What is a persuasive speech? A persuasive speech is a speech meant to persuade someone to do something or believe your point of view. This is the definition of a persuasive speech. When writing the speech, you should write it like you are talking to an audience. This article gives you a guide on how to write a persuasive speech.
When writing a persuasive speech, you should use the three persuasive approaches which include ethos which shows your expertise in a certain topic, why the audience should listen to you, and morality and ethics, pathos which is the ability to connect with your audience with the use of emotions and finally logos which is your ability to use logical facts and evidence-based examples to convince your audience that your point of view is true. You can use one or a combination of persuasive approaches for your persuasive speech coursework assignment.
The process of writing a persuasive speech
Below is how to write a persuasive speech:
a) Research and understand the topic
You should conduct extensive research for your persuasive speech topic. You should clearly understand your topic and all the counterarguments about it. You can use books, articles, theories, or internet blogs for your research. You should also research people’s opinions on the topic from podcasts or editorials. Doing all this enables you to understand the topic in all aspects of your topic and address all the counterarguments in your persuasive speech.
b) Have a goal
Your persuasive speech should have a certain goal that you are trying to achieve. Having a goal helps you focus on a specific objective for your speech which you persuade your audience on. For instance, if your topic is a healthy lifestyle, your goal could be either promoting daily exercises or healthy eating. Focusing on one goal like daily exercises helps you to have a specific message to persuade your audience.
c) Understand your audience
You should learn and understand the knowledge and opinion of your audience on your persuasive speech topic. If the audience has zero knowledge of your topic, you should give them background information about your topic and then persuade them. An audience that knows about the topic does not need a background of information, you should directly persuade them on why it is important to do what you are persuading them to do.
In addition, if your audience already agrees with your point of view it is easier to convince them to take the action your persuading them to take. If your audience does not agree with your point of view, they will need more convincing like the use of evidence-based facts or examples for them to consider taking the action you are persuading them to take.
d) Choose a persuasive approach for your speech
As stated above, there are three persuasive approaches which include ethos, pathos, or logos. Ethos mainly focuses on morals and ethics, pathos focuses on emotions and logos focus on logic. When researching your audience, you should learn which persuasive approach works for them. You can use one or combine the persuasive approaches. A strong speech usually has all three persuasive approaches.
e) Write a persuasive speech outline
After you have chosen a persuasive approach, you should write a persuasive speech outline where you note the main points of your speech. The number of points that you want to make to support your point of view should be based on the amount of time given for the speech. You can have three to five points to persuade your idea. In addition, you can research various persuasive speech outline templates or persuasive speech outline examples to get a better understanding of how to write your outline.
f) Write a good introduction
The introduction should grab the attention of the audience. You should start with a statement or visuals that grasp the interest of the audience. You should state a connection you have with the audience by demonstrating that you and the audience share the same interest, state your credentials to show the audience you have expertise in that topic.
In addition, you should write a persuasive speech thesis statement where you state the goal of your essay. You describe to your audience the aim of your persuasive essay and what you hope it will achieve. This is how to start a persuasive speech. After the introduction, state your main points to the audience.
g) Provide persuasive information and address counterarguments
After stating the main point of your speech, describe each of them using persuasive information like fact-based information or real-life examples. You should describe one point at a time and provide supporting ideas for the point. Fact-based information shows your knowledge of the topic and easy to convince your audience with expertise in a certain topic while real-life examples enable the audience to relate to the topic hence using both is crucial for your persuasive essay,
You should address the counterarguments of your topic to strengthen your argument. For instance, if your topic is about a healthy lifestyle and one of the counterarguments is that gym membership is expensive you can recommend your audience to do homework using workout videos. You should describe the opposing opinions in an unbiased manner.
h) Conclude with a call to action
You should conclude your persuasive speech with a call to action. By reinforcing your main points and stating what you expect the audience would do. This could be buying a product, signing a petition, or voting for a certain candidate.
i) Practice your persuasive speech
After you have completed writing your speech, you should practice it several times to identify areas that need improvement. You can practice it by recording yourself on a smartphone or in front of a mirror to check your confidence and physical expression when giving a speech. You can also give your speech to your friends to check if it can persuade them to take the desired action and also advise you on areas that you need to advance in your speech.
Using the above steps, you will be able to write a good persuasive speech. You can also research various persuasive essay rubrics to enhance your skills in writing a persuasive essay. The persuasive essay rubrics will help you understand the requirements of a good persuasive speech.
Persuasive speech topics
When choosing a persuasive speech topic, you should choose a topic that you are passionate about and can interpret it. This enables you to write a good speech and when giving it to the audience they can see that it’s a topic you are interested and knowledgeable in. Below are persuasive speech ideas:
Persuasive policy speech topics
- The government should provide free healthcare services to all
- The government should ban the consumption of alcohol
- All voters should show a voter’s card
- Work attendance policy
- Corruption in the modern-day economy
- Language policy in schools
- Drug testing in an organization
- The government should ban female genital mutilation
- Hygiene standards in schools
- The government should stop police brutality
- Benefits of recycling
- Should students wear uniform
- The government should stop child slave labor
- Scholarship program for third-world countries
- Wok hours schedules
Persuasive speech topics
- Should the education cost be reduced?
- How can the government reduce deforestation?
- Depression is a serious illness
- Racism is here to stay
- Digital currency is the future
- Electrical cars are eco-friendly
- How to reduce suicide among adolescents
- Do antidepressants help?
- How does teamwork impact a business?
- Stress is the cause of many diseases
- Everyone should have first aid training
- Video games affect the mental health of children
- How to deal with bullies
- Alternative medications are the best type of treatment
- Should you exercise frequently to stay fit
- How to relax when giving a speech
- Fast foods are the main cause of obesity
- Do long screen time affect eyesight
- How to improve your brain health
- Genetically modified food should be banned
- Childhood trauma is caused by poor parenting techniques
- What is the appropriate retirement age?
- How to keep the environment clean
- Benefits of a free education system
- Should counseling therapy sessions be covered by health insurance
- Artificial intelligence benefits the society
- Processed foods should be avoided to improve our health
- How to reduce addictions among the youth
- Drug tests should be mandatory in all workplaces
- Birth control pills are good for women’s health
- How to reduce food insecurity in Africa
- Healthy lifestyle benefits
In summary
A persuasive speech requires you to persuade an audience to agree with your argument and it requires you to understand the topic you are persuading your audience on. You can use this article as a guide when writing your persuasive speech assignment. If you need help with your persuasive speech, we provide professional coursework writing services.
