Make sure you have finished speaking before your audience has finished listening.

-Dorothy Sarnoff

Speech is reason's brother. -M.F. Tupper

DESIGNING YOUR PERSUASIVE SPEECH Steve Iman, College of Business, Cal Poly Pomona Persuasive speaking urges us to do something. Persuasive speakers lead, evoke emotions and ask for audience commitment. Sometimes persuasive speeches are aimed at earning passive agreement, as in persuading an audience of the importance of some policy, value, or service. At other times, persuasive speeches aim for personal action, as in getting people to join an organization, buy a product or service, or support a cause. Methods of Persuasion People have been trying to influence one another for a long time. Maybe one of the most articulate early speakers was the Greek Philosopher, Aristotle. His ideas are as relevant today as they were when he was teaching at the Lyceum around 300 B.C. He thought there were basically three ways to influence people: Ethos (establishing personal credibility), Pathos (appealing to the audiences emotions), and Logos (appeal through logic). Appealing to logic may be the hardest persuasive technique for the speaker to use. What's important here is the construction of valid arguments and the development of relevant "support material." Three types of support material commonly used include examples, statistics, and testimony (others include: Description, Comparison/ Contrast, Definition, Division/Classification, Explanation, Analogy, Illustration, and Specific Case). Examples are useful in clarifying, reinforcing, or personalizing ideas. These could involve case studies or anecdotal examples- slices of life to prove the point. Ethically, you should help your audience gauge the credibility of your sources, the representativeness of examples and samples, etc. Using examples without other types of support material can come across as weak evidence. Statistics can help. Combing them with examples can be powerful. Using too many statistics can be deadly. You should qualify the sample, translate the statistics that you use so the audience can understand fairly. Relevant visual display of statistics can be a powerful aid in making an argument. Personal testimony can also provide dramatic support material. Testimony can give emotional life to the issues you're focusing on. You should of course quote or paraphrase accurately and fairly, identify and qualify the source's credentials. It is important, also, to provide the audience with some kind of visual aid. Many people respond much better to something they can see rather than five minutes of talking. Be it only a blow-up photograph, you should provide the audience with some kind of visual aid. -Demonstrate audience analysis and understanding. Make relevant, direct contact with audience - why does it matter? -Construct a logical case with evidence in support of what you're trying to sell -Make effective transitions between ideas -Close with a memorable summary, perhaps request a specific act or action from the audience. Be declarative, maybe firm and demanding in your close.

YOUR PERSUASIVE SPEECH SHOULD FIND A RELEVANT SOCIAL, ENVIRONMENTAL, POLITICAL, ECONOMIC, OR ETHICAL PROBLEM, AND PRESENT A SOLUTION TO IT, CALLING THE AUDIENCE TO ACTION.

MONROES MOTIVATED SEQUENCE Monroe's motivated sequence is a technique for organizing persuasive speeches that inspire people to take action. It was developed in the mid-1930s by Alan H. Monroe at Purdue University. It consists of five steps: I. Attention Get the attention of your audience using a detailed story, shocking example, dramatic statistic, quotations, etc. II. Need Show that the problem about which you are speaking exists, that it is significant, and that it won't go away by itself. Use statistics, examples, etc. Convince your audience that there is a need for action to be taken. III. Satisfy You need to solve the issue. Provide specific and viable solutions that the government or communities can implement to solve the problem. IV. Visualization Tell the audience what will happen if the solution is implemented or does not take place. Be visual and detailed. V. Action Tell the audience what action they can take personally to solve the problem. The following explanation of Monroe's Motivated Sequence is the original work Karisa Workman, an instructor at the University of Central Florida. 1. Attention: Hey! You have a PROBLEM! 2. Need: Let me EXPLAIN the problem. 3. Satisfy: But nobody has a good SOLUTION! Here is mine. 4. Visualization: If we IMPLEMENT my solution, this is what will happen. Or, if we don't implement my solution, this is what will happen. 5. Action: You can help me in this specific way. Will you help me? The advantage of Monroe's Motivated Sequence is that it emphasizes what the audience can do. Too often the audience feels like a situation is hopeless; Monroe's motivated sequence emphasizes the action the audience can take. YOUR PERSUASIVE SPEECH OUTLINE I. Begin with an Attention Step that is an opening statement of interest (use one or more of the following): A rhetorical question A startling statement A quotation An illustration or story A reference to the subject A reference to the occasion

Motivate audience interest in your subject by alluding to: (use one or more of the following): -The practical value of the information for your audience -A reason to listen -The audiences sense of curiosity Establish your credibility (Ethos) by: Alluding to any first-hand experience you may have had Alluding to sources of information you have consulted Provide orienting material by: (use one or more of the following): Previewing main points Defining any technical terms that you will be using

II. The Need Step There are potentially two kinds of needs (your speech uses one of these): To urge a change-point out whats wrong with present conditions To demand preservation of present conditions-point out the danger of a change The Need Step is developed by: Illustration: Tell of one or more incidents to illustrate the need Ramifications: Employ as many additional facts, examples, and quotations as are required to make the need convincingly impressive. Pointing: Show its importance to the individuals in the audience. III. The Satisfaction Step presents a solution. The Satisfaction Step is developed by (use one or more of the following): Statement of solution: a brief statement of the attitude, belief, or action you wish the audience to adopt. Explanation: Make sure that your proposal is understood. Theoretical demonstration: show how the solution logically and adequately meets the need pointed out in the need step, point-by-point! Practical experience: actual examples showing where this proposal has worked effectively or where the belief has proven correct. Meeting objections: forestall opposition by showing how your proposal overcomes any objections which might be raised. IV. The Visualization Step: The visualization step must stand the test of reality. The conditions you describe must be at least realistic. The more vividly you make the situation seem, the stronger will be the reaction of the audience. There are three methods of visualizing the future. (use one or more of the following): Positive: Describe the conditions if your solution is actually carried out. Picture the listeners in that situation actually enjoying the safety, pleasure, or pride that your proposal will produce. Negative: Describe conditions if your solution is not carried out. Picture the audience feeling the bad effects or unpleasantness that the failure to effect your solution will produce. Contrast: Combination of 1 and 2. Begin with the negative method (undesirable situation) and conclude with the positive method (desirable solution). V. The Action Step: developed by (use one or more of the following): Restatement of main idea and summary of main points. Statement of specific action or attitude change you want from the audience. A statement of your personal intent to take the course of action or attitude recommended. A concluding statement to recapture interest (a reason to remember).

MEMORIZATION/VISUALIZATION Once youve written and finalized your speech and visual aids, memorization is the next step. All speakers are different-some use note cards, some read word-for-word (especially politicians), some improvise, but the VERY BEST speakers have their speeches completely memorized. Every word or almost every word, with very little room for improvisation. Memorizing a four-minute speech will not take a very long time, but it will provide you with the confidence that youll need in order to speak to an auditorium full of people and convince them to do something. This is an immensely important process, and should not be taken lightly.

Tips For The Delivery Of Your Speech

Know your Material. Practice your speech and revise it if necessary. Memorize it completely. Practice in front of groups. Big groups. If you're not familiar with your material or are uncomfortable with it, your nervousness will increase. Visualize yourself giving your speech. When you can visualize yourself as being successful, you will be successful. Know the room. Be familiar with the place in which you will speak. Arrive early, walk around the speaking area and practice using the microphone and any visual aids. Greet some of the audience as they arrive. It's easier to speak to a group of friends than to a group of strangers. Make eye contact! As much as you can! Be connected to your audience: include them. Relax. Breathe. Focus your attention away from your own anxieties, and outwardly toward your message and your audience. Your nervousness will dissipate. Turn nervousness into positive energy. Harness your nervous energy and transform it into vitality and enthusiasm. Move during your speech. All stage position changes should have a purpose. Speak in a clear, strong voice Realize that people want you to succeed. They don't want you to fail. Audiences want you to be interesting, stimulating, informative, and entertaining. Don't apologize. Pronounce all words, especially key words, correctly. Very few things ruin your personal credibility as much as not pronouncing your topic correctly. That person obviously doesnt know what he/she is talking about. Keep them awake The one thing you don't want is for them to fall asleep! But make no mistake public speaking arenas are designed to do just that: dim lights, cushy chairs, not having to open their mouths - a perfect invitation to catch up on those zzzzs. Asking them rhetorical questions Being provocative Being challenging Changing the pace of your delivery Changing the volume of your voice When you make an important point, pay attention to the people who are nodding in agreement and the ones who are frowning in disagreement. As long as you are creating a reaction in your audience you are in charge. Mistakes Mistakes are all right. Everybody makes them. Recovering from mistakes makes you appear more human. Good recovery puts your audience at ease - they identify with you more. Humour Tell jokes if you're good at telling jokes. There's nothing worse than a punch line that has no punch. Gentle humour is good in place of jokes. Self-deprecation is good, but try not to lay it on too thick. Tell Stories Stories make you a real person, not just a deliverer of information. Use personal experiences to bring your material to life. No matter how dry your material is, you can always find a way to humanise it. How to Use the Public Speaking Environment Try not to get stuck in one place. Use all the space that's available to you. Move around. One way to do this is to leave your notes in one place and move to another. All movements should have a purpose. Technology Speak to your audience not your slides. Your slides are there to support you not the other way around. Ideally, slides should be graphics and not words (people read faster than they hear and will be impatient for you to get to the next point). If all the technology on offer fails, it's still you they've come to hear. Know your subject.