While you may not be able to please everyone in your wedding, you should try to make your wedding guests feel that their presence is truly appreciated as much as you can. So, to give you a heads up in preparing your wedding, here are some complaints wedding guests often make. Make sure to avoid having these problems in your big day!
It's natural for some guests to feel uneasy about the seating arrangement, especially if they are seated at a table with other people who they are unacquainted with. Worse is if they don't get along at all. If that's the case, then don't torture your guests with each other's presence. Seat those you know can have an interesting conversation and separate those with personalities you think may clash. It is also helpful to have at least one outgoing and sociable personality at a table of introverts. Be aware how your guests are related or connected to each other when you prepare the seat plan.
If you let your guests wait a long time before they can dine, or at least have some drinks, then expect some grumbling. Anticipate that your guests will be thirsty or hungry, or that they soon will be. Seek your coordinator's inputs on this and lessen the gaps between each part of the program and the meals. If you're serving a buffet, do what you can to avoid your guests from cueing too long. Let some members of your family or bridal party help you in welcoming the guests and making sure that the guests are not becoming impatient. Your guests will have nothing to say if you start on time with the ceremony as well as with your reception program.
This is a buzz starter for your guests, especially when it's bad music. When you've got good music playing, they'd rather enjoy themselves dancing and drinking. Bad music just ruins the ambience and experience of any occasion – and we're referring not just to the selection of songs but also about the acoustics of the place or how the music is played. Anything that echoes, has too much bass, or is too loud can be very distracting and discourage people from having pleasant interactions. Good music should be technically sound and make your guests feel good. Talk to your band or DJ and the venue's sound engineer to fix any problem with your audio system.
Bad food is just about the worst thing that can happen at your wedding banquet. Bad food will keep your guests talking about it even after the occasion. Food, after all, is one of the things that your guests will look forward to the most in the celebration of your wedding, and serving good food is the best way you can show your appreciation for their attendance. Secure the quality of your food by hiring a trusted or experienced caterer. Also, see to it that you have a taste test of each dish and that you know how they will be served to your guests. Ask your caterer if the food will be served in warmers and how they will keep the food palatable for hours.
Don't compete with any big community event or you'll end up letting your guests choose between your wedding or that event that they might really want to go to. And if you're having your wedding on a holiday, be sure to inform them way ahead of time before they can even plan anything for that day. It's best to inform your guests as soon as possible by sending them a save-the-date card so that they can make the proper arrangements with their schedules. Guests usually complain about a date when they have to postpone one over the other, so don't put them in that situation.
Offering a cash bar map open up a load of possible complaints from your guests. They might grumble about it even as they reach for their wallets to pay for a beer. You can either you give them an open full bar or just let the waiters serve them the drinks. Another option is to have a bar with free drinks that offers only a limited number of drinks for only a certain period during your banquet. But if you must open a cash bar at least indicate this on your invitation so that your guests will be informed ahead. It can be really disappointing for a guest who wants to enjoy a drink thinking it's free and only to find out he has to pay for it.
Your guests would really like to be able to interact with you on your wedding. They'd love to have a picture with you or chitchat with you during the banquet, so do find a time to check on each and every one of your guests. Let them feel that their presence is greatly valued at your wedding and how much you appreciate that they took the time and effort to come. When you greet them, reach out your hand for a handshake or even better embrace them or kiss them on the cheek this will make coming to your wedding more meaningful for them.
Yes, this is beyond your control. But when it happens you must be ready to shelter your guests and keep them comfortable in their dresses and suits. If your wedding happens on an extremely hot day, give out umbrellas or fans to your guests and have your wedding at an indoor venue with air conditioning or with proper ventilation. Serve cold drinks to keep them cool. If it's during a cold weather, keep them warm by serving hot choco or coffee. You don't want them to feel uncomfortable despite the effort to look their best on your wedding.
Any confusing detail on your invitation can cause inconvenience both for you and your guest. If you don't want kids running around at your wedding, indicate this politely in your invitation. Don't do this by bluntly disallowing your guests to tag their kids along, but through gracious ways such as by indicating the names of the specific persons you are inviting and requesting them to RSVP. This is also helpful in addressing the awkward "plus one" situation. Some guests might assume that they can bring a date to your wedding, even though you'd rather not have anyone you haven't met yet or are not very close with.
A dragging program will definitely get your guests mumbling about how long they still have to sit before they can go home. But that won't happen if you see to it that your program is well planned and tight in execution, free of any dead air, speeches that are too long, or an endless loop of photo montages. Show only what is important and cut the frills; make each part genuine but concise. You can request assistance from your wedding planner in seeing to it that the speeches are brief and that every speaker for the toast are ready to deliver on cue. Avoid having one talk after another because that will make your guests hungry and impatient not unless the speakers are engaging.
Now that you are informed of the common areas of complaints of wedding guests, make sure to avoid them from happening at your wedding. By doing this, you can have happy guests who will have only good things to say about your wedding.