National Wedding Survey part 1 - Growing demand for celebrants

Hitched.co.uk, one of the UK's largest wedding planning sites, has once again completed one of their  National Wedding Surveys asking over 2,400 couples who got married in 2022 all about their wedding. 

In the first of five blog posts (not all at the same time), I shall share some of the headline results and consider what this might mean for the sales & marketing of a Wedding Celebrant business. 

The biggest headline for us must be that 19% of couples in the survey employed a Celebrant. This is an increase from 18% the year before. The numbers of couples having a church wedding fell once again, to a new low of 20%.

This left 61% of couples having a registrar-led ceremony. 12% had this in a registry office whereas 49% paid for registrars to come to their venue. 
So what does this mean to Celebrants? Well, I believe it is very encouraging. To me it shows how the growth in celebrant-led funerals and the decline in minister-led funerals is now irreversibly being echoed with wedding ceremonies. 

The difference clearly is the dominance of registrars in the civil wedding category. This is not unsurprising given the cultural links we have in the UK with marriage law and the wedding being on the same day.

In the UK, some people struggle with the concept of registering a legal marriage on a separate and different day to their wedding day. In many other cultures and places around the world, including when British couples have their weddings abroad, this is quite normal. The legal bit after all is identical for everyone and a bit dull. In cultures where weddings go on for days, of course the legal bit is done at another time. In other countries, getting your legal marriage certificate is almost as easy as popping into your local council office to register the birth of a child. However, in England and Wales,  registering a marriage is a more long and drawn out process.

The more people see and enjoy a celebrant-led wedding, the more they will experience what a difference a wedding celebrant can make to the start of their celebrations.  Getting the legal bits done separately means no restrictions on the words & music that can be used. So if the couple or family members would like a religious blessing,  then fine. The couple can plan the start of their ceremony when they like, and not be dictated by a registrar's diary. The ceremony can be located anywhere, whereas there are many restrictions with registrars. I even had one call this week from a despondent groom who was planning on having an owl deliver their wedding rings, only to find the council have said "no animals allowed".

Because the couple have got to know the celebrant beforehand , they will feel more at ease, more relaxed and will enjoy the ceremony. Because the celebrant will warmly welcome guests as they arrive and will write a ceremony that will include humour and fun, rather than the bit guests have to "grin and get through", instead, they can really enjoy the beginning of the wedding day, like a really good starter in a 3 course meal...not just bread!

If you have never delivered a wedding ceremony, there is nothing so wonderful than experiencing the love and happy reaction you get from guests afterwards. Regardless of their generation, it is likely to be the most beautiful and personal wedding ceremony they have ever seen. 

How should this data inform our marketing?

As wedding celebrants we are pioneers in a growing market. many people still do not know what a wedding celebrant is, the advantages and also how easily the legal obstacles and barriers can be sorted out. But it requires us to educate and inform the public, couples and their families. 

Every third social media post, whether on Facebook, Instagram or TikTok should be explaining the benefits of a celebrant-led wedding. Don't just explain what you can do, explain what a celebrant can do. Persuading couples that they would love a celebrant comes well before persuading couples that they would also love you. 

Have a look at how I do this on my website and on my social media posts. Keep it simple, keep it straightforward and repeat, repeat, repeat. If we all do this together, then the wedding celebrant market will continue to grow. Couples are discerning and will change their wedding plans if they see the real benefit to their day. 

In the Hitched National Wedding Survey 79% of couples said having happy guests was their biggest priority, having a wedding that is a true reflection of their relationship was the second most important part of wedding planning at 62%. Price and keeping within budget was the third most significant priority at 58% which is why I feel it is important to communicate to couples that wedding celebrants are a great value way of making your wedding day personal and amazing for your guests. 

In our next National Wedding Survey blog post we shall look at the data in terms of engagements and timings of weddings and what this means for our workload.
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