27 Dec Introducing Guesterly Custom Wedding Guide Service

I’m always on the look out for fun and novel elements that enhance the guest experience, and I think Guesterly is a great option.

Two years ago, Rachel Hofstetter — then a magazine food editor — wasn’t planning on launching a custom wedding guide service. She just wanted to plan her wedding (a destination affair in Cape May, New Jersey) and make her guests feel comfortable and excited about attending the event. Like all couples, she and her financé Lorne knew the best thing about their party was the people who would be there, and they wanted to connect the attendees right from the start.

Lorne recalled the Freshman Herald — a book sent to him by his alma mater Princeton before he arrived on campus — that contained a photo and the hometown of everyone in his incoming college class. It wasn’t long before the couple was updating the concept and giving their wedding guests the same treatment. And with that, the first Guesterly was born.

Needless to say, the guest guide was a huge hit, and soon Rachel and Lorne were fielding requests to create books for other people’s weddings.

As of early 2014, you can create your own Guesterly online. These about-the-size-of-passport mini magazines feature photos of your guests and whatever tidbit you think everyone should know about them. You can, of course, list just attendees’ names. Guesterly will import photos from your social media accounts to make things easy, or you can drop in pics from your personal collection.

The online service offers hundreds of styles and colors to choose from, or, if you like, a Guesterly designer will craft a custom book for you. All Guesterlys are reviewed and proofed by a staff designer who, if you like, will make suggestions on how to make your guide look even better.

The word of Guesterly is spreading: couples in places as far-flung as the UK, Russia and Dubai have used the service, with the average wedding party cataloged numbering about 150 to 175 people.

Whether you send a Guesterly out before your wedding, or include it in a welcome bag, I think this is one of the best ways to get the party started, while also making a wonderful keepsake of your day.

Check it out and let me know what you think!