The title of this post is the chorus that every married couple would like to be sung by their friends when your wedding DJ announces that the party is over. Usually this chorus is a sign that the guests enjoyed the party, had a good time, are still having fun, and do not want to go home.
But not always unfortunately this “stadium” chorus closes all weddings, in fact often the party ends early because at the drop of a hat all your friends and relatives have left, or the party never fully got off the ground for a thousand reasons, and the question the bride and groom ask themselves is : “Where did we go wrong?”
I never wish any wedding couple, even those who choose other vendors, to get to the point of asking themselves this question because it means that the celebration they so hoped to experience and have their guests experience did not happen. But why is it that some parties would never end and in others the hemorrhaging of guests leaving cannot be stopped?
I want to let you in on a secret;
A wedding is an important event that requires careful and meticulous planning. After months of preparation, the ultimate goal is to create an unforgettable experience for the bride and groom of course but also and especially for the guests.
However, it is not always easy to keep the bar high throughout the day so the key is to carefully plan the timing of the wedding.
In fact, one of the main reasons guests may be inclined to leave before the end of the event is the unwelcome guest of every wedding-“boredom.” To avoid this, it is important to carefully plan the timing so as to ensure a continuous flow of interesting and engaging activities. For example, games, music, dancing, and other fun activities can be scheduled throughout the day, avoiding stalled moments.
Providing entertainment for all tastes
Even if the bride and groom have specific musical tastes, it is important to provide entertainment that can satisfy all guests. For example, a variety of musical genres can be provided during the evening, or activities can be organized to appeal to different age groups throughout the day. In this way, guests will feel involved and entertained throughout the day.
Creating a cozy atmosphere
The atmosphere of the wedding can affect guest satisfaction. To create a cozy atmosphere, you can use a combination of lights, decorations and furniture that create a romantic and cozy atmosphere. In addition, comfortable areas can be provided for sitting and relaxing, such as a lounge area or an outdoor smoking area.
The music aspect is also important and should be adapted to the different times of the day. Entrusting the music aspect to nonprofessionals can prove counterproductive for you and your guests, who hammered by excessive volumes or the classic resort entertainer or microphone who won’t stop talking, will soon decide to leave your wedding
These are just a few small tips that can make the difference between a general stampede at the end of lunch and a galactic evening party!
On our blog you can find other articles dedicated to taking care of the guests, how to prevent them from getting bored during the day and how to organize a bubbly party to make sure they have a spontaneous fun time, so I encourage you to read them because if you find yourself in the room used for the dance with only a few people it will be very difficult to get the party off the ground, the atmosphere will be decidedly sad and the slow dance of the bride and groom instead of sanctioning the beginning of the party that will indicate the end
The biggest fear of all newlywed couples when approaching to plan their wedding is always the usual one: “The success of the party” because they have been able to touch on such cases at times:
- Ballroom with a few friends who couldn’t wait to leave but out of friendship, or shame, as there were only a few left they didn’t feel like leaving the newlyweds.
- DJs who, despite the fact that there are few people on the floor, don’t try to turn it around and continue to mind their own business, chatting on their phones or drinking mojitos all the time; In the worst cases they start to take apart what they can by spinning a pre-mixed playlist…NO COMMENT
- Bitter bride and groom for spending a lot of money on the open bar, cigar and liquor corner, and dessert corner hoping to provide a pleasant service to the guests who, however, are no longer there.
- Bride and groom angry that they will have to pay a person who failed to get the party off the ground
- Negative comments from friends and relatives complaining that they had a boring, dull, and predictable day
I could go on for hours but what I want to ask is:
“Do you think these things can’t happen to you?”
“What do you plan to do to avoid such situations?”
Have you attended a wedding as a real guest?
If it hasn’t happened to you yet, this is a typical day that might lie ahead for you!
Waking up early for makeup, hair, dressing up and then going to visit the bride/groom at her parents’ home
Rushing to the church to witness the exciting ceremony then leaving again destination location chosen by the bride and groom.
I arrive at this beautiful location that greets guests with its magnificence gracefully adorned with trinkets and flowers;
Impressive welcome buffet with exquisite delicacies and lunch/dinner worthy of a king where each course provides a feast for the eyes and palate
In short, there are all the elements that bode well for the success of your wedding–except one.
Throughout the day, the entertainment aspect was left out, and the “DJ” fails to engage people in any way.
His figure is intangible, sometimes not even present in the room but sitting in the sofas waiting for the lunch/dinner to end so much in the room he has set up a box with the classic wedding playlist pre-packaged and replayed at every event.
Your guests are still sitting at the table, waiting for the fateful call to cut the cake, and upon its arrival the soap bubble that has been protecting you all along dissolves like snow in the sun.
You begin to notice that most guests, even the unsuspected ones, (except perhaps close friends) after the favor delivery shower you with compliments and begin to leave.
They would rather go home making a thousand pseudo-plausible excuses in order not to stay one more moment at your wedding that seemed perfect for you up to that point.
And it is at this very moment that a tremendous doubt assails you, a doubt that will challenge the whole day: “Why are our friends leaving? Did we do something wrong? Where did we go wrong?”
Such situations happen much more often than you might imagine.
But why do they occur?
Soon said:
1. You planned the area used for the evening party was too far away from where you set up the buffet of fruit, dessert, bitters and coffee so the guests didn’t feel like moving, or they will move but the first time they go to the open bar to quench their thirst or have a little something to eat, they won’t come back.
2. The dinner ended too late and your guests, after 12 hours of marriage, are exhausted and can’t wait to say goodbye; Add to this the distance, any children, dogs, elderly people to take home, work the next day etc. etc. etc.
3. Due to volume limitations for a thousand reasons, the evening party cannot be held outside, so the dance area will be set up inside, but it will be hot as hell that day. As the sun goes down, your guest can’t wait to savor the evening breeze from the comfort of the outdoor garden perhaps while drinking a thirst quencher! Do you think he might consider going into a closed, perhaps warm room and start sweating again?
4. The “DJ” you hired turned out to be an intangible presence throughout the day so your guests already have an idea of how the evening will go and have no intention of spending any more time at your wedding.
Planning, organization, strategic advice, artistic direction are all aspects that should be analyzed with a wedding specialist whose experience and knowledge can guide you in optimizing your wedding while avoiding making trivial mistakes that can ruin your most beautiful day.
You also need to put yourself in the guests’ shoes, and if you have experienced a wedding as a guest where you were bored, you need to try to work to reduce downtime and give the guests a chance to feel like they are an integral part of the day and not just knick-knacks being moved left and right all the time.
If you apply a few simple tricks, you will be able to get all the guests to stay until the end of the evening party, without them having to make excuses not to offend you and leave.
Remember to:
1. Choose a location with the dance area as close as possible to the area where you had the cake cutting. This way, your guests hearing the music or seeing someone start dancing will be more enticed to jump on the dance floor.
2. Give your guests a good reason to get up from their chairs and go to the ballroom. For example, announcing the bride and groom’s upcoming first dance or the video / pranks prepared by friends. These are small “ploys” to get all the people to the place where the evening party will begin.
3. Arrange the timing of your wedding so that you arrive at the start of the evening party at an acceptable time (count space for friends’ jokes and games into the day’s time line) so that any guests still have the “energy” to dance with you.
4. Choose a location where you can have music outside if you have chosen to get married on a summer date, perhaps under a porch, a barchessa or at the limit (if you really can’t) that the indoor rooms are air-conditioned but with sufficient capacity for the number of guests invited to the wedding or evening party.
5. Place the photo booth, open bar, beer keg, and sweet/savory corner near the dance area to allow anyone to get something to drink or eat without straying too far from the party area.
6. Provide seating around the dance floor if there are not already tables nearby or sofas to allow older people but also some friends to catch their breath after romping around the dance floor, or simply to watch the party while remaining comfortably seated.
That said.
I am convinced you have all the makings of a phenomenal evening party that will make your guests say DON’T WANT TO GO AWAY!!!
Your wedding needs to be special, and you need to find professionals who care about it as much as you do.
You cannot have all the knowledge and all the skills that a professional has gained over many years of working in the field so you need to find a person who can advise and help you realize your dream wedding and not someone who claims to be a professional and then tries to lead you to solutions that you have seen a thousand other times before, or to solutions that are more congenial to him.
I hope I have given you the knowledge of how to go about identifying a professional, but if you have the fear of making the wrong choice visit our website www.weddingsymphony.it and go to the contact page to book a consultation with our Paul and figure out how to make your big dream come true.
Remember that
“Marriage is a live movie. You can’t go wrong because you can’t buy a memory.”
We always say this to all our wedding couples.
A few simple tips combined with a dash of common sense in choosing a musician not just based on price will make your wedding a memorable event.
I am Paolo Furlan the first Wedding Music Planner in Veneto and founder of the Wedding Symphony music agency specializing in music for civil or religious ceremonies and music and entertainment for wedding receptions.
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