{Guest Post} Caution: Grooms at Work
In 2007 our homey Chris Easter co-founded a little site called TheManRegistry.com. In just 3 years it has become the web’s leading source for groomsmen gifts, content and wedding vendor listings geared to the groom’s perspective. His site is so bad-ass that Chris was recently named one of the top 30 entrepreneurs under the age of 30 by Inc. Magazine. Chris is a good friend of ours and we are very psyched to have him share some of his planning wisdom with your man. After you read some of his tips here, you can check out more of his blogging flava’ at GroomsAdvice.com.
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If the last few years in the wedding industry have taught me anything, it’s that grooms are flat-out trying to shed the “innocent bystander” tag that they’ve been unfairly assigned over the years. Let’s get one thing straight. Grooms have always cared about their weddings. However, not until recent years, has the wedding industry and blogosphere picked up on it. With the influx of real groom bloggers, more companies directly marketing to grooms and more and more guys customizing various aspects of their wedding – the secret is out.
I’m often asked by brides about the best areas of wedding planning for their guy to take charge of. In no particular order, here are a few favorites:
Transportation
Simply put: guys dig cars. And whether it’s a vintage Rolls Royce, a stretch Escalade or dual crotch rockets, there are literally countless options for being creative with the choice of car that will carry you away after the wedding.
Planning the Rehearsal Dinner
This is, of course, a very broad topic. The rehearsal dinner is traditionally a responsibility of the groom and his family. It’s also a perfect opportunity for his inner-event planner to shine. When I got married, I dove headfirst into the rehearsal dinner because I really wanted to leave a personal mark on the wedding festivities. We held the event at The Boulevard Brewery in Kansas City (my favorite beer) and had the event catered by Jack Stack BBQ (my favorite BBQ). The event was a hit because everyone in attendance appreciated the effort that was put into personalizing it… and it was a hell of a lot of fun! I challenge all grooms to aim for the same.
Paperwork and legalities
Guys are the responsible ones, right? OK OK. I’m a guy and I can even say that this statement is almost never true. However, we do like thinking we’re being responsible and important. That’s why handling the organization, filing and paying of all pertinent legal documents and fees is a great job for the groom. The business of getting married can require quite a paper trail – so be aware of your local/state rules on marriage licenses. Other topics to research include the changing of name(s), adding your spouse’s name to necessary accounts, agreements and whether or not your church requires pre-marital counseling.
Wedding website/blog
Managing the wedding website or wedding blog is another unique way for today’s tech-savvy grooms to get involved in planning. Even if he’s not a programming wiz, there are countless websites that offer free wedding website templates where couples can post their wedding info. Some grooms have even taken it a step further by starting blogs that detail their foray into the wedding planning world.
Entertainment
Not to stress you out, but wedding entertainment will make or break the reception. This is why it’s key to hire the right DJ or band. Grooms will often step up to the plate and take on the responsibility of interviewing/auditioning potential vendors. Why? Because it’s fun. In most cases, you can actually go and /listen to the DJ/band perform. Grooms are natural partiers, so it’s often easy for them to look at a performer once and envision how they will handle the crowd at your wedding. My advice to brides: just let him go with it. Us men know what we’re doing.
Of course I always recommend the bride and groom sharing responsibilities and discussing all of those fun little details – but the above list is a great starting point for doling out responsibilities. I hope it comes in handy. Cheers!
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What are your thoughts on these or other tasks that can be delegated to the groom? Let us know in the comments section below.
WOW! This so very helpful. Thank you, thank you. I was just thinking today about how my man could help me out, and this is perfect!
<3 LOVE IT
I had two responsibilities. The preacher & the music.
One week till wedding, still no preacher. (groom failure)
I was about to get one of my buddies to do it.
@Hans – all I can say is don't make your bride take care of it! A week is long enough to find a preacher, you can do it! I'd volunteer,but I have no idea where you are.
I completely agree with this post. My fiance and I delegated wedding tasks by who would be best at each one. I took over decor and flowers since I am creatively inclined, and he took over transportation and entertainment since he is more tech/car savvy. We both delegated all the other wedding tasks together, and we definitely checked with the other person before signing any contracts. The rest of our life we are going to be sharing together, so why not share the wedding planning together?
Great article!
Finally an acknowldgement that guys want to be a part of their own wedding! I'm so sick of reading "top three things you can trick your guy into planning: one – cars! oooh cars! two – honeymoon! three – bachelor party!" I mean, seriously. My groom and I planned pretty much the entire thing together, but if one person did more than the other, it was probably him. I imagine that there are some guys less inclined to plan a wedding, but even then… I mean, the guy asked her to marry him and presumably cares about marriage, and holy crap if he can't make a few more decisions than bachelor party… sheesh.
I love this post. My fiance has been so determined not to be the stereotype, and some of our best wedding details have come from his brain. (Um, we're having an air hockey table at our cocktail hour. He's basically a genius.) Keep it up grooms-to-be!