The best man speech is an important part of any wedding. Here are a few best man speech ideas that should help you create a memorable one. You can also get 20 sample best man speeches, plus many other toasts, jokes, and ideas for bachelor parties by clicking here.

You don’t want to ramble. The most important thing is to have structure in your speech, so you don’t forget to say something that you’re supposed to. Modern weddings are much more flexible than in days gone by, so you’re going to want to talk to the bride and groom to find out exactly what they want from you if you’re the best man. Here is a sample best man speech structure that you can use – but don’t feel you have to use it exactly. Some of the sections are mandatory (like “Open the Speech”) while others are totally optional. These are just some ideas, use what you want, and reorder them if you want.

• Open the speech. Introduce yourself, and state how you know the groom. Be confident.
• Thank people. The typical ones that a best man would thank would be the ushers, and possibly friends and family. Ask the bride and groom if they want you to thank anyone in particular.
• Tease the groom. Now might be a good time to make the groom nervous, with the threat of embarrassing stories – it doesn’t mean you have to tell all (in fact, you definitely shouldn’t do that).
• Congratulate the bride and groom. Be sincere, and keep it quick!
• Admire the bride. It’s ok to get a dig in on the groom at this point, for instance “She looks so beautiful, I can’t see how she could agree to marry the groom”.
• Tell a joke or two. Hopefully a humorous anecdote about something you did with the groom in the past, or something cute about the bride and groom’s relationship, including how they met.
• Tell an embarrassing groom story. It’s ok, just don’t go too far, and leave any past relationships out of it.
• Get serious. Say how proud you are to be the best man, or how happy you are for them.
• Offer some advice. This can be joking, or serious – your choice.
• Close the speech. Wind it up. You can say how you’re relieved that it’s over, and thank the groom again. Also, now is the time to make any announcements.
• Propose a toast.

OK, there you go with a few best man speech ideas. You don’t have to use them all, but you can put it together and it won’t take too long! Need more help? Get 20 sample best man speeches, and some other great stuff like jokes and one-liners  at this wedding speech website.

You’ve been chosen out of everyone in the world to be the best man in someone’s wedding – and you’re scared to death because you have to give a speech – the best man wedding speech, to be precise. Chances are you’re just a young guy, best friend of the groom, and you’ve never had to do anything like this before. The most you’ve ever had to do for the guy is maybe drive him home one night after he’d had one too many beers at the neighborhood watering hole. And now this! How could he?

Well don’t despair – this is an honor, and there are resources to help you with your task of finding best man speech examples. Here are a few tips you can follow.

• Plan what you have to say. Though you want it to sound impromptu, it should be anything but. This is definitely not the time to wing it.
• Keep it short. Wedding guests are there to party, and they don’t want to listen to a long, drawn-out speech no matter how clever it is. Ten minutes max, closer to five is best.
• Start out with something simple and sincere – not a joke. You can slip in a couple of jokes later on, but for opening remarks you’re going to want to maybe say how the bride and groom met, or explain your relationship to the groom.
• Don’t drink too much. Stay sober and be responsible about what you’re saying. A drunken best man might bring out the raunchy jokes that can offend guests, especially the older friends of the families.
• Most of all be yourself – these people are your friends, and they want you to succeed. So just act naturally and everything will be ok.

There you go – five tips for creating a memorable best man speech. Just remember – have fun! For more ideas and even a bunch of best man speech examples, click here.