Traditional registrar-led services in England and Wales remain the default for many couples — legally required, typically brief and formal.

By contrast, a celebrant-led ceremony brings together story, meaning, connection and is the emotional heart of the day.

As more and more discerning couples seek a ceremony experience that reflects their personality rather than simply ticking a legal box, the role of the wedding celebrant has now become a key differentiator to their amazing and unique day.

Couples love how they can now choose their own celebrant just like they can choose their wedding venue and wedding photographer.  Even if couples pay nearly £1,000 for registrars to do their legal paperwork at the venue, they'll have no idea who the council are sending until 20 minutes before the ceremony. There is no personal connection and no flexibility with the registrar's diary or timetable for the day.

According to Hitched.co.uk, searches for audio guest-books rose by around 29%, illustrated invitations by 22%, and custom wedding newspapers by 19%.
This confirms that couples want to embed their story in every element of the day — and that includes the ceremony itself.

• Emphasise early in your enquiry discussions with couples that the ceremony is their story, not simply a standard format. You can do "traditional" but you can also advise them on what else is possible and what they will feel comfortable with.

• Tell couples how you will work with them to share their key moments, themes and memories that they want to celebrate — couples love to share aspects of their life ... and you can help them craft their personalities and adventures into their music, readings and wedding rituals. 

• Every one loves personal wedding vows, and as a trained and experienced celebrant, you can help them to avoid cliches (and ChatGPT) by suggesting and co-creating their wedding vows with them. 

• Remind couples that because the legal registration happens separately, the celebrant-led ceremony can be relaxed and fun and focus entirely on meaning and emotion, not on the rules and legal compliance.

The 2026 Hitched Wedding Trends Report identifies a dramatic search-growth for elements such as basque-waist gowns (+333%) and “Bridgerton style weddings” (+191%).

These trends signal a revival of ceremony as theatre — for wedding celebrants, this means the ceremony moment itself can feel elevated, romantic, and distinctive.

• Frame your service as more than the wedding vows— you are creating a fun, magical, engaging and deeply romantic personal moment for the couple.
• Offer your couples a choice of celebrant tone, dress and voice that matches their aesthetic — whether that’s elegant, dramatic or classical.
• Ask your couples: “What atmosphere do you want at your ceremony?” so you can set the pre-ceremony announcements, the entrance, arrival and first moments with deliberate and creative intention.
• Because registrar ceremonies are lean and very functional, in your website and social media marketing, emphasise how your role delivers an experience, not just a boring set of formalities.

The Hitched 2026 Wedding Trends Report highlights “after-party vibes” and a broader move toward weddings as an experience, not just an event.

In this context, a celebrant-led ceremony plays a key role in anchoring the day and then guiding the flow.

• Offer to work with the couple on the transition out of the ceremony — e.g. guest instructions, setting guests up for the "confetti shot", timings for photos, drinks, garden games and the "wedding breakfast" and after‐party.
• Make clear that your ceremony is like an exquisite and fine starter of a meal, setting the standard and expectation for the main course and dessert that happens next.
• If you offer (or want to offer) a Master of Ceremonies service, highlight that as an additional option — many venues don't have one, and registrars wont do this.
• In your marketing, emphasise that you deliver the “moment the guests remember” rather than the “boring legal bit before guests hit the bar and the fun starts”.

The 2026 Hitched Wedding Trends Report identifies search growth for draped décor (≈ +60%) and serpentine tables (+50%) suggesting the visual moment of the day is being treated with even more attention than ever before.

While celebrants don’t do styling, you do need to ensure the ceremony space and format match the standard of the day.

• Offer a rehearsal or pre-meeting to work through the ceremony staging: where the couple stand, how the bridal/grooms party enters, how guests are seated — so the visual feels polished.
• Ask couples about their overall day styling and suggest small ceremony adjustments (entrance timing, processional music, involvement of attendants) so the ceremony isn’t mismatched.
• Make a point in your website/blog of emphasising that you deliver ceremonies that look as good as they feel — this is a differentiator from registrars. You will liaise with photographers and videographers before the ceremony to ensure that every memorable ceremony image they capture is perfect.
• Because the visual moment is part of what guests will  recall, underline that your training, experience and flexibility means the ceremony will deliver a picture-perfect moment.

• Never stop educating couples and wedding venues about the celebrant choice. Many UK engaged couples know about getting married in church or with registrars but thousands still don't know about the wedding celebrant option. Wedding venue staff who take bookings often bounce couples straight into contacting the local council. So you also need to educate wedding venue staff too about how celebrants are good for business. Why should a venue restrict their bookings  to the local council registrar capacity and diary. 
  
• Stress the value of your time with the couple (meetings, writing, rehearsal), and the difference that makes compared to meeting registrars just 20 minutes before the ceremony and a short 15 minute ceremony slot.
• Position yourself as the specialist in “memorable, meaningful ceremonies”. Make your messaging around emotion, story, experience.

To maximise the momentum heading into the engagement season, here are five action-points for you:

1. Update your website and blog to reflect the 2026 trends — emphasise your readiness to deliver hyper-personalised, drama-rich, experience-led ceremonies.
2. Plan your social media content (Instagram, TikTok, Facebook) around the four trends, creating short posts or reels such as: “Why 2026 couples choose a celebrant”, “What a Bridgerton-inspired ceremony looks like”, “From vows to after-party — how we help your guests move smoothly”.
3. Refresh your discovery questionnaire (that you send to couples that book you) so it explicitly asks: “What three words describe how you want your ceremony to feel?”, “How will your day flow after the ceremony?”, “What visual or music cues matter to you in the ceremony moment?”
4. Offer an optional rehearsal/Master of Ceremonies add-on service (entrance processional, family/bridal party positioning, guest transition) and highlight this in your marketing: today’s couples expect more than “say your vows and leave”.
5. Reach out to venues and allied suppliers (photographers, stylists, planners) with a short email or call emphasising your 2026-ready approach — the more aligned your celebrant service is with the rest of the wedding experience, the more they will refer you.