The joy of handpicking and carefully curating a wedding album is fast becoming obsolete. With Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter taking over our lives and social sphere, wedding photos, videos, and even comments are up before the end of the ceremony!
Tapping on the trend of taking control of social media publicity of a wedding, many a luxury hotels and resorts like the W group of hotels offer the services of a Social Media Wedding Concierge, who will create hashtags and live tweet your wedding for $3,000. A similar social media craze took over Indonesia in recent years, as reported by Bridestory—the largest online wedding marketplace in Southeast Asia, where couples spare no expense on photographers and editors to get millions of likes on Instagram.
It is easy to get carried away with the trend of sharing the most important day of your life with the world with the click of a button, so we approach UK-based Social Media Weddings— the world’s first full professionally-run social media weddings service for their opinion. Mark Saxby, the director of the company who build social media portfolios for all their clients, shares with us the dos and don’ts of wedding social media etiquettes for hosts and guests, before hitting the “share” button.
DO use social media to bring the guests together. “It’s not easy to go to a wedding where you hardly know anybody. So set up a Facebook Group and invite all the guests to join. Ask them to share their stories of how they know you so they can get to know each other before the wedding. It’s a great way of breaking the ice.”
DON’T issue a blanket ban on social media. “It’s not a great way to start a celebration – with strict rules. Your guests won’t thank you, so instead of banning posting, ask your guests to delay sharing their photos until the next day. That way you get the chance to get the best pictures out first on your profiles.”
DO consider those who can’t make it to your wedding. “Social media makes it possible to share your big day with so many people. You can now stream your wedding vows across the world via Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. When Will Diggins and Zoe Anastasi married in Nottingham, UK, they wanted their family in Italy and Cyprus to be able to join in. They broadcast their wedding via Periscope and more than 400 people watched it.”
DON’T set up an unchecked social media wall. “It’s great to allow your guests to post their photos onto screens around your wedding reception but make sure someone responsible is approving them first! A colleague once saw a hashtag hijacked by people who weren’t guests and uncomplimentary tweets started appearing in giant letters on the social media wall – ouch!”
DO leave your mobile phone at home. “I went to one wedding where the bride pulled out her phone from her bustier! No, no, no! Your wedding day flashes by so quickly and you don’t want to miss a thing. That means going without looking at a screen for a whole day – if you can!”
DO remember that not everyone’s like you. “Just because you’re obsessed with being on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and the rest, it doesn’t mean your guests will feel the same. Make sure they won’t feel excluded and give them other ways to share their thoughts on your day – well wishes books, photo booths, etc. Don’t spoil their day with social media!”
DON’T expect guests to use your wedding hashtag unless you tell them about it. “Hashtags are fine but they need to be promoted extensively to let people know about them. If a hashtag is really that important to you, put reminders on the tables, put it on the walls, and send it in the invitations.”
DO have your camera phones ready to capture those little moments. “The bits the bride and groom won’t see. Such as the bridesmaids playing or the father-of-the-bride looking proud. Our photographer captured one of the younger guests asleep in the church during the first Social Media Wedding – something the bride and groom would never have been aware of.”
DON’T post blurred photos “…of the bride and groom onto social media – particularly ones that don’t flatter the bride. The last thing the new wife wants to see are terrible photos of her spread over Facebook and Instagram when she’s settling into wedded bliss. Pick only your best photos to post.”
