As outlined by the Attorney-General, the role of a marriage celebrant first-and-foremost is to ensure that everything is done according to the Marriage Act and the Marriage Regulations, and that all necessary steps are taken to ensure the marriage will be valid. With this in mind, it’s important that the marriage celebrant that you select has up-to-date knowledge of the guidelines and regulations, so that all requirements are met.  You can see an overview of the Marry Us process here: [Link: https://www.marryus.com.au/journey/].

The personality of the marriage celebrant will set the scene for the ceremony and ultimately the whole day. Consider the vibe you’re seeking and choose accordingly – Do you want fun or uber professional, energetic or formal, romantic or funny, or a combination?

It is important to consider the location of your ceremony, and the technology and PA system (if any) that your marriage celebrant provides. Whilst some ceremonial venues provide these systems, it is often the role of the celebrant or marrying couple to provide it, so firstly, check that they have one available. Additionally, you may wish to consider the specific equipment relevant to your venue. For example, an outdoor venue may require a more powerful sound system, better quality microphone, and if the marriage celebrant has corded equipment, access to power. At Marry Us, we see the importance of this and use a powerful Bose S1 Pro speaker and Sennheiser microphone; both of which are portable and wireless, with crisp sound and high volume options.

Every marriage celebrant is different, and each will provide for a different wedding day experience. The services available differ celebrant to celebrant. For example, the levels of ceremony personalisation and tailoring vary. If you want your ceremony to reflect you as a couple and be personalised, check with your celebrant if their ceremonies are out-of-the-box, or if the script is customised for each couple. At Marry Us, we use a questionnaire and interview to get to know the couples background, story and what they love about each other to personalise the full ceremony and love story.

On the day of your wedding, the last thing you want is a pen that’s run out of ink, a microphone with a dead battery, or legal paperwork that has been forgotten to be submitted. Of course these things can happen, but organisation and contingency plans are key to your ceremony’s success. A good measure of the organisation level of a marriage celebrant is to see how promptly they respond to enquiries, as well as asking about their contingency methods in place.