Being a master of ceremonies is an important responsibility. Upon accepting the role you should immediately obtain from the organizers the following information:
Details of announcements to be made.
The pronunciation of the names of people you’ll be introducing, their connection to the event, and any other information the organizers want you to mention. (Write down the phonetic spelling of unusual names.)
The timing of everything on the agenda, including breaks..
You should arrive at the venue early and make sure that everything you need is there and in working order. If anything is amiss, inform the people who can correct it and monitor their progress.
Start on time and and keep on schedule.
Introduce yourself and explain your relationship to the event. If you’re just the master of ceremonies, that’s all you need to say. But if you’re also the vice-president of marketing of the organization sponsoring the event, or the bride’s uncle at a wedding, make that known right away.
Your job is not to make speeches, tell jokes, or make editorial comments. However, if a spontaneous, short, relevant, comment comes to mind, by all means use it. Your responsibility is to be confident, upbeat, positive and enthusiastic.
Wedding receptions are different because you may have to be the event manager as well as be the emcee. This could entail:
Making sure equipment (such as lights and sound, lectern, or slide show) is available and working.
Getting everyone into the room and seated. (You should deputize someone from both families to help you with this.)
Making sure you have all emails and other greetings to be read.
Getting the names, correct pronunciation, and home towns of all out-of-town guests.
Announcing when the formal portion of the event is over.
Your last task is to thank everyone for their participation.