone to get ready for the toast.
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The wedding speech is memorable and meaningful because it touches personally in an engaging manner to the audience and most importantly to the bride and the groom themselves.  It is very beneficial for both the speaker and the listeners if the speech is entertaining, lively and funny because it reminds the speaker that the people are listening.  Before starting the wedding speech, the best man should make sure that he has the undivided attention of the audience.  He should have a clear and loud voice enough to be heard and understood by the audience.  With this, it is not enough that the best man can speak because it requires that he knows how to deliver the speech properly.  It includes gestures, body movements and eye contact so that the speech will be better understood by the listeners.  Always bear in mind that in delivering wedding speeches, it is important to consider the quality more than the quantity.

The best man may include some funny experiences in his speech about the wedding preparation and reveal some secrets behind the scenes.  He could also roast the groom in his speech.  Roasting the groom is the heart of the best man wedding speech. You may humiliate the groom in an amusing and creative way in front of all the wedding guests. Unearthing the funniest experiences and embarrassing incidents would make your speech very entertaining.  After hitting the peak of the speech, try to close it with a friendly tone by advising the couple.  Since the best man is the closest from among the friends, he is expected to give the best advice that he can give to the couple.

Always put in mind that that the ultimate goal is to make the speech memorable and meaningful.  Just feel the experience of talking and come out as natural as much as possible.  Achieving the goal is more important than anything else since it gives ultimate fulfillment for being able to accomplish such difficult task under pressure.  The wedding is very important to the couple and the success of such depends also on how well the best man performs his part in delivering a wonderful best man wedding speech.
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Thus, it is very important to plan for the wedding speeches effectively since they set the initial mood for the wedding toasts.  Wedding toasts are part and parcel of the wedding celebration.  The said celebration would never be complete without these wedding toasts.  As a tradition, almost all wedding occasions make sure to come up with a perfect wedding toast initiated by the best man.

The best man wedding toasts are supposed to be joyous utterances which reflect the genuine spirit of the two individuals joining in marriage.  It is an avenue for wishing both the bride and the groom his best luck and regards with regard to the new life that they begin to embrace.  He should wish them joy, happiness and success.  More so, he should advise the bride to honor and respect the vows she made to her husband and for the husband that he should take care of the wife and preserve the bond that tied their two hearts together as one.

The best man should also toast to the guests as well while acknowledging them for their support to the couple in facing a new chapter of their lives and for gracing the momentous occasion.  The toasts signify happiness.  It reminds the people to enjoy during the wedding celebration since it happens only once in the lives of the married couple.  It is the time to embrace the love each other brings and no reasons to worry and fear upon of what will happen next or even in the days to come.

Some people are not confident to deliver perfect best man wedding toasts.  They are afraid they might fail the couple since everyone wants it to be meaningful and memorable. Even the couple themselves is expecting to have the best wedding toast during the celebration.  In order to make a perfect toast, it is encouraged to practice first for several times before getting up to make a toast. Perfect wedding toasts are filled with humor and sentiment.

It does not require that you are a public speaker before you can deliver a perfect speech.  All you need to have is sincerity in what you say and in what you do.  As long as you are honest in everything you say and do and all the words that come out from your mouth originally came from the bottom of your heart, there is nothing to fear upon.  Just be true to yourselves and everything goes natural beyond what is expected.
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Back in the middle ages, the “best man” was appointed by the groom as his most trusted friend and his primary duty was to protect the bride before and during the wedding. Since weddings in those days often carried on for days, this was a formidable task.

Fortunately your duties for a modern wedding is much easier – and a lot more fun. Here are some of your most important duties. You will not always be “asked” to fulfil them but you should go out of your way to be there and do them.

- Dress for success
One of your first duties is to help the groom pick a tuxedo or suit to wear at the wedding. It’s your task to make sure that he does not make a dumbass mistake like picking a white tuxedo with a pink tie (believe it or not, but this stuff happens!). You are also responsible for picking out the outfits for the groomsmen and co-ordinating it with the maid of honour.

- The Party
The most fun and probably the most important duty you have is to organise the bachelor party. Brides do not like these parties, so it’s best if you keep all the plans under very close wraps and only invite the groom’s closest friends. If you plan on getting really wild with it it is still your duty to look after the groom and to make sure he does not do anything he would regret.

- The Rings
It is your duty to hold on to the rings that the bride and groom will exchange during the wedding ceremony. There’s been many horror stories of best men who forgot the wedding rings. This can make or break a wedding. Don’t take this one lightly!

- The Speech and The Toast
Probably the least exciting and most nerve wrecking part of being the best man is your speech or toast. You are expected to deliver a speech where you say a few things about the groom and usually conclude with a toast – toasting their eternal happiness. It’s best to check with the bride and groom what’s expected of you to make sure your speech fits in with the rest of the wedding format.

Although these are just some of the important duties you have, you are generally there to assist the groom with any part of the wedding – before and after. You are there are his right hand man and giving him emotional support is probably your most important duty. Getting married can be a nerve wrecking ordeal for most men. Be there for your friend.
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