Writing a Good Speech
By: Dr. Rissy'S Writing
Tags: Writing Tips From Writers, Writing Tips, Great Speeches, Speechwriting, Copywriting Tips

We are aware that writing a speech might not be as easy as everyone thinks. Actually, even copywriters think too much when it comes to writing a speech because it isn’t something that you are going to put up on social media or on a website. It’s a completely different situation because you are going to deliver that speech to an audience.

The thing about speeches is that they usually have a time limit. You don’t want to tell a story that isn’t going anywhere or teach about something so quickly that most of your audience is not going to be able to understand.

That is why speeches need to be structured, and usually, you work through a presentation with all the bullets that you need to remember. This tool is amazing because it allows you to go through every point of your speech in a specific way.

First of all, pick your main ideas, the structure of your speech should have concrete points that you are going to be discussing. You can write them down or create a presentation with that structure. It is a good way to keep your ideas in order and together at the same place.

Then, make sure to use examples — people understand better when you are explaining things with examples since they are easier to visualize. If you are explaining how to run your own blog, then go to your personal blog and show the process, from picking the topics to writing everything down and post it. You will see how you will engage with the audience in a much better way.

Also, make sure to simplify your ideas. If you go round and round in circles around the same topic you will lose your audience’s attention. And you don’t want that to happen. A good piece of advice is to look at your first draft of your speech, go back and look for words or ideas that you can edit out.

And last but not least, make sure that in your speech you are able to connect with your audience. Use experiences to explain what you are talking about to make them feel relatable to you.

We decided to discuss this topic with the expert Elizabeth Fournier (@elizfournier) from The Green Reaper who gave us this valuable advice: “The audience knows if you are not speaking from your heart. The audience also knows if you are giving a speech versus speaking with passion. Create the speech by talking out loud in the video recorder on your phone or a recording device. The message truly needs to be in your own words, with your own voice.”

Make sure that others understand your passions, the reason why you are deciding to jump into a big audience, and let them know what you are thinking about. Following Elizabeth’s ideas, SJ (@SBSLEducSoltns) a Creative Educational Disruptor pointed out the importance of being equal, letting your audience know that you are one of them: “Speak to them as an edifier and NOT an expert. Americans are not historically fond of aristocratic/elitists — we fought two wars with Britain over our independence. When you write a speech, you clearly have something to say, impart, and share/inform them on/for: come across as edifying and not as a ‘know it all’ expert that talks down to them.

Lastly, Great Speech Writing (@Gr8SpeechWriter) said, “Put your audience first. Imagine you are listening. Be relevant. Be clear. Be empathetic. Don’t fall into the same trap as everyone else and list what you want to say — translate it into something that your audience will actually want to hear and remember.”

All these pieces of advice have something in common: empathize with your audience. We all have been on the other side of the story where we have to listen to long speeches, make sure yours stands out by putting your audience first.