3. Purposes of Introductions
In the first 10% of your speech, you must:
Get the Audience’s Attention
Introduce the Subject
Give the Audience a Reason to Listen
Establish Your Credibility
Preview Your Main Points
4. Methods for Developing Introductions
1. Use Illustrations or Anecdotes
2. Provide Startling Facts or Statistics
3. Use Quotations
4. Use Humor
5. Ask Questions
6. Refer to Historical Events
7. Use Personal References
5. Purposes of Conclusions
1. Summarize the Speech
2. Reemphasize the Central Idea in a Memorable
Way
3. Motivate the Audience to Respond
Persuasive: encourage audience to think a certain
way or take action
4. Provide Closure
6. Methods for Developing Conclusions
Can use the same techniques used for the
introduction (illustrations, quotations, etc.)
Very Important: Refer to the Introduction!
Issue an Inspirational Appeal or Challenge
Appropriate for persuasive speeches
8. Writing the Speech
Select Organizational Pattern
Select Main Points
Subdivide Main Points into Subpoints
9. Developing Your Speech
Topic Selection
General Purpose: To Persuade
Specific Purpose
Behavioral objective—the specific behavior you expect from
your audience
i
“At the end of my speech, the audience will be able to…”
Explain, list, describe, write (not understand, believe, know, feel,
etc.)
10. Central Idea (a.k.a. Thesis)
One-sentence summary of speech
Focuses on the content of the speech
Should communicate a single idea
Look for logical divisions (main points)
Look for multiple reasons why central idea is true or false
Look for a series of steps that supports the central idea
(chronological progression)
11. Example
Topic: Boycotting Bluth’s Original Frozen Banana Stand
General Purpose: To persuade
Specific Purpose: At the end of my speech, the audience
will be able to list the reasons why they should boycott
Bluth’s Original Frozen Banana Stand
Central Idea: Bluth’s Original Frozen Banana Stand poses a
hazard for the residents of Orange County and should be
boycotted
12. Develop Signposts
Transitions
Verbal—In addition to; Not only/as well; In other words;
Therefore; In summary
Nonverbal—A change in facial expression, a pause, an
altered vocal pitch or rate; can be used with or without a
verbal transition
13. Signposts, cont.
Previews
Initial Previews—Preview statements of what
the main points will be
Internal Previews—These introduce and outline
ideas or points that will be developed as the
speech progresses
Can be used as a transition
14. Signposts, cont
Summaries
Final Summary—Serves as a transition
between body and conclusion, and summarizes
the main points of speech
Internal Summary—Occur within speech; can
act as a transition. Are often used with internal
previews.
15. Supporting Material
Smoothly Incorporate Sources
State the point
Cite the source
Present the supporting material
Explain how is substantiates the point
17. Chronological
Good for step-by-step process or
historical events
Begin with a specific point in time, move
ahead or back from there
The principle of recency—the event
discussed last is the one that the
audience will remember best
18. Spatial
Organizes according to space or
physical relationship
Arranges ideas according to their location and
direction
Can progress up or down, east or west,
forward or backward
Ideas must be developed in logical order
19. Categorical
Arrange by distinct topics
Addresses
types
forms
qualities
aspects
Can organize in a variety of ways
Recency—highlights one point more than the others
Primacy—puts the most important or convincing point
first
Complexity—moves from simple to complex
20. Climactic
Simple to difficult, least to most, neutral
to intense
Effective for gaining audience agreement
or action
Can also reverse the pattern, from most
to least
21. Cause & Effect
Moves from cause to effect, or effect to
cause
Good to explain how an event unfolded
Chronology does not equal cause
Guard against over-simplification
Must be able to demonstrate that one event
actually caused something else to occur
22. Problem-Solution
Typically used in persuasive speaking
Speaker usually proposes a best solution
Reflective Thinking Sequence
Causes & extent of problem?
Effects of problem?
Criteria by which solutions should be judged?
Possible solutions (strengths & weaknesses)
Best solution?
Put into effect how?
Definition & limits of problems
23. Motivated Sequence
1. Attention—get listeners’ attention
2. Need—establish problem or issue and convince
audience of the need for change; demonstrate that
this need affects audience directly
3. Satisfaction—identify how your plan will satisfy the
need and explain solution
4. Visualization—use positive visualization to explain
how great life will be after your solution is
implemented, or use negative visualization to show
how terrible life will be if it is not
5. Action—tell audience the specific action(s) they must
take to implement solution
25. Visual Aid: PowerPoint
Be careful when using sensitive images (9/11,
natural disasters, etc.)
Do not use images that are too small or
distorted
Be sure to label charts and graphs
Only use relevant images and/or visual
representations of data
Avoid the use of sound effects and animations
26. Typeface
Serif = includes small flourishes or
strokes at the tops and bottoms of each
letter.
Examples:
Times New Roman, Courier New,
Garamond, Book Antiqua.
27. Typeface
San Serif = more block like and linear
do not have the small flourishes or strokes.
Examples:
(Arial Narrow, Verdana, Century
Gothic).
28. Font
The size of the typeface.
12 pt.
24 pt
36 pt
48 pt
For PowerPoint presentation you want to use a
font of 24 or larger.
29. 8 x 8 Rule
No more than eight words across.
No more than eight lines down.
30. Backgrounds
Keep the background color constant
If you use color, limit the number of
colors you use to two or three (4 max)
31. Colors
Bold/ bright colors emphasize important
points (yellow, red and orange)
Soft colors de-emphasize less important
areas of the presentation (for example
background colors)
It is easier to read dark colors on a light
background
