Writing An Informative Speech

Writing an informative speech is simply a matter of writing information without a point of view. However, crafting an informative speech is a creative process. When you put your audience at the forefront of your thinking while writing an informative speech, you can put your creativity to work in a number of areas.

The reason your audience is at the forefront of your mind is because in an informative speech it is important that the audience understand and retain the information you convey.

In addition, you want your presentation to be an enjoyable experience for your audience and yourself. Here are some elements to consider as you go about the creative process of writing an informative speech.

Organizing an informative speech is a relatively simple process but it is a matter of choice so you should consider how best to present the material you have to your audience.

When presenting historical or biographical information, it seems that using a chronological organization, that is, presenting the points in the order of their occurrence in time is logical. Using a logical approach increases audience understanding and retention.

However, to grab your audience's attention early in the speech it might be more effective to relate the most interesting and perhaps climactic occurrence of your chronology first and then follow it with a chronological sequence of what led up to it.

When writing an informative speech about a topic that doesn't fall into a chronological organization, you could use a topical or spatial organization.

In a topical organization, your main points are divided into categories or varieties. For example in a speech about dogs you might talk about 3 different breeds and their characteristics.

In a spatial organization, you arrange your main points in an order according to their location. An example of this is speaking about different cities in Spain. You might start in the south and move toward the north in your organization. The important element is to make sure that the information is easy for your audience to follow and retain.

The retention of information is enhanced using a few different creative techniques. Besides using a logical organization, presenting the information in more than one way is a good method.

Using visual aids is a common way to make sure that you reach both the auditory and visual learners in your audience. A PowerPoint presentation or a series of overhead slides with headings that reinforce your words is an effective visual aid. If you do not have access to that technology you could simply use a flipchart or a poster prepared in advance.

When using visual aids make sure that they are neat and organized. Use color when possible and display them while in use so that the whole audience can see them. Visual aids are a natural place to apply your creativity so feel free to make it interesting but don't make them so complex that they are distracting.

A final creative tool for insuring audience understanding and retention is your language. Make sure when writing an informative speech that you repeat the important information a few different times, in different ways so that it is clearly understood and the importance of the information is emphasized.

Feel free to ask your audience if they understand or ask them to answer questions about the information you have already given. This keeps them engaged in your presentation and helps you know that your informative speech has been effective.

So, keep your audience foremost in your mind, get creative with the organization and presenting the information and you will be writing an informative speech with ease!