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Introduction

“Guest experience” is so important to couples! Everyone wants their guests to have a great time and to rave about their wedding later. But how, exactly, do you make the experience great? So much goes into it, and while everyone wants to create an awesome experience for their guests, no two couples have the exact same goals, other than their guests having a good time. 

Your guest experience includes both sensory encounters (the look of your tables and food, the background music, the feel of the table linens and seat cushions, and the smell and taste of the food) as well as experiential ones (the table conversation, the memories evoked, and the pleasure they take in seeing you getting married). Couples don’t take advantage of the opportunity to craft their guest experiences nearly as much as they could.

Guest experience is a big focus area in wedding planning and design at Buttercup Celebrations. Below, I’ll discuss some of the major components of the overall guest experience. I’ll move on to talking about how to create your desired experiences, based on your goals, in a series of posts on the topic beginning a few weeks from now. 

The Beginning: Your Invitation

Your guests’ experience starts the moment they receive your invitation (or save the date). Is it heavy paper? Is the envelope hand-lettered or calligraphed? What color is it? Once they open the envelope, is it filled with varying textures? Your invitation will be the thickest piece, of course, but should also be an RSVP card, and there may also be a directions or accommodations card, an inner envelope, envelope liner, and a reception card. There may also be a drawing or painting of the venue on the invitation, or a map may be included. How do the colors and textures play off of each other? Is the invitation letterpress or engraved? If so, the paper will be thicker, making the invitation seem more important. Even if you opt not to go with letterpress, choosing heavier paper, while requiring more postage, will enhance the gravity of the occasion. 

The invitation also gives clues about what the wedding experience will be like. Is it in a hotel ballroom? In an event barn? At a winery or estate? Each of these will evoke a different imagined experience. If you are allowing your guests to choose an entree, you’re giving more clues as to the formality of the event. And as your date draws closer, your guests will begin to anticipate what their experience will be like. 

The Hotel

If any of your guests are traveling very far, their experience continues when they arrive at their hotel. Guest welcome bags or baskets are another opportunity for you to enhance their journey. These can be as simple or as elaborate as your imagination. Depending on how long your guests are likely to stay in town, you may choose to add bottles of water or a soft drink, locally produced beer or wine, snacks, printed information about local attractions, and possibly a small gift. This is a thoughtful way to show your appreciation for their willingness to travel to join you on your wedding day. 

The Wedding Venue

Now, your guests will arrive at your wedding ceremony venue. Is there a sign or a floral arrangement at the entrance? Practically speaking, you’ll want to make sure it’s readily apparent that they’re in the right place. The presence of something that’s beautiful as well as utilitarian can serve to welcome them, as well as signaling that they’re entering an event outside of their everyday life. 

You can enhance this part of the experience by having music played, either live or recorded. Their experience continues as they enter the venue and find a seat. Are there programs, detailing the elements of the ceremony? If you choose not to do these, a sign can serve the same purpose. Either will allow them to note what the ceremony entails, and it gives them something to look at before the procession.

You may consider making your ceremony unplugged (cell phone-free). This will allow all guests to concentrate on the ceremony. Your photographer and videographer will also appreciate this, as it will help them to work unimpeded by guests vying for a good vantage point for photos.

Cocktail Hour

The next part of your guests’ experience will probably be a cocktail hour, to occupy them while the two of you and your families finish formal pictures. You may choose to have musicians here; if not, you’ll definitely want to have a DJ playing music. Decor in this area will probably be minimal compared to your ceremony and reception, but don’t omit it entirely. You want some continuity. The primary concern here, of course, is food and drink. You can enhance your guests’ experience here by having seating for some of them (others will prefer to stand, so you don’t need to provide a lot of it). You may decide to finish photography in enough time to have an opportunity to mingle with your guests at cocktail hour; they’re all waiting to have a chance to congratulate you! Of course, you can also decide to wait and make a grand entrance at the reception. 

The Reception

Table Assignments

You may choose to assign guests to specific tables and maybe to specific seats. I highly recommend doing table assignments at a minimum. This allows you to group people according to common interests or compatibility, which can greatly enhance your guests’ experience during dinner. To encourage conversation, you could have conversation prompts at each table, asking guests to share a memory of you as a couple or how they know one or both of you. 

Table assignment also introduces another opportunity to make a visual impact. Seating charts may be simple, simply listing names and table numbers, or escort cards may serve the same purpose. In recent years, though, some seating/table assignment charts have become far more elaborate, though, and these often serve as one of the focal points in the reception space.  

Tables and Dinner

The first thing your guests will encounter here is the tablescape. This is a great way to enhance their impressions of your wedding. There are many types of centerpieces, and they don’t have to be especially large or tall to augment the dinner experience. Your wedding design may include chargers, different combinations of plates, wine glasses and water glasses, and candles or other decor, all of which contribute to the tablescape. 

Your choice of chairs can also greatly enhance your guests’ comfort as well as the room’s aesthetic appearance. Your venue may only have one or two options available, but many different types of chairs can be rented to change the look of the room – ask your planner. 

Guests often report later that the food at the wedding was one of the most memorable elements of the entire evening. You’ll definitely want to make sure that’s for the right reasons! Your choice of entree(s) certainly enhances dinner as well. You have many options with your food: plated dinner, a buffet, food stations, cake or other desserts, and late-night snacks can all be combined to create different moods, depending on what you’re going for. 

One of the difficulties with dinner that negatively impacts a guest’s enjoyment is having to wait a long time for their food. This impacts the quality of the food as well. Talk with your planner and caterer about how to minimize waiting time. 

Entertainment

This is what everyone thinks of first when thinking of guest experience. While it’s only one contributing factor, it’s very important for the overall lasting impression. You have options here, of course. A DJ is most common, but a band can add to the overall experience. If you choose to have a band, though, you’ll need to make sure it’s one that can play standards as well as your favorite music. You and your friends may be looking forward to hitting the dance floor, but you need to keep all of your guests and their enjoyment in mind when choosing the music for the first hour or so. Many of your older guests will start leaving after the first hour anyway, and you can always turn up the volume (literally and figuratively) at that point. 

If your budget allows, you could always consider other entertainment as well. A photo booth is always a popular option, bringing more memories and hilarity. Other ideas include a caricature artist, a live musician or two for during your DJ’s/band’s breaks, a giant Jenga game, outdoor games (during a daytime reception), cigar bar, scavenger hunt. If your venue allows, fireworks would be a great way to make the evening memorable! For even more entertainment ideas, check out this article.

You might also choose to continue the entertainment after hours with an after-party. Karaoke might be popular, depending on the crowd.  You also could include an entirely different music style at the after-party than you had for your reception, which would provide some variety. 

Alternatively, you may choose to have a Sunday brunch, especially if you have a lot of out-of-town guests. This will necessarily be a more sedate atmosphere than the reception, which some of your guests may appreciate. One caveat: don’t try to do an after-party and a Sunday brunch, unless you really don’t need much sleep! 

Conclusion

I hope this post helps you to think more expansively about the experience you provide to your wedding guests. Remember, there are many things that go into both their sensory and experiential journey, from the time they receive your invitation until they leave your reception or follow-up event. By giving special attention to as many contributing factors as possible, you may well create a guest experience that gives them fond memories of a joyful and memory-filled day. Are you ready to get started? Schedule your consultation![/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row disable_element=”yes”][vc_column][vc_column_text]

Guest Experience: the Beginner’s Guide

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