Why is it important for a speaker to clearly introduce his topic at the beginning of his speech?

9.1 The Importance of an Introduction

Learning Objectives

1. Explain the general length of an introduction.
2. List and explain the five basic functions of an introduction.
3. Understand how to use three factors of credibility in an introduction.

The introduction for a speech is generally only 10 to 15 percent of the entire time the speaker will spend speaking. This means that if your speech is to be five minutes long, your introduction should be no more than forty-five seconds. If your speech is to be ten minutes long, then your introduction should be no more than a minute and a half. Unfortunately, that 10 to 15 percent of your speech can either make your audience interested in what you have to say or cause them to tune out before you’ve really gotten started. Overall, a good introduction should serve five functions. Let’s examine each of these.

The Role of the Introduction

The introduction should convince the audience that your speech will be relevant and useful by providing a general overview of what’s to come.

Learning Objectives

Use the introduction of your speech to convince your audience that you have something worthwhile to say

Key Takeaways

Key Points

• The introduction is a sales pitch and a useful outline in one, so it should maintain a good balance of hype and content.
• The introduction has five important responsibilities: get the audience ‘s attention, introduce the topic, explain its relevance to the audience, state a thesis or purpose, and outline the main points.
• By the end of the introduction, you should provide a road map that outlines your main points.

Key Terms

• introduction: A means of presenting one person to another.

Role of the Introduction

The introduction is the best opportunity to convince your audience that you have something worthwhile to say. An introduction can accomplish this by fulfilling five important responsibilities: get the audience’s attention, introduce the topic, explain its relevance to the audience, state a thesis or purpose, and outline the main points. By the end of the introduction, the audience should know where you’re headed and what your speech will cover. If you are giving a persuasive speech, state your thesis in the introduction. If you are giving an informative speech, explain what you will be teaching the audience.

Speech Introduction: The introduction grabs the audience’s attention and sets the tone for the entire speech.

As you write your introduction, try to answer these questions:

What is the scope of your presentation–how narrow or broad is your topic? How does it relate to the audience? What is at stake for the audience? Do you have any new insights or special perspectives to add to the existing discussion of your topic? Why should the audience listen to you instead of someone else? Will you be informing the audience, or making an argument?

The Road Map

By the end of the introduction, you should provide a brief overview of your main points. This “road map” will help the audience understand the main points in the context of your larger purpose. Without a good map to follow, the audience is liable to get lost along the way. A good introduction is the best way to make sure your message gets through.

In sum, the introduction should:

• Hook the audience.
• Describe your topic.
• Explain how your topic is relevant to the audience.
• Explain the stakes at hand.
• Establish credibility: What authority do you have to discuss this topic?
• State your innovation: What is new or special about your perspective?
• Lay out a road map of your speech.
• Outline your main points.
• State your thesis or purpose.

Writing the Introduction

If you have an anecdote, quote, question, or some other “hook” that inspires you to start writing the introduction, go for it. Don’t take inspiration for granted! In some cases, the right story will set up a natural sequence for your main points, launching the speech effortlessly. Otherwise, it may be easier to begin the introduction after you write about your main points. Working through the main points will set the destination of the speech, and it doesn’t hurt to have a clear idea of where you’re going before you set out. If you finish writing the body of your speech and come back to the introduction uninspired, refer to the chapter, “Getting Attention and Interest” for more ideas about effective openings.

Informative Speakers Are Objective

Most public speaking texts discuss three general purposes for speeches: to inform, to persuade, and to entertain. Although these general purposes are theoretically distinct, in practice, they tend to overlap. Even in situations when the occasion calls for an informative speech [one which enhances understanding], often persuasive and entertaining elements are present. First, all informative speeches have a persuasive component by virtue of the fact that the speaker tries to convince the audience that the facts presented are accurate [Harlan, 1993]. Second, a well-written speech can make even the most dry, technical information entertaining through engaging illustrations, colorful language, unusual facts, and powerful visuals.

In spite of this caveat, when planning your informative speech your primary intent will be to increase listeners’ knowledge in an impartial way. For instance, in a speech about urban legends [Craughwell, 2000], your specific purpose statement may be: “At the end of my speech, my audience will understand what an urban legend is, how urban legends are spread, and common variations of urban legends.” The topic you choose is not as important as your approach to the material in determining whether your speech is informative or persuasive [Peterson, Stephan, & White, 1992]. Can you imagine how speeches on witchcraft, stem cell research, the federal deficit, or hybrid cars could be written either to inform or persuade? Informative speeches need to be as objective, fair, and unbiased as possible. You are not asking your audience to take action or convincing them to change their mind. You are teaching them something and allowing them to decide for themselves what to do with the information. When writing your speech, present all sides of the story and try to remove all unrelated facts, personal opinions, and emotions [Westerfield, 2002].

Gain Audience Attention and Interest

The first major purpose of an introduction is to gain your audience’s attention and make them interested in what you have to say. One of the biggest mistakes that novice speakers make is to assume that people will naturally listen because the speaker is speaking. While many audiences may be polite and not talk while you’re speaking, actually getting them to listen to what you are saying is a completely different challenge. Let’s face it—we’ve all tuned someone out at some point because we weren’t interested in what they had to say. If you do not get the audience’s attention at the outset, it will only become more difficult to do so as you continue speaking. We’ll talk about some strategies for grabbing an audience’s attention later on in this chapter.

State the Purpose of Your Speech

The second major function of an introduction is to reveal the purpose of your speech to your audience. Have you ever sat through a speech wondering what the basic point was? Have you ever come away after a speech and had no idea what the speaker was talking about? An introduction is important because it forces the speaker to be mindfully aware of explaining the topic of the speech to the audience. If the speaker doesn’t know what her or his topic is and cannot convey that topic to the audience, then we’ve got really big problems! Robert Cavett, the founder of the National Speaker’s Association, used the analogy of a preacher giving a sermon when he noted, “When it’s foggy in the pulpit, it’s cloudy in the pews.”

As we discussed in Chapter 6 “Finding a Purpose and Selecting a Topic”, the specific purpose is the one idea you want your audience to remember when you are finished with your speech. Your specific purpose is the rudder that guides your research, organization, and development of main points. The more clearly focused your purpose is, the easier your task will be in developing your speech. In addition, a clear purpose provides the audience with a single, simple idea to remember even if they daydream during the body of your speech. To develop a specific purpose, you should complete the following sentence: “I want my audience to understand that…” Notice that your specific speech purpose is phrased in terms of expected audience responses, not in terms of your own perspective.