Speechy Founder Shares Tips in Her Book “The Modern Couple’s Guide to Wedding Speeches”

The Short Version: Speechy is a wedding speech service led by Heidi Ellert-McDermott and a team of wedding speech-writing experts. Speechy is based in the U.K. but serves clients all over the world. Speechy offers templates, speech writing advice, and bespoke services that bring the speechwriter through every step until the wedding day. Heidi’s new book, “The Modern Couple’s Guide for Wedding Speeches,” helps modern-day couples find a wedding speech format that feels right.

It’s the big day. The dress has been photographed, the aisle has been walked, and the vows have been spoken. The posed photographs of the day are done, and the fiancées are now spouses. Finally, it’s time for the best part of a wedding – the party.

Yummy dishes and delicious cocktails are a few of my favorite parts of the wedding reception. Whether it’s a DJ or a live band, the music sets the tone for the party, and the dance floor fills with college roommates, childhood friends, grandparents, and little nieces and nephews.

It’s during the party that one of the highlights of the wedding takes place – the speeches. Traditionally, the best man and the maid of honor give toasts. Now imagine: The whole wedding day has gone beautifully, the ceremony was incredible, the party is bumping, and then the best man gets up for his speech and reminds everyone (grandparents and littles included!) of the groom’s sexual escapades in college.

Oof.

That’s where Speechy and its founder’s new book, “The Modern Couple’s Guide to Wedding Speeches,” come in. Speechy is a team of wedding speech writers and experts ready to help wedding day guest speakers deliver the best speech possible on the big day.

Speechy founder Heidi Ellert-McDermott talked to us about the service and her new book. “The Modern Couple’s Guide to Wedding Speeches” brings wedding speeches into the 21st century for couples who aren’t going the traditional route. “After I gave my own wedding speech, I realized it was one of my favorite parts of my wedding day,” Heidi said. “I got to make everyone laugh and thank everyone that was important to me.”

After Heidi gave her wedding speech, she knew how special the moment of a toast was. The same year that Heidi and her husband married, they attended many weddings for friends and family. Heidi said she heard her fair share of mediocre wedding speeches.

“I saw some speeches that were the stereotypical car crash speeches,” Heidi said. “The typical trend of telling inappropriate jokes and the like.” But Heidi also heard speeches that were perfectly appropriate but quite boring. These speeches felt impersonal and as if they had been taken, unchanged, from an online article with wedding speech ideas.

While these speeches weren’t excellent, Heidi knew she had a leg up on everybody else who had given a speech that wedding season. Heidi is a writer and has worked in television writing for a long time. She knew what was funny to a large, mixed audience and had confidence in her writing ability. 

Heidi said she felt there was definitely a market for wedding speech help. She said she knew that people who are asked to give toasts want to write meaningful and memorable speeches but don’t have the necessary tools.  Heidi said she also knew a lot of other writers from her time working in television, who were just as confident and funny as she is. Soon, they joined the Speechy team.

With a viable market and strong team, Speechy was founded eight years ago. The service began as a U.K.-only service but has grown to serve clients globally. “It’s just grown and grown,” Heidi said. “The United States is probably our biggest client market now. But we work with people in Australia, Africa, loads of different places.” 

Speechy is making the wedding speech more attainable than ever. The team works with clients to help them develop a wedding speech that is personal yet appropriate, funny yet meaningful, and most importantly – memorable. 

Speechy and Heidi’s new book is all about showing that wedding speeches don’t have to be traditional. Many weddings are traditional, with the toasts reserved for the best man and maid of honor. While going this route is great, wedding speech services should take into consideration wedding parties whose make-up looks a little different.

Heidi said she felt that so much of the online advice for wedding speeches was outdated and didn’t consider modern couples. Gay, lesbian, queer, and nonbinary couples will have different needs when it comes to a wedding speech. Those who desire to break tradition still need some tips for speaking on their wedding day.

“The Modern Couple’s Guide to Wedding Speeches: How to Write and Deliver an Unforgettable Toast” is Heidi’s newest book. This book is for modern couples – straight, gay, or anything in between – who want the speeches given on their wedding day to be memorable for the right reasons. With the abundance of online resources, there’s no longer a good excuse for bad toasts.

While there are many online resources for guest speakers, Heidi said this could be a downfall for a wedding speech. “The biggest mistake I see is people going on Google and just blindly looking for inspiration. The humor doesn’t come from the reality of the couple, it’s usually just some cheesy wedding gag,” Heidi said.  

In the book, Heidi explores how to create positive humor that feels personal. She reminds readers of modern speech etiquette and gives them tips on how to curate their best material. “The Modern Couple’s Guide to Wedding Speeches” also teaches simple speech writing techniques to help them craft unique and sentimental lines. 

The book helps modern couples tackle the tradition of wedding speeches. Heidi’s book gives them room to make the toasts part of the wedding day, all while delivering great speeches. Weddings look very different than they did 50 years ago, and Heidi said that the best wedding speeches make sure to keep up with the changes. 

If couples or guest speakers feel they need extra resources after reading Heidi’s book, Speechy is the spot. Speechy offers speech templates, advice, and customized speechwriting services. Every service offered by Speechy is developed by a team of experts who are well-versed in the art of writing and delivering the wedding toast.

Speechy’s website offers free tips for all kinds of speakers. There are tips for joint speeches, maid of honor speeches, gay groom speeches, and lesbian bride speeches. Regardless of who someone is in the life of the people getting married, Speechy has some advice for giving a speech at a wedding. These articles offer expert advice for free.

Speechy’s speech templates are the most affordable option for speech writing help. Each Speechy template has an interactive PDF that asks wedding day speakers plenty of questions to help them write personal speeches. Speakers can also choose from a variety of speech styles. Each template comes with loads of tips and reminders of speech etiquette. 

Speakers who need more guidance can take advantage of Speechy’s bespoke speech services. Speechy offers a speech writing service that takes the speakers through the entire writing process. There’s also a speech editing service and a delivery coaching service. Need some extra help with the vows? Speechy also offers vow and ceremony writing services.

Most married folks attest that their wedding day is one of the most memorable, important, and love-filled days of their lives. A great wedding speech online makes this monumental day all the more memorable and love-filled. “A speech brings depth, personality, and a sense of connection. Nobody leaves a wedding talking about the decor or the flowers. They may think that was nice, but a good wedding speech can be remembered and talked about for a long time,” Heidi said.