How To Choose The Right Wedding MC
First of all, why do you even need a wedding MC? What does a master of ceremonies actually do at your wedding?
The role of the MC is simply to ensure guests know what’s happening next, and where, and to a degree how to respond. They also liaise with venue staff, catering, photographers, videographer and entertainment so that before any announcements are made, everyone is ready.
Here are three common myths about how to choose a Wedding MC:
1. We’ve got an MC in mind because he’s a great public speaker.
Being a confident speaker sure does help, but your wedding is not a public event, and it’s not really public speaking. It’s much more personal than that. I’ve worked with former radio announcers, TV personalities and sports heroes. And all of them did a great job of speaking confidently, however it means nothing if they don’t know what to do BEFORE they speak, why they’re saying what they’re saying. They are just following some sort of protocol they found on Google without knowing why, or without knowing how to make it even better and more personal. It might surprise you also that even MCs with that sort of background still say inappropriate things, or slip in a joke that really just didn’t need to be told at a wedding. Was it the end of the world? No, but it was uncalled for.
2. We’ve got an MC in mind because he knows both of us really well.
Sure, that’s nice, but the MC doesn’t have to know you well at all. In fact, the less the MC knows about you in some ways, the better. If the MC knows too much, they may be inclined to share a story or three, perhaps something you’d rather didn’t come up at your wedding. That aside, the MC’s role is simply to keep everyone informed about what’s happening next at all times. Your MC doesn’t need to tell stories, he introduces those giving a speech or toast and they talk about you instead.
3. We’ve got an MC in mind because they’re really funny.
The MCs role isn’t there to tell jokes. Natural humour is different to “telling jokes”, and often what can happen is the MC looks up a few jokes on Google and then just has a crack at it. Will those jokes be original? Have the guests heard them all before? Will they be suitable for a wedding? Jokes that compare marriage to a jail sentence, “ball and chain” references, and the old “three rings of marriage” gag are not only lame, they’re also highly inappropriate when you’ve only been married a few hours. Will the “funny” MC know where the line is when it comes to a joke, and do they know the rules that should never be broken at a wedding? Or will the MC use the same jokes from the internet that someone else has already put into their speech that night? The same jokes the guests have heard at every other wedding they attended? The wedding MC’s role isn’t to tell jokes.
If you can’t hire a professional, there’s there’s nothing wrong with using the suggestions above as a guide to helping you choose. Nobody is saying that if you use your boss/uncle/best friend that they’ll be terrible. I’ve seen and heard some amazing things from this type of casual MC. But choosing to go without a pro just because you think they can’t actually do anything different to your uncle that’s funny, knows you well and is a great public speaker might be unfair.
There’s quite a bit that a proficient, experienced wedding master of ceremonies can offer. Of course, you’d also need to check the any “professional” MC you’re considering is actually qualified to offer anything more than your uncle or friend.
I hope this helps you like I know it has for so many others!
Nick Logan
Wedding MC | Event DJ | Nice Guy
