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You have an issue which you feel the urgency to put across to the mass, and you want to make sure that the issue being brought up creates a long-term effect on the human perceptions and makes them feel the urgency the way you do.

This is what persuasive speech is all about.

It is important that the persuasive speech that you wish to present comes across as a thought-provoking and, if possible, one that could change minds. This is where proper planning and presentation comes into the picture.

So let us look at the tips that you would need to know to produce and deliver an unforgettably effective persuasive speech.

1. Come up with a suitable persuasive topic for the speech. Try to be more observant of the issues surrounding the community or the world that can serve as prospective topics for your persuasive speech.

2. Never produce an extremely long-winded speech, but not an extremely brief one either. As long as you can put across the main message of the speech and the contents that you intend to bring up, and support it with facts and figures, that would be sufficient to engage the audience. It should roughly be limited to about three or four minutes.

3. Know who you are delivering the speech to. You need to know who your target audience are, and what are the current trends and issues arising among them. In this way, you would be able to determine a topic that you think can grab their attention, and plan carefully on how to go about delivering the topic to them.

4. Utilize examples that are more closely ‘connected’ to the target audience. For instance, if you wish to talk about how a business should maintain its profitability and reputation, you can talk about a small cafe or food stall around your neighbourhood that has been operating its business for many years.

5. Support your speech contents with sufficient and first class evidences. Extensive researches and gathering of facts and statistics would definitely facilitate the effectiveness of your speech delivery. Do remember to emphasize on your sources of information too (websites, magazines etc.).

6. Show that you are opened to different opinions of the topic. For every issue that arises, there would be some people who agree with you and others who do not. So in your speech, even if you are for the issue, do take into consideration those who are against it. This can prevent some people from ‘walking away’ after hearing you out. In fact, if they can see your openness to their opinions, perhaps they too can keep their minds opened to the issue as well. After all, it is a persuasive speech, not a debate. Your aim is not to compete with them, but to find a common ground with them.

7. Be precise in delivering your contents. Let the audience know that you are very well aware of what you are conveying to them. Also, do it with full confidence and sincerity. If you do not believe in your contents, they will not believe you either.

8. Conclude your speech by asking your fellow audience to take action. Remember, you are not telling a bedtime story. You are persuading them to do something about the issue you have brought up. Hence, such a conclusion is mandatory in a persuasive speech.

Follow these tips, and you would be all set to present your topic, persuade your audience, and maybe, make a whole lot of difference to the community and the world!

-Nafa Danfad