How to start a persuasive speech - here's what to include for maximum impact
When you start a speech or presentation, unfortunately, you don’t get a second chance to create a great impression.
Your audience decides in the first few minutes if they will go the distance with you and give you their undivided attention.
Check out this post for all the different ways to start your speeches and presentations with a bang.
When it comes to persuasive speeches, not starting strongly, may mean that you lose your one precious chance to persuade your audience of your point of view and to ultimately effect important change in the world.
In a persuasive speech, your primary goal is to persuade the audience to accept your idea or point of view.
The list of possible persuasive speech titles is endless and only limited by your imagination.
If you are looking to write a speech to persuade, here are a few examples of persuasive speech titles, to get you thinking and whet your appetite:
Should schools include meditation or relaxation breaks during the day?
Should students who bully others be expelled?
Should all new oil, coal and gas projects be banned?
Read on for six key elements to include at the start of your persuasive speeches.
1. A Strong Hook
Add a powerful opener (hook) to get the audience emotionally engaged from the get-go.
This could be a shocking statistic, a thought-provoking quote, an emotive short story, or a rhetorical question.
The more pathos or emotion you can inject into your hook, the better.
It could be something to incite anger, concern, sadness or even pity.
Say you are giving a speech on the 2nd speech in the above list – Should students who bully others be expelled?
You could start your speech with a sad story of how you (or a friend) were bullied mercilessly in school over many months, and how it had a terrible, long-term effect on your mental health and wellbeing.
Your anxiety levels were off the charts. You did not want to go to school anymore. Your parents were also stressed and at their wit’s end.
Although you complained to your teacher, your parents met with teachers and the principal, meetings were called, warnings were issued to the bullies, the school was still powerless in stopping the bullying.
The situation was only resolved when you (or your friend) had no other choice, but to leave the school – for good.
2. Have a compelling thesis statement
You need a punchy thesis statement to convey to your audience the gist of what you will be discussing in your persuasive speech.
If your speech’s purpose is to persuade your audience to include meditation breaks during the school day, your thesis statement could go something like this:
“Today, I’m going to talk to you about why meditation and relaxation breaks should be part of the school day and I’ll explain why including these breaks will dramatically improve the mental health and wellbeing of children and adolescents.”
3.Demonstrate the need
Explain to the audience why they should be interested in your thesis and how they will benefit by adopting your point of view.
Your aim should be to get the audience nodding and agreeing with you from the get-go.
In the example of a speech to persuade on the topic of stopping all future coal, oil and gas projects now that the world is facing a climate emergency: you could mention how there have never been so many hurricanes, floods, wildfires, tornadoes, landslides and unusual weather patterns than in the last few years.
You could then ask who in the audience have been affected by any of these crazy weather events, or if they have family or friends who have lost their homes to fires or floods.
4.Acknowledge your audience’s biases
This step is all about you making every effort to understand your audience and address any of their existing biases.
If you are aware of any biases that your audience may have, address these biases early in the piece.
In the speech about having meditation and relaxation breaks in schools, some people in your audience may be sceptical about meditation. They may think that meditation and relaxation exercises are unproven, woo-woo and just for “new age” types.
You should explicitly acknowledge any such beliefs and biases early on.
For example, you could say:
“Some people in the audience may doubt that meditation works.
I understand you. I was once a sceptic myself. Until I saw the research and experienced the benefits first-hand.
I am excited to tell you about some cutting-edge research from some of the world’s leading scientists on the benefits of meditation and how it can help to reduce the severity of anxiety and depression.
All I ask is that you listen with an open mind.
I will also address any questions or concerns that you have in the “Question-and-Answer” part of the evening at the end of the speech”
When you acknowledge other’s peoples’ differing views, those people now feel heard and acknowledged.
They instantly relax and no longer feel threatened because they know that you are aware of their standpoint and will do your best to both understand and address their concerns.
5. Credibility/Ethos
The start of your speech to persuade is the place where you need to establish your credibility.
Tell your audience why you are qualified to be speaking on this subject.
For example, you may have relevant qualifications, credentials and/or substantial experience in the field about which you are speaking.
In the case of your speech on the topic of why we should be stopping all future coal, oil, and gas projects, you would have a lot of credibility if you were a climate scientist or researcher, with several years experience in the field.
Alternatively, you may have meticulously researched the topic and reviewed the most up-to-date peer-reviewed literature and evidence. It is your extensive knowledge that gives you the right to be speaking on this topic.
Remember the more credible you are, the more your audience will take you seriously.
6. An overview of your speech.
Motivational speaker, trainer and author, Dale Carnegie, famously said that in delivering any speech or presentation to any audience, you should stick to the following formula:
"Tell the audience what you're going to say; say it; then tell them what you've said."
The overview of your speech is the “telling the audience what you’re going to say” part of the quote.
Give your audience an overview of your speech with the main points that you will be covering.
People like to see the big picture before you drill down into the fine details.
Just like before you set out on a road trip, you consult a map with the various towns and landmarks of interest that you will encounter along the way.
In the case of the speech about meditation in schools, you might say:
“Tonight, I will be discussing the current state of mental health amongst children and teenagers and why we need to do something about the status quo, what meditation is and how it works, the results of a few key research studies into meditation and how it promotes good mental health and finally the amazing benefits of some meditation programs that have been implemented in several schools in this country.”
So, there you have it – 6 things to include when you start your speech to persuade.
Remember - A strong beginning is very important because it sets the tone for the rest of your speech.
You are now well on the way to persuading your audience of your point of view and of them potentially taking action to make a positive difference in the world!
© 2023 Susan Weser. All rights reserved.
Susan Weser is the Founder of Speaking2Win, a boutique public speaking and presentation skills consultancy, based in Melbourne, Australia. Susan’s mission is to demystify public speaking and presenting. She loves to fast-track her clients’ public speaking success, empowering them with the skills and confidence to excel in all their public speaking endeavours.
