20.6: Conclusion

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The primary goal of informative speaking is to increase listeners’ knowledge so they can better understand the world around them and can make more informed decisions. Discussing the impact a speaker can have on an audience, Perry Wilbur (2000, p. 99) explains:

Always keep in mind that if your talk helps just one listener in your audience, it has been successful. It is far more likely to have an impact on a number of listeners in your audiences. That is one of the real powers of spoken communication. Develop skill for getting the material across to audiences, and you can and will change lives for the better and make a worthy contribution as a speaker.

Informative speaking is a crucial skill that, if developed, will help you be more successful in both your personal life and your professional career.

When constructing an informative speech, you should strive to be objective, spend time developing your credibility, demonstrate that you have done your research, and link your subject to the lives of the listeners.

There are four main types of informative speeches. Definitional speeches present the meanings of concepts, theories, philosophies, or issues. Descriptive speeches provide detailed word pictures of people, animals, places, or objects. Explanatory speeches report events, customs, transformations, inventions,, policies, outcomes or options. Demonstration speeches show listeners how some process is done or how to do it themselves.

Several techniques can be used by speakers to increase the effectiveness of their informative speech. Speakers can arouse interest by using attention getting elements, telling a story, adding creative features, and stimulating the intellect of the audience. Speakers can create coherence through logical organization, the use of simple language, and by avoiding information overload. Finally, a speaker can make a speech more memorable via repetition, appealing to different ways of learning, and by using visuals appropriately.

If you have knowledge, let others light their candles at it. ~Margaret Fuller