How much does my audience care about my topic and how much thought are they willing to put into my speech?

 

If the audience doesn't really care a whole lot about your topic, it's a double-edged sword. On one hand (or edge), they are going to be easier to persuade. On the other hand, you may not have picked a good topic if it isn't an important issue to your audience. Again, if you believe in the topic, go with it.

 

If the audience really cares a lot about your topic, you're not going to be able to win them over with flimsy persuasive tactics and logical fallacies. They are going to need to hear solid arguments and evidence in support of your perspective to be persuaded.

 

The Ancient Greek philosopher Aristotle identified three tactics which persuasive speakers had available to persuade an audience, which he called Ethos, Pathos, and Logos:

 

Ethos: Aristotle said that if an audience wasn't particularly interested in and willing to think about the topic at hand that a speaker could be persuasive simply by demonstrating to the audience that they were someone who was both credible and trustworthy. The idea was that this type of audience wouldn't be sufficiently motivated to think deeply about the topic, and that they would be inclined to blindly accept whatever the speaker had to say. After all, the speaker is credible and trustworthy, right?

 

Pathos: Aristotle said that if, again, an audience wasn't particularly interested in and willing think about the topic at hand that a speaker could be persuasive by using various emotional appeals to win over an audience. A few example of Pathos appeals:

 

a. Appeal to Fear- The speaker arouses fear in the audience by describing something bad that could happen, then tells the audience that the can be relieved of that fear by simply doing what the speaker desires.

 

b. Appeal to Social Support- The speaker tells the audience that their perspective is a popular one. The audience is supposed to think that because the position is so popular, it must have some merit.

 

c. Appeal to Scarcity- The speaker shows the audience how they can get some more of a scarce commodity (usually time or money) by doing what the speaker desires.

 

d. Appeal to Authority- The speaker tells the audience that people "in the know" support the speaker's perspective.

 

Logos: Finally, Aristotle said that if an audience really cared about an issue and were motivated to think deeply about it, that the only way they were going to be persuaded was through the use of sound logical argument.

 

In it's most basic form, a logical argument is a claim supported by evidence. In most cases, when you see a lawyer speaking in a courtroom, they are making a logos appeal to the audience (the jury). The "claim" which the lawyer is making is the innocence or guilt of the person on trial. The "evidence", of course, is the support that the lawyer offers to back up their claim.

 

Your persuasive speech should follow the same process. Your "claim" is the position you support, your "evidence" is the various facts, stories, statistics, expert testimony, and other backing that demonstrates that your position is the position which the audience should also support.

 

Organizing the Information your Group has gathered:

You will put together an outline of the information your group gathers. Once you have outlined your project you will decide in what medium you will present your message.

Presentation of your Team Project Message:

You can present your message in a PowerPoint Presentation, or a video presentation. The sooner you let me know how you will present your message the sooner I can begin to help. If you are going to do a PowerPoint Presentation you can create a more detailed outline that can be easily transferred to a PowerPoint Presentation. If you are going to do a video presentation you will want to put together a story-board based on the outline and your ideas.

 

Since PowerPoint presentations came on the scene, public speaking classes have changed quite a bit. PowerPoint is a wonderful piece of technology that can help you deliver an effective speech, and college students just love it. Unfortunately, if it's used badly, it can make a speech very difficult to follow. When you use PowerPoint, don't forget the basic points you need to know about how to use a visual aid effectively. And be sure to follow these basic tips about using PowerPoint in a presentation.

Make sure the audience can read each slide easily. This may sound obvious, but it's a common mistake during presentations. Use large fonts with black letters that are easy to read, and avoid using colored backgrounds that are too dark or that obscure the writing. Keep the background simple. Beige or light pastel colored backgrounds are a good bet because they add a nice touch without making your slide difficult to read.

Make sure each slide looks professional. Remember, when it comes to visual aids, professional does not necessarily mean fancy. What it does mean is neat and organized. Make sure the contents of each slide are neatly organized on each page.

Make sure the information on each slide is spelled correctly and is accurate. Failure to do so can ruin your credibility and embarrass you painfully.

Limit the amount of text on each slide. When it comes to a presentation, written words are a distraction. Your audience will start reading the slide and will stop listening to you. Never include information on a slide that isn't covered in your speech.

Limit the amount of information on each side. Keep it simple. A visual aid should make one point, and that's it.

Resist the urge to pimp your presentation. There are all kinds of cool things you can do with backgrounds and graphics on PowerPoint, but you probably don't want to use them because they will distract your audience from the content of the presentation. Use graphics only if they help you emphasize a point in your presentation.

Don't hide behind your PowerPoint slides. PowerPoint slides can create a psychological barrier between the speaker and the audience, which can be great if you have a fear of public speaking. Unfortunately, an effective speaker needs to create a sense of dialog with the audience, and you can't do that if you hide in a corner and let your slides speak for you. Stand in full view of your audience and make eye contact with them throughout the presentation.