PUBLIC RELATIONS370February 28, 2011

LET’S TALK SPEECHWRITING

SPEECHWRITINGAUDIENCE RESEARCH

•WHO

•WHAT

•WHEN

•WHERE

•HOW MANY PEOPLE

SPEECHWRITINGAUDIENCE RESEARCH

•WHAT TIME OF DAY

•LENGTH

•WHAT IS THE PURPOSE

•WHO ELSE IS TALKING

SPEECHWRITINGLAYING THE FOUNDATION

•OBJECTIVE

•APPROACH

•STRATEGY

NONE OF THIS CAN BE DONE IF YOU DON’T KNOW THE SPEAKER’S STYLE

SPEECHWRITING

NONE OF THIS CAN BE DONE IF YOU DON’T KNOW THE SPEAKER’S STYLE

•PODIUM

•POWERPOINT

•HOW GOOD ARE THEY IN FRONT OF A GROUP?

•ONCE YOU KNOW WHAT YOU’RE DEALING WITH, CREATE AN OUTLINE THAT MEETS THE OBJECTIVES YOU OUTLINED

SPEECHWRITING NUANCES•USE PERSONAL PRONOUNS

•AVOID JARGON

•USE ROUND NUMBERS

PUBLIC SPEAKING IS BASED ON THE IDEA OF CONVERSATION. DON’T BE AFRAID TO BE

CONVERSATIONAL

SPEECHWRITING NUANCES

• USE CONTRACTIONS

• AVOID MODIFIERS…“VERY” IS VERY BAD.

• AVOID EMPTY PHRASES…IN SPITE OF

• WE’VE ALL BEEN IN THE ROOM FOR SPEECHES THAT WENT TOO LONG. STATE YOUR CASE. DON’T OVERSTATE YOUR CASE

SPEECHWRITING NUANCES

• BOLD VERBS

• THINGS DON’T GO UP; THEY SKYROCKET• YOU DON’T WIN; YOU LEFT THE COMPETITION IN THE

DUST• VARY YOUR SENTENCE LENGTH.

• USE QUESTIONS TO ENGAGE THE AUDIENCE

• COMPARE AND CONTRAST

SPEECHWRITING

• A DOUBLE SPACED PAGE IS ABOUT TWO MINUTES

• DON’T BE AFRAID TO TIME THE SPEAKER.

• DON’T BE SURPRISED TO WRITE MUTIPLE DRAFTS.

SPEECHWRITINGNUANCES

• THE LEAD ISN’T AS IMPORTANT.

• MANY PEOPLE ARE SETTLING DOWN AND WON’T HERE WHAT YOU SAY.

• USE THAT FIRST :30 TO THANK PEOPLE OR TALK ABOUT HOW GREAT BREAKFAST IS

SPEECHWRITINGNUANCES

• GIVE SPECIFICS• PEOPLE REMEMBER LESS OF WHAT

YOU SAY LIVE• POP YOUR KEY POINTS

SPEECHWRITING NONVERBAL COMMUNICATION

93% OF COMMUNICATION OCCURS THROUGH VOCAL AND NONVERBAL PERFORMANCE.

•SMILE•POSTURE•EYE CONTACT•ANIMATION•KINETICS (MOTION)

SPEECHWRITINGVISUAL AIDS

• SIGHT ACCOUNTS FOR 83% OF WHAT WE LEARN.

• WHEN A VISUAL COMMAND IS COUPLED WITH A VOICE COMMAND, RETENTION INCREASES 50%

• COLOR INCREAES INFORMATION ACCESS 26%

• VIDEO CAN INCREASE RETENTION BY 50%

• THE MORE BELLS AND WHISTLES, THE LESS TIME YOU NEED TO TALK.

SPEECHWRITING VISUAL AIDS

• POWERPOINT SUPPORTS A PRESENTATION. IT’S NOT THE WHOLE SHOW.

• DON’T REGURGIATE EVERYTHING YOU SEE ON A SLIDE.

• OFFER ADDED ANALYSIS ON SLIDES THAT YOU DON’T GO OVER IN THE PRESENTATION. LEAVE THEM WANTING MORE.

SPEECHWRITING VISUAL AIDS• POWERPOINT SUPPORTS A PRESENTATION.

• USE SLIDESHARE.NET

• USE SLIDES AS A CHANCE TO NETWORK.

• THINK ABOUT HASHTAGS

• OFFER YOUR CONTACT INFORMATION

OTHER FORMS OF SPEAKING

• PANEL DISCUSSIONS

• DEBATES

• EXECUTIVE TRAINING

• SPEAKER’S BUREAU

OTHER FORMS OF SPEAKING

ALL OF THESE CAN:

•ACCOMPLISH GOALS AND STRATEGIES FOR COMPANY

•ATTACT MEDIA COVERAGE

•GET YOU IN FRONT OF DECISION MAKERS

•CREATE EXTENDED REACH FOR YOUR BRAND

In class assignment• Write a :30 PSA on behalf of your client.

• Think about the formatting we made mention of in class.

• Make sure to time it out.

• Print your final copy, hand it to me and I’ll see you Wednesday.