Effective speakers are often a delight to watch and listen to. Their impressive confidence and demeanor can leave an audience in awe. Indeed, the success of a public speech heavily relies on the speakers themselves. Yet a speaker needs more than guts or charm to capture attention and win approval. One of them is the message of the speech itself.
Even the wittiest speaker can sound boring with a bland or incoherent message. Thus, knowing how to write a compelling speech is one of the most important skills to develop if you wish to be a great public speaker. The following lists five steps that can guide aspiring speakers in crafting an impactful message:
Know your audience.
Your first concern should be about the people who will make up your audience. Among other things, you want to know their age-range as well as social and economic backgrounds. This is because the information you will gather will ensure that the speech you will compose will be relevant to the experiences and concerns of your listeners. Having a clear idea about your audience will also help you set the tone of your message.
Define your goal.
Are you delivering a speech to educate, to persuade, or to entertain? This is one question that needs an answer to be able to compose a well-written speech. Setting clear goals will help you outline the essential factors that should be present in your speech. It is likewise an important step to decide on the key messages of your speech. Without clear aims in mind, your message may likely stray from one topic to another and in the end, confuse the listeners
Do your research.
To make a point, a great speech often needs to present facts and figures. This information makes a speech more credible and interesting. However, coming up with essential information can only be done by thoroughly researching and studying. It also includes checking and rechecking facts to avoid spreading wrong or false information.
Prepare a powerful conclusion.
A good speech may fail to create the impact you want if it has no strong conclusion. It can also leave the audience hanging or wondering about the message you are trying to impart. A good conclusion also ensures that you accomplish the goals of the speech. You can end it with a brief summary of your message or a set of actions that you want your audience to do.
Public speaking is a skill that can take you places as it opens opportunities in many fields. It also gives a great edge over others since not everyone can boast of having the guts to stand in front of a crowd and give a speech. Yet keep in mind that mastering the art of public speaking takes a lot of practice and preparation.
