i need help writing a speech outline

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How to Write a Speech Outline

Last Updated: January 3, 2024 Fact Checked

This article was co-authored by Emily Listmann, MA and by wikiHow staff writer, Jennifer Mueller, JD . Emily Listmann is a private tutor in San Carlos, California. She has worked as a Social Studies Teacher, Curriculum Coordinator, and an SAT Prep Teacher. She received her MA in Education from the Stanford Graduate School of Education in 2014. This article has been fact-checked, ensuring the accuracy of any cited facts and confirming the authority of its sources. This article has been viewed 506,549 times.

A speech outline can increase your confidence and help you keep your place so you sound authoritative and in control. As you write your speech outline, focus on how you'll introduce yourself and your topic, the points you'll cover, and the interests of your audience.

Sample Outline and Writing Help

Crafting Your Introduction

• Keep in mind you may be nervous when you start your speech. Include this in your outline so you won't forget.
• If there's anything about you that relates you to your audience, or to the group that organized the event, you want to include that in your brief greeting as well – especially if you didn't have the benefit of an introduction from someone else.
• For example, you might say "Good afternoon. I'm Sally Sunshine, and I've been a volunteer with the Springfield Animal Society for five years. I'm honored they've invited me to speak here today about the importance of spaying or neutering your pets."

• When choosing your attention-getter, keep your audience in mind. Think about what would grab their attention – not necessarily what you personally find interesting or humorous.
• If you're not sure whether your attention-getter will work, try practicing it in front of friends or family members who are similar in age and interests to the people who will be in the audience when you give your speech.
• For example, if you're giving a speech on spaying and neutering pets to a group of suburban families, you might open with a humorous reference to the Disney movie "101 Dalmatians."

• Briefly explain the importance of the topic or issue you'll be discussing in your speech.
• If your speech is an informative one, explain why the information is important or relevant to your audience.
• For argumentative speeches, explain what might happen if action isn't taken on the issue.
• For example, you might say "Every year, our local animal shelter has to put down 500 unwanted cats and dogs. If all pets were spayed and neutered, it's estimated this number would decrease to under 100."

• If you're giving an argumentative speech, your thesis statement will be a statement of the ultimate point you hope to prove through the information and evidence you lay out in your speech.
• For example, the thesis statement for a speech arguing that all pet owners should spay or neuter their pets might be "Our entire community would benefit if all pets were spayed or neutered."
• The thesis statement for a more informative speech will simply summarize the type of information you're going to provide the audience through your speech.
• For a more scientific speech, your thesis statement will reflect the hypothesis of the scientific study you're presenting in your speech.

• If you're giving a speech for a class in school, your "credibility" may be as simple as the fact that you took the class and researched the topic.
• However, if you have a more personalized interest in the topic of your speech, this is a good time to mention that.
• For an argumentative speech, a personal connection to the subject matter can enhance your credibility. For example, maybe you're giving a speech about local urban housing policy and you became interested in the topic when you learned your family was facing eviction. A personal connection often can mean more to members of your audience than extensive professional experience in the area.

• There's no hard and fast rule, but speeches typically have three main points. You should list them in your introduction in the order you plan to present them in your speech. The order in which you discuss your points depends on the type of speech you're giving.
• For example, your speech on spaying or neutering pets might address the benefits to the pet first, then the benefit to the pet's family, then the benefit to the community at large. This starts small and moves outward.
• For an argumentative speech, you typically want to lead with your strongest argument and work down in order of strength.
• If you're giving an informative speech based on a historical event, you may want to provide your points chronologically. Other informative speeches may be better served by starting with the broadest point and moving to more narrow points.
• Ultimately, you want to order your points in a way that feels natural to you and will enable you to easily transition from one point to another.

Building the Body of Your Speech

• Your first point will be a top-level entry on your outline, typically noted by a Roman numeral.
• Beneath that top-level, you will have a number of sub-points which are comments, statistics, or other evidence supporting that point. Depending on how your outline is formatted, these typically will be letters or bullet points.

• As with the points themselves, with your evidence you typically want to start with the strongest or most important sub-point or piece of evidence and move down. This way, if you start running short on time, you can easily cut the last points without worrying that you're leaving out something important.
• The type of evidence or sub-points you'll want to include will depend on the type of speech you're giving.
• Try to avoid pounding your audience with long series of numbers or statistics – they typically won't retain the information. If you have a significant amount of numerical data or statistics, creating an infographic you can project during your presentation may be more useful.
• Keep in mind that additional personal stories or anecdotes can be particularly effective to get your point across in a speech.
• For example, if your first point in your speech about spaying or neutering pets is that the procedure benefits the pets themselves, you might point out that pets that are spayed or neutered live longer, are at a decreased risk for certain types of cancer, and are generally more healthy than pets who aren't spayed or neutered.

• Avoid over-thinking your transition. It really doesn't need to be incredibly sophisticated. If you can't come up with anything specific, using a simple transitional phrase will work fine.
• For example, you might say "Now that I've discussed how spaying and neutering has a positive effect on your pet's health, I want to move to the effect that spaying and neutering has on your family."
• Some of the most effective transitions turn on a particular word or phrase, such as the word "effect" in the example above.

• When choosing your sub-points or the facts that you want to emphasize in your speech, keep your audience in mind as well as the overall point. Think about what's important to them, or what they potentially would find most surprising or most interesting.

Creating Your Closing

• This transition doesn't need to be fancy – it doesn't even have to be a whole sentence. You can simply say "In conclusion," and then launch into your summary.

• You don't need to go into detail here – you're just reinforcing what you've already told your audience.
• Make sure you don't introduce any new information in your closing summary.
• For example, you might say "As you've seen, spaying or neutering your pet has substantial benefits not only for you and your pet, but also for the community at large."

• If your speech went well, you have fully proven your thesis and demonstrated its importance. This statement should relate back to the summary of your points and present a strong statement.
• Particularly for brief speeches, you can even combine your summary of points with your thesis statement in a single sentence that wraps up your speech.
• For example, you might say "Given the benefits to your pet's health, to your family, and to the overall well-being of your community, it is clear that spaying or neutering pets should be a top priority for all pet owners."

• You may want to think of a way to bring the entire speech back around to that story you initially told to grab your audience's attention.
• If you have an argumentative or similar speech, your closing lines typically will include a call to action. Give your audience an example of how important the subject of your speech is, and implore them to act on the information you gave them in a specific way.
• When making a call to action, make sure you include specific details, such as where to go, who to contact, and when to act.
• For example, you might say "For the next week, the Springfield Animal Society will be spaying and neutering pets for free at their clinic on 123 Main Street. Call 555-555-5555 to make an appointment for your furry friend today!"

• Particularly if your speech was longer or if you went over the time allotted, be sure to tell them that you appreciate their time.
• As with your initial greeting, including this in your outline ensures you won't forget it in the moment. That doesn't mean you should try to write something verbatim. Rather, you should focus on your thanks being more off-the-cuff and sincere.

• If you want to establish parameters for the questions, be sure to list these in your outline so you can mention them when you announce that you're open for questions.
• Anticipate questions that may be asked dependent on your speech topic. Preemptively answer those questions and include them in your outline.
• You also should note if you only have a specified period of time for questions, or if you're only taking a set number of questions.

Community Q&A

• Outlines can vary in how formal or informal you make them. You could either make it a full script or use shorthand with highlighted main points. Use the outline that works best for you. Thanks Helpful 12 Not Helpful 0
• Use a large font that you can easily read by glancing down. Print your outline and place it on a desk, then stand and look down at the paper. If it's too small or you find yourself leaning over to read it, increase the font size. Thanks Helpful 16 Not Helpful 3
• If you're giving the speech for a class, you may need to turn in an outline of your speech that follows particular content or format requirements. Review your assignment carefully and turn in an outline that follows your instructor's requirements, even if you decide to use a slightly different outline when you give your speech. Thanks Helpful 4 Not Helpful 1

You Might Also Like

• ↑ https://www.unr.edu/writing-speaking-center/student-resources/writing-speaking-resources/speech-introductions
• ↑ https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/general_writing/the_writing_process/thesis_statement_tips.html
• ↑ https://lewisu.edu/writingcenter/pdf/final-developing-a-speech-outline.pdf
• ↑ https://www.unr.edu/writing-speaking-center/student-resources/writing-speaking-resources/speech-evidence
• ↑ https://open.lib.umn.edu/publicspeaking/chapter/10-2-keeping-your-speech-moving/

About This Article

The best way to write a speech outline is to write the main points of your greeting and introduction in the first section, including your name and what you’ll be talking about. Then, make a second section with bullet points of all the important details you want to mention in the body of your speech. Make sure to include facts and evidence to back your argument up. Finish your outline with a section that summarizes your points concisely. To learn how to keep your audience's attention throughout your speech, keep reading below! Did this summary help you? Yes No

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How To Write A Speech Outline

Do you have a speech coming up soon, but don’t know where to start when it comes to writing it? 

Don’t worry. 

The best way to start writing your speech is to first write an outline.

While to some, an outline may seem like an unnecessary extra step — after giving hundreds of speeches in my own career, I can assure you that first creating a speech outline is truly the best way to design a strong presentation that your audience will remember.

Should I Write A Speech Outline?

You might be wondering if you should really bother with a preparation outline. Is a speaking outline worth your time, or can you get through by just keeping your supporting points in mind?

Again, I highly recommend that all speakers create an outline as part of their speechwriting process. This step is an extremely important way to organize your main ideas and all the various elements of your speech in a way that will command your audience’s attention.

Good public speaking teachers will agree that an outline—even if it’s a rough outline—is the easiest way to propel you forward to a final draft of an organized speech that audience members will love.

Here are a few of the biggest benefits of creating an outline before diving straight into your speech.

Gain More Focus

By writing an outline, you’ll be able to center the focus of your speech where it belongs—on your thesis statement and main idea.

Remember, every illustration, example, or piece of information you share in your speech should be relevant to the key message you’re trying to deliver. And by creating an outline, you can ensure that everything relates back to your main point.

Keep Things Organized

Your speech should have an overall organizational pattern so that listeners will be able to follow your thoughts. You want your ideas to be laid out in a logical order that’s easy to track, and for all of the speech elements to correspond.

An outline serves as a structure or foundation for your speech, allowing you to see all of your main points laid out so you can easily rearrange them into an order that makes sense for easy listening.

Create Smoother Transitions

A speaking outline helps you create smoother transitions between the different parts of your speech.

When you know what’s happening before and after a certain section, it will be easy to accurately deliver transitional statements that make sense in context. Instead of seeming like several disjointed ideas, the parts of your speech will naturally flow into each other.

Save Yourself Time

An outline is an organization tool that will save you time and effort when you get ready to write the final draft of your speech. When you’re working off of an outline to write your draft, you can overcome “blank page syndrome.”

It will be much easier to finish the entire speech because the main points and sub-points are already clearly laid out for you.

Your only job is to finish filling everything in.

Preparing to Write A Speech Outline

Now that you know how helpful even the most basic of speech outlines can be in helping you write the best speech, here’s how to write the best outline for your next public speaking project.

How Long Should A Speech Outline Be?

The length of your speech outline will depend on the length of your speech. Are you giving a quick two-minute talk or a longer thirty-minute presentation? The length of your outline will reflect the length of your final speech.

Another factor that will determine the length of your outline is how much information you actually want to include in the outline. For some speakers, bullet points of your main points might be enough. In other cases, you may feel more comfortable with a full-sentence outline that offers a more comprehensive view of your speech topic.

The length of your outline will also depend on the type of outline you’re using at any given moment.

Types of Outlines

Did you know there are several outline types? Each type of outline is intended for a different stage of the speechwriting process. Here, we’re going to walk through:

• Working outlines
• Full-sentence outlines
• Speaking outlines

Working Outline

Think of your working outline as the bare bones of your speech—the scaffolding you’re using as you just start to build your presentation. To create a working outline, you will need:

• A speech topic
• An idea for the “hook” in your introduction
• A thesis statement
• 3-5 main points (each one should make a primary claim that you support with references)
• A conclusion

Each of your main points will also have sub-points, but we’ll get to those in a later step.

The benefit of a working outline is that it’s easy to move things around. If you think your main points don’t make sense in a certain order—or that one point needs to be scrapped entirely—it’s no problem to make the needed changes. You won’t be deleting any of your prior hard work because you haven’t really done any work yet.

Once you are confident in this “skeleton outline,” you can move on to the next, where you’ll start filling in more detailed information.

Full-sentence outline

As the name implies, your full-sentence outline contains full sentences. No bullet points or scribbled, “talk about x, y, z here.” Instead, research everything you want to include and write out the information in full sentences.

Why is this important? A full-sentence outline helps ensure that you are:

• Including all of the information your audience needs to know
• Organizing the material well
• Staying within any time constraints you’ve been given

Don’t skip this important step as you plan your speech.

Speaking outline

The final type of outline you’ll need is a speaking outline. When it comes to the level of detail, this outline is somewhere in between your working outline and a full-sentence outline. 

You’ll include the main parts of your speech—the introduction, main points, and conclusion. But you’ll add a little extra detail about each one, too. This might be a quote that you don’t want to misremember or just a few words to jog your memory of an anecdote to share.

When you actually give your speech, this is the outline you will use. It might seem like it makes more sense to use your detailed full-sentence outline up on stage. However, if you use this outline, it’s all too easy to fall into the trap of reading your speech—which is not what you want to do. You’ll likely sound much more natural if you use your speaking outline.

How to Write A Speech Outline

We’ve covered the types of outlines you’ll work through as you write your speech. Now, let’s talk more about how you’ll come up with the information to add to each outline type.

Pick A Topic

Before you can begin writing an outline, you have to know what you’re going to be speaking about. In some situations, you may have a topic given to you—especially if you are in a public speaking class and must follow the instructor’s requirements. But in many cases, speakers must come up with their own topic for a speech.

Consider your audience and what kind of educational, humorous, or otherwise valuable information they need to hear. Your topic and message should of course be highly relevant to them. If you don’t know your audience well enough to choose a topic, that’s a problem.

Your audience is your first priority. If possible, however, it’s also helpful to choose a topic that appeals to you. What’s something you’re interested in and/or knowledgeable about? 

It will be much easier to write a speech on a topic you care about rather than one you don’t. If you can come up with a speech topic that appeals to your audience and is interesting to you, that’s the sweet spot for writing and delivering an unforgettable speech.

Write A Thesis Statement

The next step is to ask yourself two important questions:

• What do you want your audience to take away from your speech?
• How will you communicate this main message?

The key message of your speech can also be called your “thesis statement.”

Essentially, this is your main point—the most important thing you hope to get across.

You’ll most likely actually say your thesis statement verbatim during your speech. It should come at the end of your introduction. Then, you’ll spend the rest of your talk expanding on this statement, sharing more information that will prove the statement is true.

Consider writing your thesis statement right now—before you begin researching or outlining your speech. If you can refer back to this statement as you get to work, it will be much easier to make sure all of the elements correspond with each other throughout your speech.

An example of a good thesis statement might read like this:

• Going for a run every day is good for your health.
• It’s important to start saving for retirement early.
• The COVID-19 pandemic had a negative impact on many small businesses.

The second part of this step is to know how you will communicate your main message . For example, if your key point is that running improves physical health, you might get this across by:

• Citing scientific studies that proved running is good for your health
• Sharing your personal experience of going for a run every day

Your goal is for all of your sub-points and supporting material to reflect and support your main point. At the end of the speech, your audience should be appropriately motivated, educated, or convinced that your thesis statement is true.

Once you have a topic for your presentation and a good thesis statement, you can move on to the bulk of the outline.

The first part of your speech is the introduction, which should include a strong “hook” to grab the attention of your audience. There are endless directions you can go to create this hook. Don’t be afraid to get creative! You might try:

• Telling a joke
• Sharing an anecdote
• Using a prop or visual aid
• Asking a question (rhetorical or otherwise)

These are just a few examples of hooks that can make your audience sit up and take notice.

The rest of your introduction shouldn’t be too long—as a general rule of thumb, you want your introduction to take up about 10% of your entire speech. But there are a few other things you need to say.

Briefly introduce yourself and who you are to communicate why the audience should trust you. Mention why you’re giving this speech. 

Explain that you’re going to cover X main points—you can quickly list them—and include your thesis statement. 

You could also mention how long your speech will be and say what your audience will take away from it (“At the end of our 15 minutes together today, you’ll understand how to write a resume”).

Then smoothly transition into the body of your speech.

Next, you’ll write the body of your speech. This is the bulk of your presentation. It will include your main points and their sub-points. Here’s how this should look:

Your subpoints might be anecdotes, visual aids, or studies. However you decide to support your main points, make them memorable and engaging. Nobody wants to sit and listen to you recite a dry list of facts.

Remember, the amount of detail you include right now will depend on which outline you’re on. Your first outline, or working outline, doesn’t have to include every last little detail. Your goal is to briefly encapsulate all of the most important elements in your speech. 

But beyond that, you don’t need to write down every last detail or example right now. You don’t even have to write full sentences at this point. That will come in your second outline and other future drafts.

Your conclusion should concisely summarize the main points of your speech. You could do this by saying, “To recap as I finish up, today we learned…” and reiterate those primary points.

It’s also good to leave the audience with something to think about and/or discuss. Consider asking them a question that expands on your speech—something they can turn over in their minds the rest of the day. 

Or share one final story or quote that will leave them with lasting inspiration. Bonus points if your conclusion circles back around to your introduction or hook.

In other cases, you may want to end with a call to action. Are you promoting something? Make sure your audience knows what it is, how it will benefit them, and where they can find it. Or, your CTA might be as simple as plugging your Twitter handle and asking listeners to follow you.

Finally, don’t forget to say thank you to your audience for taking the time to listen.

Additional Helpful Speechwriting Tips

Your speech outline is important, but it’s not the only thing that goes into preparing to give a presentation. Take a look at these additional tips I recommend to help your speech succeed.

Use Visual Aids

Visual aids are a good way to make sure your audience stays engaged—that they listen closely, and remember what you said. Visual aids serve as an attention-getter for people who may not be listening closely. These aids also ensure that your points are sufficiently supported.

You might choose to incorporate any of the following in your talk:

• A PowerPoint presentation
• A chart or graph
• A whiteboard or blackboard
• A flip chart
• A prop that you hold or interact with

Don’t overdo it. Remember, your speech is the main thing you’re presenting. Any visual aids are just that—aids. They’re a side dish, not the main entrée. Select one primary type of aid for your speech.

If you decide to include visual aids, use your speaking outline to make a note of which items you will incorporate where. You may want to place these items on your working outline. They should definitely be on your full-sentence outline.

Keep Your Audience Engaged

As you write and practice your speech, make sure you’re doing everything you can to keep your audience engaged the entire time. We’ve already talked about including stories and jokes, using visual aids, or asking questions to vary your talk and make it more interesting.

Your body language is another important component of audience engagement. Your posture should be straight yet relaxed, with shoulders back and feet shoulder-width apart. Keep your body open to the audience.

Make eye contact with different people in the audience. Incorporate hand gestures that emphasize certain points or draw attention to your visual aids.

Don’t be afraid to move around whatever space you have. Movement is especially helpful to indicate a clearer transition from one part of your speech to another. And smile! A simple smile goes a long way to help your audience relax.

Practice Your Speech

When you’re done with speechwriting, it’s time to get in front of the mirror and practice. Pay attention to your body language, gestures, and eye contact. 

Practice working with any visual aids or props you will be using. It’s also helpful to make a plan B—for instance, what will you do if the projector isn’t working and you can’t use your slides?

Ask a friend or family member if you can rehearse your speech for them. When you’re through, ask them questions about which parts held their attention and which ones didn’t.

You should also use your speaking outline and whatever other notes you’ll be using in your speech itself. Get used to referring to this outline as you go. But remember, don’t read anything verbatim (except maybe a quote). Your speaking outline is simply a guide to remind you where you’re going.

Learn to Speak Like A Leader

There’s a lot of work that goes into writing a speech outline. That’s undeniable. But an outline is the best way to organize and plan your presentation. When your speech outline is ready, it will be a breeze to write and then present your actual speech.

If you’re looking for more help learning how to become a strong public speaker, I recommend my free 5 Minute Speech Formula . This will help you start writing your speech and turn any idea into a powerful message.

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How to write a speech that your audience remembers

Whether in a work meeting or at an investor panel, you might give a speech at some point. And no matter how excited you are about the opportunity, the experience can be nerve-wracking . 

But feeling butterflies doesn’t mean you can’t give a great speech. With the proper preparation and a clear outline, apprehensive public speakers and natural wordsmiths alike can write and present a compelling message. Here’s how to write a good speech you’ll be proud to deliver.

What is good speech writing?

Good speech writing is the art of crafting words and ideas into a compelling, coherent, and memorable message that resonates with the audience. Here are some key elements of great speech writing:

• It begins with clearly understanding the speech's purpose and the audience it seeks to engage. 
• A well-written speech clearly conveys its central message, ensuring that the audience understands and retains the key points. 
• It is structured thoughtfully, with a captivating opening, a well-organized body, and a conclusion that reinforces the main message. 
• Good speech writing embraces the power of engaging content, weaving in stories, examples, and relatable anecdotes to connect with the audience on both intellectual and emotional levels. 

Ultimately, it is the combination of these elements, along with the authenticity and delivery of the speaker , that transforms words on a page into a powerful and impactful spoken narrative.

What makes a good speech?

A great speech includes several key qualities, but three fundamental elements make a speech truly effective:

Clarity and purpose

Remembering the audience, cohesive structure.

While other important factors make a speech a home run, these three elements are essential for writing an effective speech.

The main elements of a good speech

The main elements of a speech typically include:

• Introduction: The introduction sets the stage for your speech and grabs the audience's attention. It should include a hook or attention-grabbing opening, introduce the topic, and provide an overview of what will be covered.
• Opening/captivating statement: This is a strong statement that immediately engages the audience and creates curiosity about the speech topics.
• Thesis statement/central idea: The thesis statement or central idea is a concise statement that summarizes the main point or argument of your speech. It serves as a roadmap for the audience to understand what your speech is about.
• Body: The body of the speech is where you elaborate on your main points or arguments. Each point is typically supported by evidence, examples, statistics, or anecdotes. The body should be organized logically and coherently, with smooth transitions between the main points.
• Supporting evidence: This includes facts, data, research findings, expert opinions, or personal stories that support and strengthen your main points. Well-chosen and credible evidence enhances the persuasive power of your speech.
• Transitions: Transitions are phrases or statements that connect different parts of your speech, guiding the audience from one idea to the next. Effective transitions signal the shifts in topics or ideas and help maintain a smooth flow throughout the speech.
• Counterarguments and rebuttals (if applicable): If your speech involves addressing opposing viewpoints or counterarguments, you should acknowledge and address them. Presenting counterarguments makes your speech more persuasive and demonstrates critical thinking.
• Conclusion: The conclusion is the final part of your speech and should bring your message to a satisfying close. Summarize your main points, restate your thesis statement, and leave the audience with a memorable closing thought or call to action.
• Closing statement: This is the final statement that leaves a lasting impression and reinforces the main message of your speech. It can be a call to action, a thought-provoking question, a powerful quote, or a memorable anecdote.
• Delivery and presentation: How you deliver your speech is also an essential element to consider. Pay attention to your tone, body language, eye contact , voice modulation, and timing. Practice and rehearse your speech, and try using the 7-38-55 rule to ensure confident and effective delivery.

While the order and emphasis of these elements may vary depending on the type of speech and audience, these elements provide a framework for organizing and delivering a successful speech.

How to structure a good speech

You know what message you want to transmit, who you’re delivering it to, and even how you want to say it. But you need to know how to start, develop, and close a speech before writing it. 

Think of a speech like an essay. It should have an introduction, conclusion, and body sections in between. This places ideas in a logical order that the audience can better understand and follow them. Learning how to make a speech with an outline gives your storytelling the scaffolding it needs to get its point across.

Here’s a general speech structure to guide your writing process:

• Explanation 1
• Explanation 2
• Explanation 3

How to write a compelling speech opener

Some research shows that engaged audiences pay attention for only 15 to 20 minutes at a time. Other estimates are even lower, citing that people stop listening intently in fewer than 10 minutes . If you make a good first impression at the beginning of your speech, you have a better chance of interesting your audience through the middle when attention spans fade. 

Implementing the INTRO model can help grab and keep your audience’s attention as soon as you start speaking. This acronym stands for interest, need, timing, roadmap, and objectives, and it represents the key points you should hit in an opening. 

Here’s what to include for each of these points: 

• Interest : Introduce yourself or your topic concisely and speak with confidence . Write a compelling opening statement using relevant data or an anecdote that the audience can relate to.
• Needs : The audience is listening to you because they have something to learn. If you’re pitching a new app idea to a panel of investors, those potential partners want to discover more about your product and what they can earn from it. Read the room and gently remind them of the purpose of your speech. 
• Timing : When appropriate, let your audience know how long you’ll speak. This lets listeners set expectations and keep tabs on their own attention span. If a weary audience member knows you’ll talk for 40 minutes, they can better manage their energy as that time goes on. 
• Routemap : Give a brief overview of the three main points you’ll cover in your speech. If an audience member’s attention starts to drop off and they miss a few sentences, they can more easily get their bearings if they know the general outline of the presentation.
• Objectives : Tell the audience what you hope to achieve, encouraging them to listen to the end for the payout. 

Writing the middle of a speech

The body of your speech is the most information-dense section. Facts, visual aids, PowerPoints — all this information meets an audience with a waning attention span. Sticking to the speech structure gives your message focus and keeps you from going off track, making everything you say as useful as possible.

Limit the middle of your speech to three points, and support them with no more than three explanations. Following this model organizes your thoughts and prevents you from offering more information than the audience can retain. 

Using this section of the speech to make your presentation interactive can add interest and engage your audience. Try including a video or demonstration to break the monotony. A quick poll or survey also keeps the audience on their toes. 

Wrapping the speech up

To you, restating your points at the end can feel repetitive and dull. You’ve practiced countless times and heard it all before. But repetition aids memory and learning , helping your audience retain what you’ve told them. Use your speech’s conclusion to summarize the main points with a few short sentences.

Try to end on a memorable note, like posing a motivational quote or a thoughtful question the audience can contemplate once they leave. In proposal or pitch-style speeches, consider landing on a call to action (CTA) that invites your audience to take the next step.

How to write a good speech

If public speaking gives you the jitters, you’re not alone. Roughly 80% of the population feels nervous before giving a speech, and another 10% percent experiences intense anxiety and sometimes even panic. 

The fear of failure can cause procrastination and can cause you to put off your speechwriting process until the last minute. Finding the right words takes time and preparation, and if you’re already feeling nervous, starting from a blank page might seem even harder.

But putting in the effort despite your stress is worth it. Presenting a speech you worked hard on fosters authenticity and connects you to the subject matter, which can help your audience understand your points better. Human connection is all about honesty and vulnerability, and if you want to connect to the people you’re speaking to, they should see that in you.

1. Identify your objectives and target audience

Before diving into the writing process, find healthy coping strategies to help you stop worrying . Then you can define your speech’s purpose, think about your target audience, and start identifying your objectives. Here are some questions to ask yourself and ground your thinking : 

• What purpose do I want my speech to achieve? 
• What would it mean to me if I achieved the speech’s purpose?
• What audience am I writing for? 
• What do I know about my audience? 
• What values do I want to transmit? 
• If the audience remembers one take-home message, what should it be? 
• What do I want my audience to feel, think, or do after I finish speaking? 
• What parts of my message could be confusing and require further explanation?

2. Know your audience

Understanding your audience is crucial for tailoring your speech effectively. Consider the demographics of your audience, their interests, and their expectations. For instance, if you're addressing a group of healthcare professionals, you'll want to use medical terminology and data that resonate with them. Conversely, if your audience is a group of young students, you'd adjust your content to be more relatable to their experiences and interests. 

3. Choose a clear message

Your message should be the central idea that you want your audience to take away from your speech. Let's say you're giving a speech on climate change. Your clear message might be something like, "Individual actions can make a significant impact on mitigating climate change." Throughout your speech, all your points and examples should support this central message, reinforcing it for your audience.

4. Structure your speech

Organizing your speech properly keeps your audience engaged and helps them follow your ideas. The introduction should grab your audience's attention and introduce the topic. For example, if you're discussing space exploration, you could start with a fascinating fact about a recent space mission. In the body, you'd present your main points logically, such as the history of space exploration, its scientific significance, and future prospects. Finally, in the conclusion, you'd summarize your key points and reiterate the importance of space exploration in advancing human knowledge.

5. Use engaging content for clarity

Engaging content includes stories, anecdotes, statistics, and examples that illustrate your main points. For instance, if you're giving a speech about the importance of reading, you might share a personal story about how a particular book changed your perspective. You could also include statistics on the benefits of reading, such as improved cognitive abilities and empathy.

6. Maintain clarity and simplicity

It's essential to communicate your ideas clearly. Avoid using overly technical jargon or complex language that might confuse your audience. For example, if you're discussing a medical breakthrough with a non-medical audience, explain complex terms in simple, understandable language.

7. Practice and rehearse

Practice is key to delivering a great speech. Rehearse multiple times to refine your delivery, timing, and tone. Consider using a mirror or recording yourself to observe your body language and gestures. For instance, if you're giving a motivational speech, practice your gestures and expressions to convey enthusiasm and confidence.

8. Consider nonverbal communication

Your body language, tone of voice, and gestures should align with your message . If you're delivering a speech on leadership, maintain strong eye contact to convey authority and connection with your audience. A steady pace and varied tone can also enhance your speech's impact.

9. Engage your audience

Engaging your audience keeps them interested and attentive. Encourage interaction by asking thought-provoking questions or sharing relatable anecdotes. If you're giving a speech on teamwork, ask the audience to recall a time when teamwork led to a successful outcome, fostering engagement and connection.

10. Prepare for Q&A

Anticipate potential questions or objections your audience might have and prepare concise, well-informed responses. If you're delivering a speech on a controversial topic, such as healthcare reform, be ready to address common concerns, like the impact on healthcare costs or access to services, during the Q&A session.

By following these steps and incorporating examples that align with your specific speech topic and purpose, you can craft and deliver a compelling and impactful speech that resonates with your audience.

Tools for writing a great speech

There are several helpful tools available for speechwriting, both technological and communication-related. Here are a few examples:

• Word processing software: Tools like Microsoft Word, Google Docs, or other word processors provide a user-friendly environment for writing and editing speeches. They offer features like spell-checking, grammar correction, formatting options, and easy revision tracking.
• Presentation software: Software such as Microsoft PowerPoint or Google Slides is useful when creating visual aids to accompany your speech. These tools allow you to create engaging slideshows with text, images, charts, and videos to enhance your presentation.
• Speechwriting Templates: Online platforms or software offer pre-designed templates specifically for speechwriting. These templates provide guidance on structuring your speech and may include prompts for different sections like introductions, main points, and conclusions.
• Rhetorical devices and figures of speech: Rhetorical tools such as metaphors, similes, alliteration, and parallelism can add impact and persuasion to your speech. Resources like books, websites, or academic papers detailing various rhetorical devices can help you incorporate them effectively.
• Speechwriting apps: Mobile apps designed specifically for speechwriting can be helpful in organizing your thoughts, creating outlines, and composing a speech. These apps often provide features like voice recording, note-taking, and virtual prompts to keep you on track.
• Grammar and style checkers: Online tools or plugins like Grammarly or Hemingway Editor help improve the clarity and readability of your speech by checking for grammar, spelling, and style errors. They provide suggestions for sentence structure, word choice, and overall tone.
• Thesaurus and dictionary: Online or offline resources such as thesauruses and dictionaries help expand your vocabulary and find alternative words or phrases to express your ideas more effectively. They can also clarify meanings or provide context for unfamiliar terms.
• Online speechwriting communities: Joining online forums or communities focused on speechwriting can be beneficial for getting feedback, sharing ideas, and learning from experienced speechwriters. It's an opportunity to connect with like-minded individuals and improve your public speaking skills through collaboration.

Remember, while these tools can assist in the speechwriting process, it's essential to use them thoughtfully and adapt them to your specific needs and style. The most important aspect of speechwriting remains the creativity, authenticity, and connection with your audience that you bring to your speech.

5 tips for writing a speech

Behind every great speech is an excellent idea and a speaker who refined it. But a successful speech is about more than the initial words on the page, and there are a few more things you can do to help it land.

Here are five more tips for writing and practicing your speech:

1. Structure first, write second

If you start the writing process before organizing your thoughts, you may have to re-order, cut, and scrap the sentences you worked hard on. Save yourself some time by using a speech structure, like the one above, to order your talking points first. This can also help you identify unclear points or moments that disrupt your flow.

2. Do your homework

Data strengthens your argument with a scientific edge. Research your topic with an eye for attention-grabbing statistics, or look for findings you can use to support each point. If you’re pitching a product or service, pull information from company metrics that demonstrate past or potential successes. 

Audience members will likely have questions, so learn all talking points inside and out. If you tell investors that your product will provide 12% returns, for example, come prepared with projections that support that statement.

3. Sound like yourself

Memorable speakers have distinct voices. Think of Martin Luther King Jr’s urgent, inspiring timbre or Oprah’s empathetic, personal tone . Establish your voice — one that aligns with your personality and values — and stick with it. If you’re a motivational speaker, keep your tone upbeat to inspire your audience . If you’re the CEO of a startup, try sounding assured but approachable. 

4. Practice

As you practice a speech, you become more confident , gain a better handle on the material, and learn the outline so well that unexpected questions are less likely to trip you up. Practice in front of a colleague or friend for honest feedback about what you could change, and speak in front of the mirror to tweak your nonverbal communication and body language .

5. Remember to breathe

When you’re stressed, you breathe more rapidly . It can be challenging to talk normally when you can’t regulate your breath. Before your presentation, try some mindful breathing exercises so that when the day comes, you already have strategies that will calm you down and remain present . This can also help you control your voice and avoid speaking too quickly.

How to ghostwrite a great speech for someone else

Ghostwriting a speech requires a unique set of skills, as you're essentially writing a piece that will be delivered by someone else. Here are some tips on how to effectively ghostwrite a speech:

• Understand the speaker's voice and style : Begin by thoroughly understanding the speaker's personality, speaking style, and preferences. This includes their tone, humor, and any personal anecdotes they may want to include.
• Interview the speaker : Have a detailed conversation with the speaker to gather information about their speech's purpose, target audience, key messages, and any specific points they want to emphasize. Ask for personal stories or examples they may want to include.
• Research thoroughly : Research the topic to ensure you have a strong foundation of knowledge. This helps you craft a well-informed and credible speech.
• Create an outline : Develop a clear outline that includes the introduction, main points, supporting evidence, and a conclusion. Share this outline with the speaker for their input and approval.
• Write in the speaker's voice : While crafting the speech, maintain the speaker's voice and style. Use language and phrasing that feel natural to them. If they have a particular way of expressing ideas, incorporate that into the speech.
• Craft a captivating opening : Begin the speech with a compelling opening that grabs the audience's attention. This could be a relevant quote, an interesting fact, a personal anecdote, or a thought-provoking question.
• Organize content logically : Ensure the speech flows logically, with each point building on the previous one. Use transitions to guide the audience from one idea to the next smoothly.
• Incorporate engaging stories and examples : Include anecdotes, stories, and real-life examples that illustrate key points and make the speech relatable and memorable.
• Edit and revise : Edit the speech carefully for clarity, grammar, and coherence. Ensure the speech is the right length and aligns with the speaker's time constraints.
• Seek feedback : Share drafts of the speech with the speaker for their feedback and revisions. They may have specific changes or additions they'd like to make.
• Practice delivery : If possible, work with the speaker on their delivery. Practice the speech together, allowing the speaker to become familiar with the content and your writing style.
• Maintain confidentiality : As a ghostwriter, it's essential to respect the confidentiality and anonymity of the work. Do not disclose that you wrote the speech unless you have the speaker's permission to do so.
• Be flexible : Be open to making changes and revisions as per the speaker's preferences. Your goal is to make them look good and effectively convey their message.
• Meet deadlines : Stick to agreed-upon deadlines for drafts and revisions. Punctuality and reliability are essential in ghostwriting.
• Provide support : Support the speaker during their preparation and rehearsal process. This can include helping with cue cards, speech notes, or any other materials they need.

Remember that successful ghostwriting is about capturing the essence of the speaker while delivering a well-structured and engaging speech. Collaboration, communication, and adaptability are key to achieving this.

Give your best speech yet

Learn how to make a speech that’ll hold an audience’s attention by structuring your thoughts and practicing frequently. Put the effort into writing and preparing your content, and aim to improve your breathing, eye contact , and body language as you practice. The more you work on your speech, the more confident you’ll become.

The energy you invest in writing an effective speech will help your audience remember and connect to every concept. Remember: some life-changing philosophies have come from good speeches, so give your words a chance to resonate with others. You might even change their thinking.

Boost your speech skills

Enhance your public speaking with personalized coaching tailored to your needs

Elizabeth Perry, ACC

Elizabeth Perry is a Coach Community Manager at BetterUp. She uses strategic engagement strategies to cultivate a learning community across a global network of Coaches through in-person and virtual experiences, technology-enabled platforms, and strategic coaching industry partnerships. With over 3 years of coaching experience and a certification in transformative leadership and life coaching from Sofia University, Elizabeth leverages transpersonal psychology expertise to help coaches and clients gain awareness of their behavioral and thought patterns, discover their purpose and passions, and elevate their potential. She is a lifelong student of psychology, personal growth, and human potential as well as an ICF-certified ACC transpersonal life and leadership Coach.

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How to Write an Informative Speech Outline: A Step-by-Step Guide

It’s the moment of truth — the anxiety-inducing moment when you realize writing the outline for your informative speech is due soon. Whether you’re looking to deliver a report on the migratory patterns of the great white stork or give a lecture on the proper techniques of candle making, knowing how to write an effective outline is essential.

That’s why we’ve put together this complete, step-by-step guide on how to write an informative speech outline. From selecting a topic to transitioning during your speech, this guide will have you well on your way to writing a compelling informative speech outline . So grab your pen and paper, put on your thinking cap, and let’s get started!

What is an Informative Speech Outline?

An informative speech outline is a document used to plan the structure and core content of a public speech. It’s used by speakers to ensure their talk covers all the important points, stays on-topic and flows logically from one point to another. By breaking down complex topics into smaller, concise sections, an effective outline can help keep a speaker organized, set objectives for their talk, support key points with evidence and promote audience engagement. A well-structured outline can also make a presentation easier to remember and act as an invaluable reminder if nerves ever get the better of the speaker. On one hand, an informative speech outline enables speakers to cover multiple ideas in an efficient manner while avoiding digressions. On the other hand, it’s important that speakers remain flexible to adjust and adapt content to meet audience needs. While there are some tried-and-tested strategies for creating outlines that work, many successful speakers prefer to tweak and modify existing outlines according to their personal preferences. In conclusion, preparing an informative speech outline can boost confidence and create an effective structure for presentations. With this in mind, let’s now look at how to structure an informative speech outline

How to Structure an Informative Speech Outline

The structure of your informative speech outline should be based on the points you need to cover during your presentation. It should list out all of the main points in an organized and logical manner, along with supporting details for each point. The main structure for an informative speech should consist of three parts: the introduction, body and conclusion.

Introduction

When starting to craft your structure, begin by introducing the topic and giving a brief synopsis of what the audience can expect to learn from your speech. By setting up what they will gain from your presentation, it will help keep them engaged throughout the rest of your talk. Additionally, include any objectives that you want to achieve by the end of your speech.

The body of an informative speech outline typically consists of three parts: main points, sub-points, and supporting details. Main points are the core topics that the speaker wishes to cover throughout the speech. These can be further broken down into sub-points, that explore the main ideas in greater detail. Supporting details provide evidence or facts about each point and can include statistics, research studies, quotes from experts, anecdotes and personal stories . When presenting an informative speech, it is important to consider each side of the topic for an even-handed discussion. If there is an argumentative element to the speech, consider incorporating both sides of the debate . It is also important to be objective when presenting facts and leave value judgments out. Once you have determined your main points and all of their supporting details, you can start ordering them in a logical fashion. The presentation should have a clear flow and move between points smoothly. Each point should be covered thoroughly without getting overly verbose; you want to make sure you are giving enough information to your audience while still being concise with your delivery.

Writing an informative speech outline can be a daunting yet rewarding process. Through the steps outlined above, speakers will have created a strong foundation for their speech and can now confidently start to research their topics . The outline serves as a guiding map for speakers to follow during their research and when writing their eventual speech drafts . Having the process of developing an informative speech broken down into easy and manageable steps helps to reduce stress and anxiety associated with preparing speeches .

• The introduction should be around 10-20% of the total speech duration and is designed to capture the audience’s attention and introduce the topic.
• The main points should make up 40-60% of the speech and provide further detail into the topic. The body should begin with a transition, include evidence or examples and have supporting details. Concluding with a recap or takeaway should take around 10-20% of the speech duration.

While crafting an informative speech outline is a necessary step in order for your presentation to run smoothly, there are many different styles and approaches you can use when creating one. Ultimately though, the goal is always to ensure that the information presented is factual and relevant to both you and your audience. By carefully designing and structuring an effective outline, both you and your audience will be sure to benefit greatly from it when it comes time for delivering a successful presentation .

Now that speakers know how to create an effective outline, it’s time to begin researching the content they plan to include in their speeches. In the next section we’ll discuss how to conduct research for an informative speech so speakers are armed with all the facts necessary to deliver an interesting and engaging presentation .

How to Research for an Informative Speech

When researching an informative speech, it’s important to find valid and reliable sources of information. There are many ways that one can seek out research for an informative speech, and no single method will guarantee a thorough reliable research. Depending on the complexity of the topic and the depth of knowledge required, a variety of methods should be utilized. The first step when researching for an informative speech should be to evaluate your present knowledge of the subject. This will help to determine what specific areas require additional research, and give clues as to where you might start looking for evidence. It is important to know the basic perspectives and arguments surrounding your chosen topic in order to select good sources and avoid biased materials. Textbooks, academic journals, newspaper articles, broadcasts, or credible websites are good starting points for informational speeches. As you search for information and evidence, be sure to use trustworthy authors who cite their sources. These sources refer to experts in the field whose opinions add credibility and can bolster your argument with facts and data. Evaluating these sources is particularly important as they form the foundation of your speech content and structure. Analyze each source critically by looking into who wrote it and evaluating how recent or relevant it is to the current conversation on your chosen topic. As with any research paper, one must strive for accuracy when gathering evidence while also surveying alternative positions on a topic. Considering both sides of a debate allows your speech to provide accurate information while remaining objective. This will also encourage audience members to draw their conclusions instead of taking your word for it. Furthermore, verifying sources from multiple angles (multiple avenues) ensures that information is fact-checked versus opinionated or biased pieces which might distort accuracy or mislead an audience member seeking truth about a controversial issue. At this stage in preparing for an informative speech, research should have been carried out thoroughly enough to allow confidently delivering evidence-based statements about a chosen topic. With all of this necessary groundwork completed, it’s time to move onto the next stage: sourcing different types of evidence which will allow you to illustrate your point in an even more helpful way. It is now time to transition into discussing “Sources & Evidence”.

Sources and Evidence

When crafting an informative speech outline, it is important to include accurate sources and valid evidence. Your audience needs to be sure that the content you are presenting not only reflects a clear understanding of the topic but is also backed up with reliable sources. For example, if you are speaking about climate change, include research studies, statistics, surveys and other forms of data that provide concrete evidence that supports your argument or position. Additionally, be sure to cite any sources used in the speech so that your audience can double-check the accuracy. In some cases, particularly when discussing sensitive topics, each side of the issue should be addressed. Not only does this make for a more balanced discussion, it also allows you to show respect for different points of view without compromising your own opinion or position. Presenting both sides briefly will demonstrate a comprehensive understanding of the subject matter and show your ability to present a well-rounded argument. Knowing how to source accurately and objectively is key to creating an informative speech outline which will be compelling and engaging for an audience. With the right sources and evidence utilized correctly, you can ensure that your argument is both authoritative and convincing. With these fundamentals in place, you can move on to developing tips for crafting an informative speech for maximum impact and engagement with the listeners.

Tips for Crafting an Informative Speech

When crafting an informative speech, there are certain tips and tricks that you can use to make sure your outline is the best it can be. Firstly, if you are speaking about a controversial issue, make sure you present both sides of the argument in an unbiased manner. Rely on researching credible sources, and discuss different points of views objectively. Additionally, organize and prioritize your points so that they are easy to follow and follow a logical progression. Begin with introducing a succinct thesis statement that briefly summarizes the main points of your speech. This will give the audience a clear idea of what topics you will be discussing and help retain their attention throughout your speech. Furthermore, be mindful to weave in personal anecdotes or relevant stories so that the audience can better relate to your ideas. Make sure the anecdotes have a purpose and demonstrate the key themes effectively. Acquiring creative ways to present data or statistics is also important; avoid inundating the audience with too many facts and figures all at once. Finally, ensure that all visual aids such as props, charts or slides remain relevant to the subject matter being discussed. Visual aids not only keep listeners engaged but also make difficult concepts easier to understand. With these handy tips in mind, you should be well on your way to constructing an effective informative speech outline! Now let’s move onto exploring some examples of effective informative speech outlines so that we can get a better idea of how it’s done.

Examples of Effective Informative Speech Outlines

Informative speeches must be compelling and provide relevant details, making them effective and impactful. In order to create an effective outline, speakers must first conduct extensive research on the chosen topic. An effective informative speech outline will clearly provide the audience with enough information to keep them engaged while also adhering to a specific timeframe. The following are examples of how to effectively organize an informative speech: I. Introduction: A. Stimulate their interest – pose a question, present intriguing facts or establish a humorous story B. Clearly state the main focus of the speech C. Establish your credibility– explain your experience/research conducted for the speech II. Supporting Points: A. Each point should contain facts and statistics related to your main idea B. Each point should have its own solid evidence that supports it III. Conclusion: A. Summarize supporting points B. Revisit your introduction point and explain how it’s been updated/changed through the course of the discussion C. Offer a final statement or call to action IV. Bibliography: A. Cite all sources used in creating the speech (provide an alphabetical list) Debate both sides of argument if applicable: N/A

Commonly Asked Questions

What techniques can i use to ensure my informative speech outline is organized and cohesive.

When crafting an informative speech outline, there are several techniques you can use to ensure your speech is organized and cohesive. First of all, make sure your speech follows a logical flow by using signposting , outlining the main ideas at the beginning of the speech and then bulleting out your supporting points. Additionally, you can use transitions throughout the speech to create a smooth order for your thoughts, such as ‘next’ and ‘finally’. Furthermore, it is important that each point in your outline has a specific purpose or goal, to avoid rambling and confusion. Finally, use visual aids such as charts and diagrams to emphasise key ideas and add clarity and structure to your speech. By following these techniques , you can ensure your informative speech outline is well organized and easy to follow.

How should I structure the order of the information in an informative speech outline?

The structure of an informative speech outline should be simple and organized, following a linear step-by-step process. First, you should introduce the topic to your audience and provide an overview of the main points. Next, give an explanation of each point, offer evidence or examples to support it, and explain how it relates to the overall subject matter. Finally, you should conclude with a summary of the main points and a call for action. When structuring the order of information in an informative speech outline, it is important to keep topics distinct from one another and stick to the logical progression that you have established in your introduction. Additionally, pay attention to chronology if appropriate; when discussing historical events, for example, make sure that they are presented in the correct order. Moreover, use transition phrases throughout your outline to help move ideas along smoothly. Finally, utilize both verbal and visual aids such as diagrams or graphics to illustrate complex knowledge effectively and engage your audience throughout your presentation.

What are the essential components of an informative speech outline?

The essential components of an informative speech outline are the introduction, body, and conclusion. Introduction: The introduction should establish the topic of your speech, provide background information, and lead into the main purpose of your speech. It’s also important to include a strong attention-grabbing hook in order to grab the audience’s attention. Body: The body is where you expand on the main points that were outlined in the introduction. It should provide evidence and arguments to support these points, as well as explain any counterarguments that might be relevant. Additionally, it should answer any questions or objections your audience may have about the topic. Conclusion: The conclusion should restate the purpose of your speech and summarize the main points from the body of your speech. It should also leave your audience feeling inspired and motivated to take some kind of action after hearing your speech. In short, an effective informative speech outline should strongly focus on bringing all of these elements together in a cohesive structure to ensure that you deliver an engaging presentation that educates and informs your audience.

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Planning your speech

- a complete, unabridged guide with multiple examples to help plan a successful speech ☺.

By:  Susan Dugdale  | Last modified: 06-05-2023

Planning your speech is where your success begins. I do not jest! 

In your imagination you may hear yourself being stunning, the audience clapping wildly  as they rise to their feet to give you a standing ovation.

You may see yourself being deluged in red roses and offered several speaking contracts. Obviously, they are all lucrative but you choose the one with optional extras: an extended holiday in the South of France …

But first you have to begin at the beginning: planning your speech. Without a plan you are whistling in the wind, dreaming.

What's on this page:

How to plan a speech step by step:

• gathering the information to write your speech
• brainstorming : what is a brainstorm, examples of brainstorms, getting started, with full step by step explanations and examples
• how to shape material to fit an audience, the speech setting, and time allocation
• an example speech outline
• how and why to research
• how to meet varying learning style needs: visual, auditory, and  kinesthetic
• links to other useful pages: how to rehearse, make cue-cards...

Planning your speech from the start

A note about these notes.

These notes are general guidelines for ALL types of speeches. I know they are long.

(Actually that's an understatement! They are very long.)

I also know if you take the time to go through them they'll give you a solid introduction to thorough speech preparation.

They cover the basics of good presentation planning, research, writing and rehearsal: aspects you’ll want to consider regardless of the type of speech you’re giving.

Gathering your information

Once you have information about:

• WHY you are going to speak (the purpose of your speech),
• WHO you are going to speak to (your audience),
• WHAT your general or specific subject matter is,
• HOW long the speech is to be,
• and WHERE it is...,

you are ready to make a rough or draft outline.

This will be your guide for writing.

You may alter the outline as you go along, as better or different ideas occur to you and that’s OK. It shows you’re flexible and thinking but before we can change anything we have to have something to start with.

To get to the outline stage in the speech planning process we first need to collect up all the "why", "who", "what", "when", "how", and "where" information needed. And that begins with a brainstorm * .

* What is a brainstorm?

A brainstorm is the name given to a commonly used, and effective, technique for generating lots of ideas on a topic, or theme, fast.

Using a heading as a prompt to get you thinking, you quickly note everything you can think of relating to it. You do not edit yourself.  You simply let the ideas flow until you can think of no more, making no judgements about whether it's a good idea, a silly idea, or a right or wrong one.

Ultimately, some will be more useful than others. You will sort through and order them later. However, the first step in the brainstorming process, is to accept everything you think of without hesitation. Stopping to decide what's OK and what's not breaks the flow.

If you'd like to see what a completed brainstorm looks like I have examples of them on my site. You'll see they provided the ideas that were then used to write the example speeches.

• one for a maid of honor speech
• one for a 50th wedding anniversary speech
• and another for a farewell speech for a colleague

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Brainstorm to begin planning your speech

The brainstorm you are going to do is about making sure you thoroughly understand everything you possibly can about the speech you intend to give.

On a large piece of paper or in a word document write these headings with enough space between them for notes.   

WHY are you giving this speech?

What is the purpose of the speech? Do you intend to inspire? To motivate? To entertain? To inform? Or perhaps you want to combine several, like to inform, motivate and inspire?

Knowing what you want your audience to think, feel and do as a result of listening to your speech is the WHY underpinning your presentation. It will help guide what content you use and how you structure it.

WHO is your audience?

Write down as much as you know about the audience.

This will give you ideas about what they will want to hear and be interested in. It will also be your guide when it comes to shaping your material. (More about this later!)

For now, make notes covering:

• the number of people expected to be in your audience,
• their age group,
• ethnicity, if appropriate,
• and the common, or uniting factors they share,
• and specific interests they may have.

Why is knowing who you're talking to vital?

Find out more about why being in harmony with your audience is so important. Check out building rapport.

Examples of WHY, WHO, WHAT...brainstorm notes 

Meet Martha Brown. She's fictional. I've made her, and the presentation she's preparing for up, to show you how the brainstorming part of the planning process works.

Martha's been asked to give a motivational speech to a group of women whose background is similar to her own. She, too, came from a family who struggled financially.

Today she is one of the few amongst her relatives who has maintained a marriage, raised children and has a successful business. Her small catering firm specializes in delivering beautifully presented gourmet meals and finger food on demand.

The organizer of the event wants her to share her life story as a guide or inspiration.

Martha is conscious of her good fortune but also knows the starting point, or the seed, lay within her. She desired the change of circumstances so much she enabled them to happen.

WHY is Martha giving this presentation?

What's the principal purpose behind Martha's speech? What does she want her audience to think, feel or do as a result of listening to her? 

Let's put ourselves in her shoes.

She wants to:

• motivate and inspire her audience
• give them hope 
• show them there is a way out of the circumstances they find themselves in

WHO is Martha's audience?

These are Martha's notes covering the key points about her audience.

• Approximately 25 people ( number )
• Mostly mid to late 30s (age)
• All women (gender)
• Mixed ethnic background but all speak English (ethnicity)
• City dwellers (uniting factor)
• Mostly work inside the home (uniting factor)
• Many have children (uniting factor)
• Interested in achieving work/life balance for themselves and their families and in particular a better financial situation (interest/uniting factor)
• All belong to the same church group (uniting factor)

WHAT are you going to talk about?

Write down the title and/or type of speech you have been asked to prepare. Now using your notes from the WHO section of your brainstorm, begin another set.

This time you are looking to see how WHAT you're going to talk about can be specifically shaped to meet and serve the interests of your audience.

Let's look at an example of WHAT

How does martha shape her life story to fit her audience.

She doesn't want to overwhelm them with information so they can’t think straight or digest it. That will turn them off.

They will think it’s too difficult and beyond them. They may listen, be interested, but they won’t  identify  with it.

She wants them to feel they can take from her experience and use it to enrich their own lives.

Her notes for WHAT may look like this:

• S peech Title How to win a future for your family when the kids need feeding and the bills want paying.
• Content - main points
• I am like you – I get too busy to plan ahead, I have a tendency to deal with what or whoever squeals loudest, I get tired …
• Before and after – life before I made the decision to start my own business – life after I made the decision. Comparisons – several examples.
• The hardest part of making the decision and acting on it was … Examples.
• The best part of making the decision … Examples. People who inspired me to act.
• What I’ve learned in the process about my family, others and myself … Examples.
• How I keep myself inspired … goal setting, listening and learning from others
• The future – a possible way forward for you, the women in the audience listening.

It’s not a speech yet but you can see the beginnings of its shape and how she’s used her knowledge of the audience to ensure giving them something they’ll enjoy listening to and identify with.

How? (How long will I speak for? How will I deliver my speech?)

There are two important 'hows' to consider.

1. How long have I got to speak?

The first is HOW long have I got to speak.

The time allocation you have been given will determine what you put into your speech and what you will leave out.

If you have a relatively short time, 3-5 minutes, you will need to either focus on one major topic with examples to illustrate or settle for covering a maximum of three lightly.

The purpose of your speech and your audience will help you make the most relevant choice. A longer time gives you more freedom to develop several ideas/themes fully.

2. How will I deliver my presentation?

The second 'how' relates to the method of presentation. HOW will you deliver this speech?

For example:

• Will this be a speech told with humor?
• Will you have a 'show and tell'? (This is when you take objects relevant to your speech to illustrate your points. It could be photographs or other items if they are suitable to transport.)
• Could you give a demonstration?

Shaping delivery to meet different learning styles

When you consider this 'how' bear in mind the different needs of your audience. Most people have a preferred mode for receiving information. That is their learning style.

Some people understand well through listening. They are called 'auditory'.

Some people get most of their understanding through looking. They are called 'visual'.

Others receive and understand information best when they can touch, feel or do what is being explained to them. These are the 'kinesthetics'.

Most of us have a preference for one or two modes. For instance, I am 'auditory' and 'visual'. I want to hear and see.  

A considerate speaker tries to include all three modes (learning styles) in their speech.

(For more on catering for learning styles with examples see the foot of the page.)

Delivery and time are yoked together

How you to choose to deliver your presentation is governed by the time you have available. If it is short, you may have to leave out a 'show and tell' or a demonstration but you will always be able to include something to meet all three modes satisfactorily.

'HOW' example from Martha's brainstorm notes 

Let’s return to Martha’s Notes to see what she does with the 'how' segment of her brainstorm.

How long? Time available = 10 minutes. (Maybe a little more but that depends on the rest of the agenda of the meeting and how well it flows. Could be some space for questions from the audience and answer.)

How to present? Definitely with humor! Also take some fliers, business cards and samples of finger food along. These can be available for people to pick up at the end of the presentation.

WHEN will this speech be given?

WHEN has two aspects you'll want to take into consideration.

The first is the actual date you have to have it ready for delivery. That lets you know how much time you have for preparation. Is it three weeks, six weeks, or two days?

You'll use that information to plan your workflow. For example, allocating yourself one week to get your preliminary outline and any research required, completed.   

The second aspect is the actual time of day and season you deliver a speech. This can have an impact on what you do and say.

For example: You can use an early bird start in the middle of winter on a wet Monday morning effectively by acknowledging the efforts people have made to be there, and by making sure the heaters are on and there's hot coffee available.

Finding ways of tying in what is happening in the 'here and now' is a good way to connect with your audience.

A word of warning : Be conscious about presenting difficult or challenging material when people are either both tired and hungry (just before lunch or dinner) or when they’ve just eaten! Concentration spans are not at their best in either situation. If possible save this type of content for a mid-morning or afternoon slot.

Martha’s Notes, WHEN:  2.45pm, Wednesday, 2nd August – Summer heat

WHERE will this presentation take place?

The environment/room/space you are to speak can play a big role in shaping the final presentation of your speech.

Points to consider are:

• Where will I be in relation to the audience?
• Will they see me easily?
• Will they hear me easily?
• Do I need a microphone?
• Is there a place to put notes if I’m using them?
• Where can I set up my samples for people to take them easily?
• Are there power points if I want to use any electronic devices?
• Do I have to provide everything I want to use (e.g.: computer, screen, leads…)?

Many fully prepared, beautifully rehearsed speeches fail because insufficient thought has gone into where they are to take place.

It’s no fun when people can neither see nor hear you or the carefully thought through demonstration is stymied through lack of an electric socket in the right place!

Martha’s Notes, WHERE: Church meeting room. It can seat everybody comfortably and there’s room for a table to put out a display of fliers and trays of food, paper napkins etc. Arrange the chairs in a horseshoe or semi-circle so everybody can see clearly.

Pulling the brainstorm notes together in an outline

Once you've worked your way through making notes under your WHY, WHO, WHAT, HOW, WHEN, and WHERE headings, you're ready for the next step.

That's picking and choosing, then re-ordering and re-writing the material you've taken from the WHAT and HOW segments of your brainstorm until you're satisfied it flows well and meets your speech purpose.

After you’ve completed outlining your speech, you’ll be ready to do any extra research required, and then you’re on to the task of writing your speech.

Martha's completed outline

Here's Martha’s Finished Outline as an example. 

Speech length : 15 minutes with extra time for a 'Question and Answer' session at the end of the presentation.

Speech title : How to win a future for your family when the kids need feeding, and the bills want paying

Introduction (2.5 minutes): Thanks for coming today … Summer heat, we’d all rather be at beach reading a book under a sun umbrella….etc. But I hope I’ve got something for you that’ll more than make up for it. I look around the hall and I see a lot of women just like me: women, who work hard, love their families, etc., … want the best for them.

(Insert anecdotal humor, perhaps a small personal story about credit cards. For instance, the only way I could manage them was to banish them the bottom drawer of the filing cabinet. Or use them to test how sharp my scissors were.)

Main Idea 1 (3 minutes): Introduce business and what it is.

Explain how it functions on a daily basis. Briefly outline long-term goals.

(Quick show-and-tell with flyers and food. Invite people to sample at end and ask questions.)

Main idea 2 (3.5 minutes): My life before the business (tie to women in audience). My life after business started. What I have achieved. The hardest part about starting, staying in business. The best part about starting, staying in business. People who have inspired me.

Main idea 3 (3.5 minutes): What I’ve learned in the process about my family, others and myself … Examples. How I keep myself inspired … goal setting, listening and learning from others

Summary : (2.5 minutes): Very quick round up of principal points. The future – the way forward for you, the women in the audience listening. Invite questions if time. Remind them about the fliers and the food! Thank organizers.

Summary - Core speech planning questions

That’s it! Very short, sweet and simple.

There’s nothing magical about planning your speech. It's just methodical: one-step-after-another. If you find yourself flustered go back to the core brainstorm headings and ask yourself the key questions once more.

• WHY am I giving this presentation? What is my purpose?What do I want my audience to do, think, or feel as a result of having heard me speak?
• WHO is this speech for?
• WHAT am I going to tell them that’s relevant and interesting?
• HOW long is the speech expected to be?
• HOW am I going to present it?
• WHEN is the speech for? (Date, day, time, season)
• WHERE is the speech going to happen? (Hall, outdoors, stadium…)

Write your answers down and let them be your guide.

Remember this is not your finished speech.

It’s your outline * : a map of what you’re going to cover.

Don’t spend too much time trying to get it perfect. You’ll want that energy for researching, writing and rehearsing!

And guess what is coming up next?

* If you'd like more about outlining a speech, including a printable outline template to use, go to sample speech outline .

Getting from planning to delivery

Here are links to articles on:

• how to research your speech . The reasons for research are discussed under the heading below -"When and What to Research"
• how to write your speech
• how to prepare and use cue cards. The benefits of using cue cards over reading from a word-for-word script are enormous. Because you are freed from having to focus on your notes you can interact with your audience directly. Your speech becomes more spontaneous and "in-the-moment".
• how to use story telling to enrich your speech . Do consider weaving your personal stories into your speech. They add tremendous audience appeal. 
• how to use props. If you're planning a "show and tell" type speech, this page is essential reading.
• how to rehearse. Rehearsal will lift your speech from ordinary to extraordinary. You'll find out privately where the glitches are, rather than publicly. It gives you an opportunity to refine your delivery.  I think it's absolutely essential!  

When and what to research

If you already know your subject thoroughly, inside out, back to front and sideways, there will be no need to research and you can skip this part of planning your speech.

BUT if you don’t, the outline should point up the gaps needing to be filled with specific information.

In our example it there seems little need for Martha to do any further research, as this speech is her personal story.

However, there are a number of ways she could strengthen her speech and add real benefits for her audience.

For example: she could bring along fliers from local training institutions providing courses especially geared for women setting up business on their own or she could provide a list of business women in the community willing to mentor and advise women in start-ups. A reading list would be helpful, as would a resource list.

All of these ideas need researching before presenting.

Careful research adds authority to your work. It shows care, thought and dedication to getting it right. Your audience will appreciate and respect you for it.

NB. If you are presenting material as fact rather than as opinion, check it! Make sure you know rather than think you know. If you can’t find out, then say so.

PS. Remember those modes or preferred learning styles?

Did you pick how Martha planned to meet each of them in her outline?

For the 'auditory' learners she would tell her story using her voice in a lively, interesting-to-listen-to way! Nothing turns an auditory focused person's ears off faster than a monotone drawl.

For the 'visual' people, she would provide fliers and food to see. Plus her appearance and body language would 'say' to them, this is a vibrant, purpose-filled person who loves what she does.

And lastly, she would use 'word pictures' to illustrate the points she made in her speech. The 'visual' would literally 'see' where she was coming from by using their imagination to recreate her images in their own minds!

For the 'kinesthetics', Martha planned to actively tell her story. She would use vivid 'action' words describing how she did things.

Example: ' I started a business.'  is bland. It doesn't communicate any of the effort or feelings involved.

By contrast: ' I started my own business. What a journey! I know you've watched your children learning to walk. Well, that was me! I fell. I skinned my knees and bruised myself. I got up, took two steps and crashed again...'

You get the idea. This is action, living and real.

The 'kinesthetic' folk will appreciate and know what she is talking about.

Additionally, Martha's fliers and food will appeal too. They can hold them, actively read the fliers and taste the food.

Lastly, they will be aware of what Martha does while she's talking to them. Is she conveying energy, excitement and action in her body language? If so, she'll have them with her!

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Quick Guide: How to Write a Speech Outline

Knowing how to write a speech outline is not merely a skill reserved for students and professionals—it is a fundamental tool for anyone aiming to influence, persuade, or inform an audience. An effectively structured speech outline can transform good ideas into great deliveries, ensuring your message not only reaches but also resonates with your listeners.

Why Start with a Speech Outline?

Starting with a solid speech outline is essential because it serves as a roadmap for your entire presentation. It helps you organize your thoughts, maintain a logical flow, and importantly, keep the audience's attention from start to finish. Whether it’s a brief address at a community meeting or a more scientific speech at a conference, the outline you prepare lays the foundation for your success.

The Anatomy of a Basic Speech Outline

Creating a basic speech outline involves several key components, each playing a critical role in the speech's development and delivery.

Introduction

• Attention Grabber : Start with something that will catch the audience’s attention, such as a provocative question, a startling fact, or a personal story.
• Thesis Statement : Clearly state the central theme or thesis of your speech. This statement will guide the entire speech and should be referred to throughout.
• Preview of Main Points : Briefly outline the main points that will be covered, providing the audience with a clear expectation of what is to follow.

After captivating your audience with a strong introduction, the body of your speech serves as the core where you expand on your thesis statement. This is where your main points come into play, each requiring careful articulation and support.

• Developing Main Points : Start with the broadest point or the most important aspect of your topic. This part must be clear and well-structured because it sets the tone for the details that follow.
• Incorporating Sub-Points : Each main point in your speech should be supported by several sub-points. These serve a critical role, delving deeper into the topic, providing clarity and depth to your arguments. The use of sub-points helps break down complex information into manageable chunks, making it easier for your audience to digest and retain the information. Think of sub-points as branches of a tree, each extending from the main trunk with specific details and evidence.
• Connecting the Dot s: Ensure that there is a logical flow between your main points and sub points. Use transitions to guide your audience smoothly from one section to the next. This connectivity is crucial in maintaining the coherence of your speech and keeping the audience engaged from start to finish.
• Summary of Main Points : Reiterate the points you’ve made, ensuring they tie back to your thesis statement.
• Closing Summary or Remark : End with a strong, memorable statement or a call to action that leaves a lasting impression on your audience.

Tailoring Your Outline for Various Speech Types

The structure of your outline may vary slightly depending on the type of speech you are giving. For a more informative speech, your outline should include a wealth of factual data and statistics that provide a thorough understanding of the subject matter. Regardless of the type, the basic components remain similar, providing a skeleton on which to build your unique message.

Practical Tips for Effective Speech Writing

• Keep it Simple : Use simple language and short sentences to make your speech easy to follow.
• Practice Transitions : Smooth transitions between points help maintain the flow of your speech and keep the audience engaged . A simple transitional phrase can effectively move the audience from one point to another.
• Engage with Stories : People remember stories much better than facts. Including a personal story or a historical event that ties into your main points can make your speech more relatable and memorable.

In crafting your speech outline, consider the needs and expectations of your audience. The more you understand their interests and the context in which you're speaking, the more tailored and impactful your speech will be.

Building Confidence Through Preparation

Writing a speech outline isn't just about organizing your notes; it's about building confidence. By investing time in preparing your outline, you assure not only the clarity of your message but also your own composure during delivery. Keep refining your outline until it reflects the clear path you wish to take your audience on, making your public speaking both powerful and persuasive.

Enhancing Your Outline with Advanced Techniques

Utilize Visual Aids:

• Integrate Multimedia : To make your speech more engaging, consider incorporating visual aids such as slides, charts, or videos. These can help illustrate complex points and keep the audience visually engaged.
• Reinforce Key Points : Visuals should complement your spoken words, not replace them. Use them to highlight important data or to make a significant impact with a memorable image.

Personalize Your Message:

• Connect Personally : Share additional personal stories or make a humorous reference that relates to your topic. This personal touch can make your speech more relatable and helps to sustain the audience's interest.
• Address the Audience Directly : Customize your message by specifically inviting the audience into the discussion. Ask rhetorical questions or seek audience participation to create a dynamic interaction.

Conclude with Impact:

• Recap with Power : Summarize not just by repeating points, but by tying them together into one clear, overarching message. Use a neat summary or an effective transitional sentence that leads into your closing remarks.
• End on a High Note : Whether it's a call to action, a thought-provoking question, or a powerful quote, ensure your closing lines leave a lasting impression.

Mastering the Delivery

While the content of your speech is foundational, the delivery can significantly influence its effectiveness . Here are some tips to master the art of delivery:

• Practice Out Loud : Rehearse your speech several times. This helps not only in memorizing the flow but also in identifying areas where the speech may need adjustments. Using a teleprompter app can be particularly beneficial during these practice sessions. Such apps can help you maintain eye contact with your "audience" while ensuring that you stick to your script. This mimics the experience of live speaking and can be a valuable tool for smoothing out your delivery.
• Mind Your Timing : Keep track of your speaking speed and pauses. Make sure your speech fits within the allotted time without rushing through important details.
• Adjust Based on Feedback : If possible, practice in front of a small audience or a speech coach to get feedback. Use this input to refine both your outline and delivery.

Leveraging Feedback and Iteration

After delivering your speech, take the opportunity to gather feedback. This can come from audience reactions, professional critiques, or your own self-assessment. Each speech is a learning experience, and every piece of feedback is valuable for improving future presentations.

• Reflect on the Delivery : Consider what worked well and what didn’t. Were there points where the audience seemed disengaged?
• Iterate on Content : Based on feedback, you might find that certain parts of your speech need more detail or clearer explanations. Adjust your outline accordingly for future use.

Encourage Engagement and Further Learning

As we wrap up our discussion on how to write a speech outline, remember that your journey with public speaking doesn't end here. Encourage further interaction by inviting comments, sharing your speech on social media, or offering additional resources on your website. Each speech is an opportunity to grow and connect with others who share your interests or could benefit from your insights.

In summary, creating a compelling speech outline is about much more than filling in bullet points—it’s about creating a pathway to engage, inform, and persuade your audience. Achieving success in public speaking can be achieved by carefully organizing every section of your speech and honing your delivery technique. Prepare thoroughly, establish a personal connection with your audience, and communicate your point clearly and passionately.

Related Articles

Here are practical tips on how to write a speech outline to engage and persuade any audience effectively. Perfect your public speaking skills now.

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• Preparation , Structure

How to write a speech outline

• June 12, 2020

What is a speech outline? Think of it as a blueprint for a successful speech or presentation. You wouldn’t start construction on a house or building without a blueprint and you shouldn’t build a speech or presentation without proper preparation. That means having a basic outline.

How do you write a speech outline?

How do you create a good speech outline? Although writing a speech outline might seem daunting at first, if you break the task into small steps, it can be easier than you think. And, when you start to look at the component parts of a speech or presentation, you realize that good speech craft is all about prioritizing your ideas, putting them in the right order and adding supporting detail.

In this post, I set out the steps that I follow when writing an effective outline that will lead to an effective speech or presentation. For the purposes of this post, I will assume that you know the topic and the audience.

The steps to writing a speech outline

Step 1 – big picture.

Before you start writing your outline, it is important to step back and think about some big picture items.

First, think about the three cornerstones to your speech or presentation: the speaker (you); your subject; and your audience. Now, think about the relationships between these three cornerstones and make some notes about each. For example,

Speaker – Subject: What do you know about the subject? Why are you speaking about it? What expertise do you have? What insights can you share with the audience?

Audience – Subject: What does the audience know about the subject? Do they like the subject? Do they not like it? How is the subject relevant for the audience?

Speaker – Audience: What do you know about the people who will attend your presentation? What do they know about you? Do you have any ongoing relationship with them?

The purpose of this step is to get you to step back from the detail and think “big picture” about your speaking engagement.

Step 2 – Objective

What is your objective for the talk? What do you want people to do when have finished speaking?

People often tell me that they just want the audience to know something. The most powerful speeches and presentations are the ones that move people to action. If you can get people to take some concrete action, you will have made an impact.

When thinking about what you want the audience to do, be specific. For example, do you want them to increase your department’s budget or invest in your start-up or exercise three times a week? Write out your objective as follows:

“At the end of the presentation, the audience will ___________________ .”

Step 3 – Message

A speech or presentation should have a message, something that holds it together. The French call this le fil rouge – the red thread – that runs through the entirety of the presentation. People often try to pack in several messages but being too informative is not good; the result is often confusing for those listening. Of course, your message can have different parts, but it should have a single, unifying message.

Write the message of your speech in a single sentence. It must be a grammatically correct sentence, not a series of points. When you can distill your speech or presentation into a single sentence, the message will be clear in your mind. If you cannot, you need to spend more time thinking about the message. As Albert Einstein said, if you can’t explain something simply, you don’t understand it well enough.

When developing your speech outline in the steps below, use the message as a gauge for everything that goes into the speech. As you develop your talk, as you think about adding a slide, a statistic, a story, a chart, a graph, etc., ask yourself whether it supports the key message. If it does, it can stay. If it doesn’t, leave it out.

Step 4 – Relevance

A speech or presentation is never about the speaker or her product or service or company. It is always about the audience. When speakers put the audience first , that’s when great things happen.

Now that you have your message, list the reasons why your audience should care about your message. How is your message relevant to them?

You need at least one reason. If you can’t think of any, you have a problem. Either you are giving the wrong speech or you are speaking to the wrong audience. Go back to Step 3 and reconsider your message in light of Steps 1 and 2. Keep doing this until you can list one or more reasons why people should care about what you are saying.

Step 5 – Structure

Every speech or presentation needs structure in order for it to have an impact.

There are three basic parts to ever speech or presentation: the opening; the body; and the conclusion. For the purposes of this post, I will discuss them in that order. However, when working on your speech outline, I recommend starting with the body, then working on the opening and finally the conclusion.

(a) Opening

Your opening is the introduction to your presentation. You get one chance to make a good first impression, so you want your opening to be strong. Preparation is key. A strong opening has two parts.

People’s attention is at its highest at the beginning of your presentation so you want to capitalize on it. Speakers who begin in a mundane fashion — “Good morning everyone. I’m happy to be here. My name is So-and-So and today we are going to talk about X” — often miss the opportunity to hook their audience’s attention.

There is no rule that says you have to begin with “Good morning” or something similar. There is no rule that introducing yourself has to be the first thing you do. And as for being happy, don’t say it. Show it in your smile and enthusiasm.

You can hook your audience’s attention from the outset in different ways. For example:

• Ask a rhetorical question
• Ask people to imagine something or recall a time in their lives when something happened
• Make a bold statement
• Tell an interesting fact
• Recite a quote
• Tell a story

Whatever you choose, be sure that it relates to the topic of your presentation. For your speech outline write down how you will immediately grab the audience’s attention.

(ii) Signpost

Once you have hooked them, you need to let people know where you are going with your presentation. Otherwise, the audience will get frustrated. Have you ever been in the audience and wondered: Where is he going with this? What’s her point? Like I said, it’s frustrating.

You need to signpost your talk. It doesn’t take much but it is a big help for your audience. It is a simple, informative statement of what the talk is about.

For example: “Today I want to share with you three reasons why we should open an office in southeast Asia: lower taxation; a skilled workforce; and market proximity.” Clearly, there is more to know about the proposal, but the sentence is a clear signpost to the audience as to what the presentation will be about.

The body of your presentation is where you develop your message in detail. This part represents the bulk of you presentation, so you need to give it some thought. Here’s how I go about it.

(i) Gather content

You need content for your presentation. Often, you can talk about many points in support of your message. Write them all down. Don’t edit your ideas yet. Write down everything that you could talk about, no matter how insignificant. Try to distill each idea into a word or short phrase.

When you have finished, your preparation should leave you with a sheet full of ideas. You are now ready for the next step.

(ii) Choose the most important points

Leonardo da Vinci said that simplicity is the ultimate sophistication. Too often, speakers fail to hit the mark because they try to cover too much information. People can only remember so much information. The more you add, the harder it will be for them to remember. Removing information will actually help them.

Of course, the number of points you cover will depend on how much time you have. You can cover more topics in a 30-minute presentation that you can in a 5-minute presentation.

Still, don’t try to talk about everything. What are the main points? Pick what is most important for this audience on this occasion and focus on that. You can always tell the audience that there is more to know but that you are only going to focus on a few ideas.

I know that leaving material out can be difficult, but you have to do it. Think for a moment about the complexity of the projects on which you are currently working. If you were asked to give a 20-minute presentation on any one of those projects, I’d bet that you could only cover a fraction of the detail related to it.

(iii) Order the points

Once you know the ideas you are going to discuss, you need to order them in a logical manner that supports your message. Depending on what you are talking about, you have different options. Here are five possible ways to order your content:

• Chronological (for example, the history of a company or product)
• Sequential (for example, a process or business plan)
• Climax (when trying to persuade the audience to do something; points arranged from the least important to the most important, thus building to a climax)
• Headline (also when trying to persuade the audience to do something but here, the points arranged from the most important to the least important; useful for a small audience of busy, senior, give-me-the-bottom-line-now people)
• Pros and Cons (when considering options)

Your ideas must be presented in a coherent manner so that they help people understand the reasoning behind your message.

(iv) Add supporting detail

Now that the ideas are in the right order, you want to add supporting detail for each one. Your ideas need to be supported if they are to be convincing.

Examples of supporting detail include data, charts and graphs, stories, quotes, authoritative sources, visuals, metaphors, demonstrations and more. A good presentation will have a variety of supporting material. That is why this part of the process takes a fair bit of preparation.

For each of your main points, list the things that you will use to support that point. If you are going to use slides as part of the presentation, you can even sketch out a rough idea as to what each slide will contain.

(v) Transitions

Transitions in a presentation do not make up a large part of a presentation, but they are important. Too often, the different points in a presentation blend into each other like the compartments on a train. This makes it more challenging for the audience to follow.

It is important to leave enough space between two ideas so that the audience understands that you are moving onto a new point. Just as you need to signpost what your talk is about in the opening, you also need to signal when you are moving on to a new point in your talk.

A transition can be a simple statement. For example, “The next point is …” or “Another reason in support is …” or “Now that we’ve discussed X, let’s look at Y …”. Any of these will suffice. But a simple statement will allow the audience to shift gears mentally and get ready for the next idea.

On your speech outline, make a note about how each section of the body links to the following section.

(c) Conclusion

You want to finish on a strong note. Too many people waste their conclusions with a weak “Thank you” and exit the stage. You have to resist that urge and maximize your conclusion. You can plan for it in your speech outline.

(i) Transition to conclusion

Plan how you will transition from the final point in the body of your presentation to the conclusion. It should send a clear signal to the audience that you are nearing the end. One way is to link your conclusion to your opening.

(ii) Link to opening

Most people think of a presentation as something that is linear but I like to think of it as something that is  circular . In other words, you link your conclusion to your opening.

Thus, for example, if you began with a story, you could finish the story; if you began with a quote, you could come back to the quote; if you told an interesting fact, you could reiterate it (and perhaps add another interesting fact).

Linking your conclusion to the opening is not necessary, but it always adds a nice polish to your presentation and signals to your audience that you are approaching the end. In your speech outline, write down how you might link your conclusion to your opening.

(iii) Repeat and summarize message

Repeating your message as a simple statement will reinforce it in the mind of your audience. Succinctly summarize the different points in support, in the same order in which you presented them in the body of your talk.

(iv) Call to action

As discussed in Step 2 (Objective), the most powerful presentations are the ones that move the audience to take some kind of action. Now is the time to leave the audience with your call to action.

If your call to action is a big one, have a simple first step that they can take. Studies show that if you can get people to take a small step towards a larger goal, the chances of them reaching that goal are greatly increased.

One example of a first step that I have used with a few clients is to have them insert a slide at the end of the deck with a QR code on it. The code links to a website where the audience can learn more about the topic and perhaps download PDF document. It is a simple and effective way to start moving your audience toward your objective.

Final thoughts

When you give a presentation, it is your job to get the audience across the metaphorical bridge that separates them from your idea. How do you do that? It all starts with the preparation of a good speech outline.

How do you write a speech outline? One step at a time.

Like this article?

Excellent, clear and concise overview — thank you, John! For me, including a clear call to action is my weakest point. I will definitely work on that. (I think it’s very much linked to self-confidence: “Who am I to suggest a call to action to you, audience members?” Is this a gender issue, to some extent, I wonder? I’d love to hear from other women speakers about this point. Or any observations from you as a mentor/coach/trainer, John?)

Thank you very much, Merryl. I am glad that you enjoyed the post. I understand your point about the call to action. I know that some women struggle with it, but I also know men who struggle with it as well. There is, as you say, this feeling of “Who am I to tell you what to do?” but then again, who aren’t you to tell me? At the end of the day, I will decide whether to agree with you or not. But if you don’t sound invested, the chances that I will be invested are diminished. In this regard, this post , and the wonderful video in it, about speaking with conviction might help. Good luck with your speeches and presentations!

Excellent. This one a definite keeper! Hugs Mom

Thanks, Mom. Much appreciated.

Delighted to see a mention of the Red Thread here. It’s the backbone of a great talk, but often the hardest thing for people to find (and thus why I wanted to figure out a way to help people find it).

Great suggestions here for how to build a talk from there — thank you.

Thanks a lot John I will use it today for a strategy presentation. 😉

Good luck with the presentation, Michel!

Gems! Love the questions about how much the audience likes the subject – great way to see it from their viewpoint.

Also love your point about getting people to take a small, easy step, to get the ball rolling.

That’s actually the last piece of a 3-part model I use for getting listeners to act:

1. Announce your call-to-action (A) 2. Convince people to own it (C) 3. Transform it into steps (T)

It’s as if you build a bridge between your call-to-action and your listeners’ everyday lives. (See the link for some sample techniques.)

Great post, John. A little longer, but well worth the read!

Thanks, Craig. “ACT” is a great acronym for getting people to … act. I also like the metaphor of a bridge. I often say that your audience is on one side of the river and you want to get them to see things from your side. To do that, you have to build a bridge that allows them to cross over.

Great info, thanks !

Thanks, Hector.

Thank you for sharing that consistent and concise methode on how to outline a speech which is extremeley helpful. I will certainly apply that approach in planning my speeches.

I am glad that you found it helpful, Günther. Thanks for letting me know.

Excellent post: simple, to the point, easy-to-follow, compelling. Like a speech! 🙂

Thank you for summing it up in a neat package, John!

Thank you, Lisa Marie.

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Ace the Presentation

How to Outline A Speech – Easy 4-stage Strategy

Introduction.

The art of speech outlining is such that anybody trying to make a public presentation should give strict adherence to. If you came here asking ‘how to outline a speech?’, then rest assured, you will learn how to craft an effective speech outline by the time you finish reading this article.

When you organize your speech into a comprehensive outline, you not only boost your confidence and delivery by doing so but, you also, establish authority in your chosen field of endeavor.

Now, before proceeding to prepare your speech outline, be sure to start with an excellent introduction about yourself and the topic or subject that will form the basis of the discussion, the main points you hope to go over, as well putting the diverse interests of the audience into consideration.

As you write your speech outline, you will need to consider chopping it into various cross-sections from the introduction down to the conclusion.

The introductory part of your presentation will contain a brief intro about yourself, the foundation and theme of your topic, and your work in the field of discussion.

The mid-section part of your presentation will include much of the discussion itself. This will be an opener into the topic, as well as touching on each of the main points in the presentation.

The last part of the speech outline will hold the final notes, the summary as well as a question and answering session, before the final closing remarks

We will do better to illustrate these stages below.

How to Outline a Speech Stage I

1. introduction.

The most common approach is to open the floor with a warm welcome and a brief intro about yourself. Of course, you could use other speech opening techniques , which you can find in this article , but let’s go with the most common now.

You can start by saying “hello,” then going on to state your name and what you do. It will also be useful to find common ground with you, the audience, and the event. For example, if the scope of the entire event centers on your field, it will be wise to point that out in specific terms.

As an expert in your field, you might have been asked to speak at a “Go-green” event. You could start by saying something like along the lines…

“Hello everyone, I’m Nathan Gustav, I’ve spent the last seven years of my career researching the impact of climate change on our environment, and I’m more than pleased that I have been invited to speak on the subject of adopting eco-friendly best practices for a safer and cleaner environment.”

2. Engage Them In Banters That Hover Around The Topic In Question

As a part of the introductory phase, you will have to succinctly relay the essence of your topic, and everything that concerns it. In the case of more engaging topics, you should argue what they stand to gain or lose in the event the right action is not taken at a particular time frame.

Just like in the illustration given earlier, you might explain to them why climate change has become a matter of urgency, and why drastic measures need to be taken to curb the damage, it has caused. All these will lay a foundation of what much of the topic will be mediated upon.

After you might have laid the foundation of the topic, your main aim should be to immediately captivate your audience by telling them a compelling story, or by sharing a joke. You should factor in the audience taste when doing so. You should not feel that since you probably found something amusing or exciting, that they will automatically share in the same spirits.

Where you are not too sure of what a class of audience might appreciate, you can do a test-run with a small group of friends, who have the same enthusiasm as you and your subject to see how well they buy into your story.

3. Lay Out The Core Theme Of The Message .

This would be the mission statement of your presentation, which boldly explains the aims and objectives of your speech. This theme would serve as the template on which you will make your presentation. For an engaging speech, your mission statement will address the goals you hope to achieve from the entire exercise.

In the illustration of climate change, you might go on to explain the various best practices that can be adopted to promote an eco-friendly environment, like recycling, using energy-saving bulbs, or planting a garden.

If you are giving a speech on scientific research, you should lay down the hypothesis of the research in discussion.

4. Establish Authority In Your Work

At this point, you should let your audience in on your wealth of experience. This can be conveyed through stories of your personal experiences or encounters throughout your years of working in the field.

Even when you don’t have formal training in the subject at hand, you can establish authority in that field from an experience you have had or witnessed.

A person who has witnessed a “troubled” loved one commit suicide is better informed to give a speech about handling depression and anxiety amongst youth.

5. Gloss Over The Main Points

By this time, your audience is already familiar with the topic of discussion and why they need to give a listening ear. Then go-ahead to lay out a clear summary of all the key points you hope to discuss.

There are no short cuts to this. You need to be precise about what you want to talk about. The order in which you arrange your points will be dependent on the nature of the topics. Topics that take stock of past events will have to be arranged chronologically.

In reality, you will need to arrange your key points in a manner that looks comfortable to you, so you don’t have a problem moving from point to point.

How to Outline a Speech Stage II

6. the opener into the topic.

Begin with the first point of your topic, which will be a high priority case study in the outline. Under this case study, will be a host of smaller points that will provide supportive evidence to back the main point.

Upon the way and manner, you choose to arrange the outline; they can be represented as bullet points. You should add various arguments and verified information to augment the main point of discussion.

Always begin with strong arguments down to the least. This is because of time constraints. You might not have all the time to table all your points, but you have had just enough time to discuss the most important ones.

7. Roll Over To The Next Point .

When you are done with discussing your first point, you should revert to the main header and find an easy path from which you can roll over to the next point. There need not be any fancy way of transitioning unto the next point. Just find a cool phrase that can work just fine.

You could, for instance, say “You have seen the adverse effects of climate on our environment, now is the time to seek for eco-friendly ways we can all adopt in our various little ways to combat this common problem.” Run this same method along with all points in the outline, and you will turn out just fine.

Remember that when picking small sub-points to speak on, always have the audience’s interest at the back of your mind as much as the general point. Always reason ahead and factor in only what is most relevant to them.

How to Analyze an Audience

Why a Speech Outline is Important

10 AWESOME TIPS ON HOW TO START A SPEECH WITH A BANG!

How to Outline a Speech Stage III

8. final notes.

Conclude by summarizing all the points you have talked about. You can begin by reiterating what you said before in your speech. It is a summary, so you need not go over all of the details again. You should more or less gloss over the main points.

Moreover, never make the mistake of adding any new details to what you have already established in the summary part of your presentation. You would not only be committing a blunder but also obstructing the flow and structure of your message, which ultimately won’t play well with the audience.

9. Reiterate The Core Theme Of The Message

This particular address of your mission statement should be more of a conclusion summary or a fact discovery than its raw form thesis that you made known during the introductory phase of your presentation.

When a speech goes as successfully as expected, you would have proven your hypothesis beyond a reasonable doubt and shown its relevance.

The theme of your message should refer to the summarized version of your points and should hold a strong position. Especially for short presentations, you may choose to join your summarized points together with your mission statement in one sentence to bring your speech to an end.

When giving out a call-to-action, be sure to add your contact information. You can say something like, “The Mayfair Initiative is looking for people to partner with to spread the message of going green. They need people to picket outside a coffee shop, your communal departmental store, or the small bar by the street. All you need do is contact us on such-and-such for more information.”

How to Outline a Speech Stage IV

10. Make Room For Questions And Answers

At the absolute conclusion will be the time for asking questions. Make sure to clear this up beforehand with the event hosts to know if it will be ok to field questions from the audience after making your presentation.

If you hope to make time to take questions, put this down on your speech outline so that it does not skip your memory at the climax of your speech.

Where you want to field in a couple of questions from the audience, make sure you pen this out in your speech outline so you can make mention of it, letting them know that you are willing to take questions.

Moreover, always expect to field tough questions and engage in counter-arguments about the speech topic. You should already have the answer to such questions before then, having done thorough research and do have them included in the outline.

Also, be quick to note to the audience just how much time and the number of questions you will be willing to take.

11. Thank The Audience And Your Host

Go ahead to appreciate the audience and the event hosts. Showing appreciation to your audience shows that you honor and respect them for taking out their precious time to pay attention to you. Where you were explicitly invited to make an appearance, you should not hesitate to acknowledge the hosts once again for the opportunity.

A word of warning, though, do not make your closing remarks and pleasantries sound too rehearsed. It should come natural and appear very heartfelt.

We can now see why learning how to outline a speech in the right order not only boost your confidence but lets you garner credibility and respect from your audience.

In order to help you deliver engaging, coherent, exciting and memorable presentations, we answered the question ‘how to outline a speech’ with a 4-stage strategy, that should prove useful for your future speeches and help you build rapport and credibility with your audience.

Making sure you give strict adherence to all the four stages, as we have been able to tabulate in the right order will surely stand you out amongst your peers, making you a dominant force in your area of specialization, and people will be more than willing to work with you.

In summary, when you are planning your speech or writing your speech you have so many great things you want to share with the audience, but time and forgetfulness won’t be on your side, so writing a speech outline that is effective and helps you deliver a memorable presentation is critical.

REFERENCES & FURTHER READING

Thank you for reading this far. Find below additional references and resources that will add on to our ‘how to outline a speech’ post. I am sure you will find some additional insights.

Andrew DLungan. Speech Preparation #3: Don’t skip the speech outline. http://sixminutes.dlugan.com/speech-preparation-3-outline-examples/ . Accessed on 07/28/2019.

Susan DugDale. Sample Speech Outline. https://www.write-out-loud.com/sample-speech-outline.html . Accessed on 07/28/2019.

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Speech Writing

Last updated on: Feb 9, 2023

How to Write a Speech - Outline With Example

By: Cordon J.

Reviewed By: Rylee W.

Published on: Sep 8, 2020

Giving a speech for a class, event or work can be nerve-wracking. However, writing an effective speech can boost your confidence level.

A speech is an effective medium to communicate your message and speech writing is a skill that has its advantages even if you are a student or a professional.

With careful planning and paying attention to small details, you can write a speech that will inform, persuade, entertain or motivate the people you are writing for.

If this is your first speech. Take all the time you need.

Like other skills, you can learn speech writing too.

Give yourself enough time to write and practice it several times for the best possible results.

On this Page

You have a message that you want people to hear or you are preparing a speech for a particular situation such as a commemorative speech.

No matter what the case, it is important to ensure that the speech is well structured or else you will fail to deliver your effective message. And you don’t want that, do you?

You can also explore our complete guide to  write a commemorative speech . Make sure to give the article a thorough read.

How to Create a Speech Outline?

Want to write a speech your audience will remember? A speech outline is a thing you should start with.

‘How to write a speech outline?’

A speech outline is very important in helping you sound more authoritative and in control. As you write your speech outline you will have to focus on how you will introduce yourself, your topic, and the points that you will be going to cover.

A speech outline will save a lot of your time and will help you organize your thoughts. It will make sure the speech is following a proper structure and format.

Before you start writing your own speech you need to know:

• WHO you are writing the speech for
• WHAT the speech will be going to cover
• HOW long it needs to be e.g if it is a 5-minute speech (then how many words in a 5-minute speech)

These speech tips will help you get on the right track from the start. Here is an example of how you can craft a speech outline.

Preparation

• Choose your topic and the main points that your speech will cover. Know your audience and get to know what they are looking for. Pay attention to their needs
• Define the purpose of the speech and properly organize it

Introduction

• A strong statement to grab the reader’s attention
• Refine the thesis statement
• State something that establishes credibility
• Provide your main idea and include some supporting statements.
• Examples and further details (if needed)
• Summarize the main points of the speech
• Closing statement
• Call to action

Paper Due? Why Suffer? That's our Job!

How to Write an Effective Speech?

‘How to write a graduation speech?’

‘How to write a speech for school?’

‘How to write a speech about yourself?’

Get your answers in the below sections.

Just like essays, the speech also follows three sections: Introduction, the main body, and conclusion.

However, unlike essays, a speech must be written to be heard as opposed to just being read. It is important to write a speech in a way that can grab the reader’s attention and helps in painting a mental image.

It is the opening statement of a speech. It is important to know how to start a speech that can grab the attention of the audience.

‘How to write a speech introduction?’

It should include a hook-grabber statement about your topic. It should end with a strong transition from a big idea of the introduction to the main body of the essay. Some great ways to begin your speech are, to begin with, a rhetorical question, a quote, or another strong statement.

Make sure the introduction is not more than one paragraph. This will ensure you do not spend much time on the background before getting to the main idea of the topic.

The introduction is a great chance to make sure your opening is memorable as this is the point when your audience will make up their mind about you.

The Main body

The majority of the speech should be spent presenting your thesis statement and supporting ideas in an organized way.

Avoid rambling as it will immediately lose your audience’s attention. No need to share everything, instead pick some points and stick to them throughout your speech.

Organize your points in a logical manner so they support and build on each other. Add as many points as needed to support the overall message of your speech.

State each point clearly and provide all the required information, facts, statistics, and evidence, to clarify each of your points.

It is a good idea to include your personal experiences to make your speech more interesting and memorable.

Another important thing to be kept in mind is the use of transition. The purpose of adding transition words is to improve the overall flow of the information and help the reader to understand the speech structure. Words like next, then, after, before, at that moment, etc. are the most commonly used transition words to make the whole writing less choppy and more interesting.

The conclusion should restate and summarize all the main points of the speech. Because the audience will most likely remember what they have heard last. Beautifully wrap up the whole speech and give something for the audience to think about.

For an extra element, close your speech by restating the introduction statement so it feels like a complete package.

A good approach to conclude your speech is to introduce a call to action. Encourage your audience to participate in the solution to the problem that you are discussing. Give your audience some direction on how they can participate.

Practice and more practice is key to a great speech so it is important that you read your speech and listen to yourself. When writing, take care of the required length also.

Speech Topics - Engaging Topics to Choose From

You feel relief when your teacher says you are free to choose your speech topic. Feel free to write about anything you want. The problem is students still feel stuck in choosing an effective speech topic. If you are one of them, here is a list of the best speech ideas to help you get through the process.

• What role do cats play in human’s lives
• How to improve communication disorders
• World’s fastest-growing country
• Today’s world pollution rate
• How to improve interpersonal skills
• Are paper books better than e-books
• Should the death penalty be abolished
• Should prisoners be allowed to vote
• Should voting be made compulsory
• Is it better to live together before marriage

These are some of the interesting topics that you can consider. However, if you are still not sure about the topic of your speech, you can explore our article on  informative speech topics  and pick any of your choices.

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Speech Example

Stressing over on how to write a good speech? Speech examples are sure to be your best friend for effective speech writing and its effortless delivery.

Here is a sample speech example to help you get through your own speech writing process. Explore this example and get the answer on how to give a good speech.

Get Professional Help for Your Speech

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We have a highly qualified and amazing team of expert writers who can help you if you want to buy speeches online with high-quality content.

Contact our " write my essay " service with your requirements. Our essay writer will provide you with quality material that your audience will remember for a long time.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the best introduction for a speech.

The best way to open a speech’s introduction is, to begin with, a story. Tell an inspiring story to your audience and connect it with your personal narrative.

What is the first step of speech writing?

The first step of writing a speech is to choose a topic. Choosing a good topic is important to have an engaging and great speech.

What are the five steps in speech writing?

Here are the five steps involved in writing a speech.

• Choose a topic.
• Investigate your audience.
• Built an outline.
• Rehearse the speech.
• Revise and finalize.

What are the types of speech delivery?

Here are the types of speech delivery.

• Extemporaneous

What are the two P’s required for good speech delivery?

The two P’s required for proper speech delivery are Preparation and Practice.

Cordon. is a published author and writing specialist. He has worked in the publishing industry for many years, providing writing services and digital content. His own writing career began with a focus on literature and linguistics, which he continues to pursue. Cordon is an engaging and professional individual, always looking to help others achieve their goals.

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• Commemorative Speech: Guide to Craft an Engaging Speech

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• 50+ Demonstration Speech Ideas for Your Next Great Speech

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• Debate Topics (2024) - Top 200+ Compelling Topics

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• Extemporaneous Speech - How to Write One Successfully?

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How to Write a Speech: Top Tips

Ashleigh Ferguson

Table of Contents

9 engaging speech writing tips, what are the different speech types , how to find help writing a speech.

A great speech is impactful and engaging. It should eloquently and clearly express your ideas.

Whatever the topic, a good speech should showcase your authority on a topic and demonstrate excellent communication and leadership skills.

Many people don't know how to write a speech, so the process seems daunting. But there are a few best practices and tips that can make the writing process easier.

In this article, we’ll discuss some best practices to help you write an effective speech that engages and captures your audience.

Public speaking can be nerve-racking. However, having a well-written speech can decrease some of that anxiety.

Even if you’ve never written a speech before, there are still best practices you can follow. 

An engaging speech should be clear, to the point, and follow a logical order. But how do you ensure your speech follows these criteria? Follow these nine engaging speech writing tips.

Know Your Audience

Analyze your target audience to improve the effectiveness of your speech because different audiences will have different expectations. 

Consider your audience’s age, level of understanding, attitudes, and what they expect to take away from your speech, then tailor your message accordingly. 

For example, if your audience members are teenagers, it’s unlikely that references to the ’70s will be effective.

Start With a Clear Purpose

Decide on the main point of your speech, and make sure all your content supports that point. Choose a topic that fits the following criteria:

A topic that is relevant to your audience

A topic you’re excited about

A topic you have reasonable knowledge about

Organize Your Ideas 

Use a speech outline to organize your thoughts and ideas logically. 

Identify the introduction, body, and conclusion of your speech to help you stay focused and make your speech easier to follow.

Use Strong, Clear Language

Choose your words carefully, and use simple language that is easy to understand. Avoid jargon or technical terms that your audience may not be familiar with. 

Again, your word choice will depend on your audience. For example, you’ll want to steer clear of slang when speaking to an older, conservative crowd.

Use Transitions

Speech transitions are words and phrases that allow you to move smoothly from one point to another. Use transitional words and phrases like “besides” to help your audience follow your thought process and understand how your points are connected.

Add Variety to Speech

A speech that is monotonous or lacks variety may cause your audience to lose interest. 

Including a variety of elements in your speech, such as anecdotes, examples, and visual aids, can help keep your audience engaged and interested. 

Practice, Practice, Practice

Practice your speech out loud to ensure it flows well and you’re comfortable with the material. Read your speech in front of the mirror or before someone you trust to give you critical feedback. Note the points for improvement, and incorporate them into how you deliver your speech.

End With a Strong Conclusion

How would you like to leave your audience members: inspired, informed, or mesmerized? Aim to end your speech on a high note. Summarize your main points, and leave your audience with a memorable takeaway.

Edit and Revise

Proofread and revise your speech to ensure it’s well written and error free. Use a grammar checker, such as ProWritingAid, to correct any grammar issues. You’ll also get suggestions on how to improve your sentence structures and transitions.

How to Write a Good Speech Introduction

The introduction can make or break your speech. It’s where you grab your audience’s attention to keep them engaged and state the purpose of your speech. 

An introduction also gives you the opportunity to establish your credibility. You should aim to give your audience a reason to listen to the rest of the speech rather than tuning out.

Here are some tips on how to create a positive first impression.

Start With a Hook

Begin your introduction with a hook that will grab your audience’s attention and make them want to listen. There are several options for a hook:

A statistic

A personal anecdote

Reference to a current or historical event

When thinking of an attention grabber, consider how appropriate and relevant it is to your audience and the purpose of the speech. For example, if you’re giving a speech to an older audience, you can make a historical reference that they can easily relate to.

Provide Context

Provide context by giving your audience some background information about the topic of your speech. This will help them understand the importance of what you are talking about and why they should care.

State Your Thesis

Clearly and concisely state the main point or purpose of your speech. Your thesis should be easy to follow and clearly outline the main argument and your stance. This will give your audience a clear understanding of what they can expect to learn from your presentation.

Preview Your Main Points

Give your audience a sense of the structure of your speech by briefly outlining the key points or arguments you will be making. They’ll know what to expect, and your speech will be easier to follow. 

Keep It Short

Your introduction should be concise and to the point, so don’t spend too much time on it. It’s important to keep your speech brief, and avoid including unnecessary or unrelated information. 

The goal is to engage and interest your audience, not bore them, so aim for a few well-chosen words rather than a lengthy introduction. Aim for your introduction to be about 10-15% of the total length of your speech.

A speech is just like any other piece of writing. You’ll need to identify your purpose, audience, and intention and then write accordingly. There are many types of speeches, and each type has its own expectations.

Let’s look at some of the most popular speeches and how to write them.

How to Write a Short Speech

Short speeches may be the most tedious to write because of how condensed and concise the information has to be. However, if you ever have to give a farewell, birthday tribute, or just a quick welcome, there are still some tips available to make your speech great.

Start by identifying your topic, title, and the purpose of your speech, which will set the foundation of your outline. Then, determine the main points of your speech; keep it short with two to three points. Remember, a short speech is typically less than ten minutes long, so keep your points concise and to the point.

Since you have limited time to make the most impact, incorporate powerful words or other engaging elements. For example, you could throw out a thought-provoking question or anecdote, which will grab your audience’s attention and keep them engaged.

Finally, once you’ve written your speech, review it for brevity and clarity. 

Be confident about grammar

Check every email, essay, or story for grammar mistakes. Fix them before you press send.

How to Write a Presentation Speech

A presentation speech is used to inform, persuade, explain, or demonstrate a particular topic.

Presentation speeches are well structured and follow a logical flow. They have an introduction, body, and conclusion. Use transition words and phrases to help your speech flow smoothly and prevent it from appearing disjointed.

You can use ProWritingAid to organize your speech and make it even clearer. ProWritingAid’s transition report will show you whether you’re using transitions effectively in your speech.

How to Write a Debate Speech

A debate is a formal argument on a particular topic. Debate speeches are persuasive since the aim is to convince the audience to agree with a stance.

Like most other speeches, a debate speech also follows the introduction, body, conclusion outline. This format helps the audience follow the speaker’s point in a linear and logical way.

When writing your introduction, clarify your stance so it’s clear to the audience. Anyone reading or listening to your speech shouldn’t have any doubt about your position on the topic. Take some time to prepare a solid opener, which can be an interesting fact, a personal story, or even a powerful quote.

The introduction also gives you the opportunity to explain terms your audience will need to understand throughout the speech. You should also provide an overview of your main points, but don’t spend long divulging too much.

Each body paragraph should cover a main point, whether that’s a key idea or a main claim, and each paragraph should begin with a topic sentence. The topic sentence is an initial sentence that summarizes the idea being presented. 

Your conclusion should be a simple and clear reiteration of the points you made in the thesis statement and body paragraphs. Add an attention-grabbing element to leave a lasting impression on your audience.

Remember to use strong and emotive language throughout your speech, which makes it more likely for your audience to feel emotionally connected to your stance.

Always use transition words and phrases to maintain a logical flow between your arguments. Finally, edit and proofread your work for any potential grammar, punctuation, or spelling mistakes.

How to Write an Elevator Speech

An elevator speech is a brief speech that’s used to pitch a product, service, expertise, or credentials.

You have 30–60 seconds to persuade someone to act how you’d like: the same time as a quick elevator ride.

An effective elevator speech should contain an introduction, a clear value proposition, and a strong conclusion. 

Your introduction should be polite and clear. Briefly explain who you are, what you do, and what you are offering. For example, if you’re pitching your expertise, condense your background into two sentences. Include things that will make your audience remember you.

End your speech with what you want to achieve. What are you trying to accomplish with this speech? Perhaps it’s a job opportunity, a follow-up meeting, or an internship.

Once you’ve written your speech, be sure to revise it for brevity. Then practice and record yourself to ensure you don’t go over the time limit.

Writing a good speech takes time, but these tips are a good start to improving your speech-writing process. If you encounter writer’s block, look up popular speeches for inspiration. Ask someone you trust to give you feedback once you’ve written your speech.

Finally, while ProWritingAid can’t write your speech for you, it can help you write in a cohesive and logical manner. It highlights any grammar, spelling, and punctuation issues. It also shows you suggestions on how to improve your sentence structure, transition, pacing, and readability, so your next speech can be impactful and memorable.

Ashleigh Ferguson is a Copywriter on the ProWritingAid Team. With an affinity for learning new things, you can always count on her to know some random fact. She’s a self-proclaimed ‘Fix-it Felix’ and a newly minted ‘candle lady’.

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Public Speaking Tips & Speech Topics

How to Craft a Masterful Outline of Speech

Jim Peterson has over 20 years experience on speech writing. He wrote over 300 free speech topic ideas and how-to guides for any kind of public speaking and speech writing assignments at My Speech Class.

I’m sure you have all seen at least one captivating Ted Talk online. One thing you probably noticed is how smoothly it went. I can assure you that every public speaker has done their homework and put together an outline of speech before presenting it in front of an audience. This wouldn’t be possible without some preparation beforehand.

An outline done right can do wonders for organizing your speech, and public speaking teachers often stress the importance of this organization tool. A rough outline can help you come up with more main points and sub-points for your arguments. It will help you brainstorm ideas. Some people use index cards with keywords or brief phrases from their speech outline to help them accurately deliver their speech.

The outline functions as a visual aid, too. Some people with photographic memory can use the outline as supporting material and ensure they do not forget crucial elements of their speech. Logically ordering your speech points can also smoothen your speechwriting process.

The speech outline is one of the most critical elements to have. Simply put, it has two main functions: it’s a point of reference and an organizational tool. Our guide will help you understand how an outline is used, the structure of an outline, and the different types, so you can create the most helpful outline for you.

In this article:

Preparation Outline

Speaking outline, the big picture, type of speech, call to action, speech outline structure, coordination, parallelism, transitions, speech outline types.

The preparation outline is your first draft. It includes the bare bones of your speech, and it’s often referred to as a working/rough/practice outline. You will write the main points of your speech, the supporting points, organized logically, and the other various components, such as attention getter and so on (we expand on the parts of a speech outline further in the article).

The preparation outline is used to help put your thoughts on paper and arrange your material. It is also the place where you should pay attention to your arguments. Are they convincing or lacking evidence? You might need to rearrange some parts to make your speech flows better. Don’t be afraid of removing parts of your preparation outline if they don’t make sense.

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The preparation outline is then transformed into a speaking outline. Even though your preparation outline should include full sentences, don’t forget your it is not an essay. Try not to get carried away with writing, and use it to get your textual arguments in order.

The speaking outline is your reference point. Unlike the preparation outline, this one is more concise includes keywords to serve as quick reminders during your speech. These short phrases should briefly encapsulate your main points, conclusion, introduction, and an attention grabber. Unlike the first outline, which uses long sentences and breakdowns of your textual arguments, the speaking outline could easily fit on cue cards and help prepare for your speech.

You shouldn’t solely rely on index cards, however, as you may come across as unprepared in the eyes of the audience. Most speakers use them to prepare for their speech and simply refer to them when they get stuck. Make sure to check the instructor’s requirements to see if you’re allowed index cards during your speech.

Things to Consider Before Outlining Your Speech

Before you get into arranging your outline, it’s essential to think about the big picture. Before you begin, consider three things: think about the speaker, the subject, and the audience. Here is more detail about each element:

Speaker – Why are you discussing the topic at hand? Why does this subject matter to you? Do you have any significant insights on the topic? Do you have any expertise or qualifications that can help convince the audience of the legitimacy of your words?

Subject – Are you covering a controversial topic? How do you think your audience will react to it? Are you going to make some interesting points? Try to predict the audience’s reaction s you can be more prepared for your speech.

Audience – What do you know about your audience? Are they all from a particular age group? Are they qualified in the same area you are? Are they familiar with your work? Has the audience paid to listen to your speech?

Try to take a step back and look at the big picture. You might find some exciting takeaways when doing that.

Think about the purpose of your speech. Are you there to convince the audience to do something? Or is your goal to inform the audience of some less-known facts? Generally speaking, there are two common categories of speech, and yours most likely falls under one of them:

Informative speech – the primary purpose of the informative speech is to educate the audience on a subject. The goal is to have the audience learn something and leave your speech with a better understanding of a specific subject. We have an in-depth article about informative speech outline with examples here .

Persuasive speech – a persuasive speech aims to convince the audience to do something or change their opinion on a topic. It is similar to a sales pitch and combines credibility, logic, and emotion to help convince the listener. We have in-depth article about persuasive speech outline here .

Before you start outlining your speech, make sure you have chosen your preferred type, as the outlines vary depending on your speech category.

The title is highly underestimated when making a speech outline. Logically we think that we don’t need one. Since we are more or less presenting the speech verbatim, we are not exactly going to stand in front of an audience quoting our speech title. But we might still need one. A title helps summarize your main goal. It holds the central idea behind your speech. You will have no trouble writing a title once you are sure what message you are trying to deliver.

What is the central idea of your speech? Is there e certain question you are aiming to answer? Determine the essential message behind your speech. Try to sum it up in a single sentence. Try to explain your message simply, without overcomplicating it.

Use your central message as a reference point throughout your speech. When you get stuck, write up your main points and supporting arguments, and always ask yourself, do they support the key message? If not, they might be redundant.

In order to make a captivating speech and maintain the audience’s attention, you need to think about the relevance of your message. You should always put the audience first, so now that you have your key message prepared, list the reasons why the audience should care about your message. Is it relevant to them somehow?

Think of at least one reason why the speech should matter to your audience. For example, if you’re writing a persuasive speech about texting and driving, the audience would find it relevant because it concerns their safety. If you can’t think of a relevant reason why the listeners should care about your speech, reconsider your message.

You have probably heard about hooks before when you used this technique to begin your essays. The hook is the attention-getter, and it is paramount to your speech. It’s the first sentence your audience will hear and usually determines whether or not your audience would listen to the rest of your speech. There are many clever ways to start your talk and ensure you’re being heard:

• Ask the audience a rhetorical question.
• Start with a joke.
• Tell a short personal story.
• Recite a quote.
• Prompt the audience members to do something.

Speaking of encouraging the audience to do something, this brings us to our next point.

When presenting a persuasive speech, you’ll most likely need a call to action. The most convincing speeches prompt the audience to make some kind of action. You can ask them to raise a hand if they have done something (drink more than 5 cups of coffee a day). Alternatively, you can ask them to scan a QR code to reveal some useful information on the topic at hand. These small steps will move the audience in the right direction.

Now that you have prepared thoroughly, you can formulate your speech outline. Get familiar with the main points of your speech. You can find examples and references below, explaining each topic. Remember that all the various elements of your speech will make an organizational pattern supporting your central thesis (key message). An organized speech has main points, typically between 2 and 5, and any supporting material is put in your outline as a sub-point.

A Roman numeral numbers every main point, while subpoints are listed with capital letters. The hierarchal order that follows is Arabic numerals and, finally, lowercase letters. For further subordination, speak to your tutor or the person in charge of your public speaking project.

Here is the basic speech outline, including an introduction, body, and conclusion. For planning purposes, each section is explained to understand the textual arrangements best. Examples are given later in the text.

Every basic speech outline includes an introduction. This is your speech opening, and it needs to be robust and captivating. It is critical to prepare a compelling introduction. An introduction has 3-5 parts, depending on the length of your speech.

• Attention getter – Capture the audience’s attention.
• Thesis statement – Your key message is introduced here with a couple of short sentences.
• Motivation – Explain how this speech will be relevant to the audience
• Qualifications – Explain to the audience why you are qualified to discuss this topic
• Transition – Smoothly transition the audience to the next part of your speech

The body is an integral part of any basic speech. Here you can develop your thesis in detail. The body holds the bulk of the information you will be presenting in front of an audience. It is important to do plenty of research on your speech topic. Gather content you might need during your talk. are you going to need any visual aids? Perhaps make some charts of your statistics. Or, if you’re going for a humorous approach, some memes on the topic can get the audience laughing and hungry to hear more on the topic. Aim for a sheet full of ideas. It’s worth noting that too much information doesn’t mean better speech. Once you have gathered all your engaging material, subtract some supporting material that you feel isn’t genuinely helping your presentation. You shouldn’t try to talk about everything. Instead, choose what is most important and focus on making it relevant and believable by adding sub-points:

• First subpoint (Give some support to the reason above)
• Sufficiently supported statements (Provide more factual arguments to support the above statements)
• Sufficiently supported statements
• Second subpoint (Structured like the one above, with its supporting point listed below)
• Sufficiently supported statements (…)
• More points, following the above guidelines
• Transitional statement
• First subpoint (Supporting the main point)
• Continue organizing your outline this way.
• First subpoint (supporting the main point)
• Continue your outline as shown above.

The grand finale of your speech is where you must tie together all previous elements in a clear and solid point.

• Summary – Here, all your main ideas and points will connect together and formulate a convincing conclusion. You can provide short examples of why the listeners should agree with your proposed thesis:
• Call to action – give the audience members a suggestion, something they can do to support what they have learned. Or instead, think of a unique or memorable ending to your speech.
• Closure – Bring the speech to an end by thanking the audience for their time.
• Bibliography – in some cases, you might get asked for your bibliography of references. If you’re using many statements, quotes, or statistics from various sources, remember to collect them throughout your research.

Let’s help you visualize these instructions and see how these elements correspond by looking at an example.

Topic: Hypoalergenic Cats

Specific Purpose: To debunk the myth of hypoallergenic cats.

Thesis: Despite there being breeds of cats known as “hypoallergenic”, no cat breed is guaranteed to relieve you of your allergy symptoms.

Preview: I will talk about the misconceptions behind cat allergies and explain how they work.

Here is an example of the structure of a Body:

• People are allergic to a protein called FEL D1.
• The protein is contained in the cat’s saliva.
• The saliva is being transferred to the cat’s fur during their cleaning process.
• This fur is spread around your house in the form of dander.
• People are not allergic to a cat’s fur, just the protein.
• This means you could be allergic to some cats, not all of them.
• Get a check-up and find out if there are any medications you can take to ease your allergy symptoms.
• Vacuum regularly around your house to reduce cat hair and dander spreading.
• Swap your drapes with blinds and carpets with hardwood floors. That way, less fur will stick to your furniture.
• Buy HEPA air filters for every room.
• Clean out their litterbox more often.
• No cat is hypoallergenic.
• All cats make the protein FEL D1.
• Some breeds are known to produce less FEL D1, but there is no guarantee you won’t be allergic to them.
• Even the “naked” cat breeds such as Sphynx, Donskoy, Bambino, etc., produce FEL D1.
• Buying “hypoallergenic cats” only creates a bigger rehoming problem.
• Many cat breeders like to use the myth of hypoallergenic cats to sell expensive cat breeds.
• Once people realize the cat isn’t hypoallergenic, they can no longer keep it.
• The cat is either thrown out, put in a shelter, or resold, creating tons of stress for the animal or potentially resulting in its death.

Now that you know the structure of a speech, you are almost ready to start writing it. By all means, if this has inspired you, grab a sheet of paper and write down the ideas that come to mind. But before you start putting your outline on paper, double-check you are familiar with the rules of outlining a speech.

Rules in Outlining

Speech outlines follow a specific set of rules. Going by these rules will only help you polish the particular details that make your speech stand out. To double-check that your speech makes sense, go through your outline and give it another read to check for coherence. Here are some characteristics you should pay attention to:

Think of your outline as a staircase – your final draft should have subordinate points diagonally placed beneath your main points. They should all interlink and reference one another.

Looking at the example from the section above, points A. and B. explain what determines a cat allergy and what doesn’t. Points 1-3 give information on why the protein affects people and debunks the myth that people are allergic to cat hair . Points 1-3 are called subordination of point, just like  A., B., and C. are to main point III. Your overall organizational pattern should not only include Roman numerals, points, and thesis statements. It should be cohesive and coordinated. 

Another important part of speech writing is parallelism. It is the concept of beginning sentences similarly whenever possible, using similar grammar. Pay attention to our example once again. Note section II and the subordinate points of main point B. – all points start with a verb: “Get,” “Vacuum”, “Swap,” “Clean.” This type of structure adds clarity to your speaking and shows you have really paid attention to your full-sentence outline. Don’t worry about sounding boring – parallelism helps you sound acute!

Another essential part of your speech outline is division. The concept is simple – when you’re trying to make one point, you should also try to expand it. If your point is convincing enough, it will have plenty of meaningful information that you can lengthen in sections A. and B. Similarly. You can use a supporting point for sub-points A. and B. to help expand them, and so on. Remember you’re doing this only to support your main thesis statement. If your sub-points aren’t doing that, you might be waffling on and confusing your audience.

A clever way to connect your main points is by using transitional statements. In most cases, speakers use these sentences to glue together two distinctive (yet connected) ideas. That way, the audience is prepared that something else is being discussed. You have used transitional sentences in essay writing. Maybe these words will ring a bell: “next”, “also”, “moreover”, “firstly”. These words and phrases will greatly improve your writing skills and, eventually, your entire speech.

There is another way you can integrate a transition into your speech – by using non-verbal transitions. Adding brief pauses or moving around the stage grabs the audience’s attention and helps them understand some other concept is being introduced. Most extemporaneous speakers take it to another level by stepping out of the podium or raising or lowering their voice rate. These can all be signals to your audience that a transition is taking place.

A third way to include transitions into your speech outline is to make internal summaries. To write an internal summary, summarize what has already been said in a brief sentence or two. For example:

So far, we have explored why n cat can be hypoallergenic. But does that mean you can be less allergic to some cats?

We have hinted at the next point in our speech with this question. We could also use  a summary to build on an issue we are currently expanding:

Now that you understand how cat allergies work, let’s see if there is a way to share your life with a cat despite being allergic.

How to Write an Outline for a Persuasive Speech, with Examples

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COMM 101: Fundamentals of Public Speaking - Valparaiso

• Delivery Skills
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A basic speech outline should include three main sections:

• The Introduction --  This is where you tell them what you're going to tell them.
• The Body -- This is where you tell them.
• The Conclusion -- This is where you tell them what you've told them.
• Speech Outline Formatting Guide The outline for a public speech, according to COMM 101 online textbook  The Public Speaking Project , p.p. 8-9.

Use these samples to help prepare your speech outlines and bibliographies:

• Sample Speech Preparation Outline This type of outline is very detailed with all the main points and subpoints written in complete sentences. Your bibliography should be included with this outline.
• Sample Speech Speaking Outline This type of outline is very brief and uses phrases or key words for the main points and subpoints. This outline is used by the speaker during the speech.
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Persuasive Speech Outline, with Examples

March 17, 2021 - Gini Beqiri

A persuasive speech is a speech that is given with the intention of convincing the audience to believe or do something. This could be virtually anything – voting, organ donation, recycling, and so on.

A successful persuasive speech effectively convinces the audience to your point of view, providing you come across as trustworthy and knowledgeable about the topic you’re discussing.

So, how do you start convincing a group of strangers to share your opinion? And how do you connect with them enough to earn their trust?

Topics for your persuasive speech

We’ve made a list of persuasive speech topics you could use next time you’re asked to give one. The topics are thought-provoking and things which many people have an opinion on.

When using any of our persuasive speech ideas, make sure you have a solid knowledge about the topic you’re speaking about – and make sure you discuss counter arguments too.

Here are a few ideas to get you started:

• All school children should wear a uniform
• Facebook is making people more socially anxious
• It should be illegal to drive over the age of 80
• Lying isn’t always wrong
• The case for organ donation

Read our full list of  75 persuasive speech topics and ideas .

Preparation: Consider your audience

As with any speech, preparation is crucial. Before you put pen to paper, think about what you want to achieve with your speech. This will help organise your thoughts as you realistically can only cover 2-4 main points before your  audience get bored .

It’s also useful to think about who your audience are at this point. If they are unlikely to know much about your topic then you’ll need to factor in context of your topic when planning the structure and length of your speech. You should also consider their:

• Cultural or religious backgrounds
• Shared concerns, attitudes and problems
• Shared interests, beliefs and hopes
• Baseline attitude – are they hostile, neutral, or open to change?

The factors above will all determine the approach you take to writing your speech. For example, if your topic is about childhood obesity, you could begin with a story about your own children or a shared concern every parent has. This would suit an audience who are more likely to be parents than young professionals who have only just left college.

Remember the 3 main approaches to persuade others

There are three main approaches used to persuade others:

The ethos approach appeals to the audience’s ethics and morals, such as what is the ‘right thing’ to do for humanity, saving the environment, etc.

Pathos persuasion is when you appeal to the audience’s emotions, such as when you  tell a story  that makes them the main character in a difficult situation.

The logos approach to giving a persuasive speech is when you appeal to the audience’s logic – ie. your speech is essentially more driven by facts and logic. The benefit of this technique is that your point of view becomes virtually indisputable because you make the audience feel that only your view is the logical one.

• Ethos, Pathos, Logos: 3 Pillars of Public Speaking and Persuasion

Ideas for your persuasive speech outline

1. structure of your persuasive speech.

The opening and closing of speech are the most important. Consider these carefully when thinking about your persuasive speech outline. A  strong opening  ensures you have the audience’s attention from the start and gives them a positive first impression of you.

You’ll want to  start with a strong opening  such as an attention grabbing statement, statistic of fact. These are usually dramatic or shocking, such as:

Sadly, in the next 18 minutes when I do our chat, four Americans that are alive will be dead from the food that they eat – Jamie Oliver

Another good way of starting a persuasive speech is to include your audience in the picture you’re trying to paint. By making them part of the story, you’re embedding an emotional connection between them and your speech.

You could do this in a more toned-down way by talking about something you know that your audience has in common with you. It’s also helpful at this point to include your credentials in a persuasive speech to gain your audience’s trust.

Obama would spend hours with his team working on the opening and closing statements of his speech.

2. Stating your argument

You should  pick between 2 and 4 themes  to discuss during your speech so that you have enough time to explain your viewpoint and convince your audience to the same way of thinking.

It’s important that each of your points transitions seamlessly into the next one so that your speech has a logical flow. Work on your  connecting sentences  between each of your themes so that your speech is easy to listen to.

Your argument should be backed up by objective research and not purely your subjective opinion. Use examples, analogies, and stories so that the audience can relate more easily to your topic, and therefore are more likely to be persuaded to your point of view.

3. Addressing counter-arguments

Any balanced theory or thought  addresses and disputes counter-arguments  made against it. By addressing these, you’ll strengthen your persuasive speech by refuting your audience’s objections and you’ll show that you are knowledgeable to other thoughts on the topic.

When describing an opposing point of view, don’t explain it in a bias way – explain it in the same way someone who holds that view would describe it. That way, you won’t irritate members of your audience who disagree with you and you’ll show that you’ve reached your point of view through reasoned judgement. Simply identify any counter-argument and pose explanations against them.

• Complete Guide to Debating

4. Closing your speech

Your closing line of your speech is your last chance to convince your audience about what you’re saying. It’s also most likely to be the sentence they remember most about your entire speech so make sure it’s a good one!

The most effective persuasive speeches end  with a  call to action . For example, if you’ve been speaking about organ donation, your call to action might be asking the audience to register as donors.

Practice answering AI questions on your speech and get  feedback on your performance .

If audience members ask you questions, make sure you listen carefully and respectfully to the full question. Don’t interject in the middle of a question or become defensive.

You should show that you have carefully considered their viewpoint and refute it in an objective way (if you have opposing opinions). Ensure you remain patient, friendly and polite at all times.

Example 1: Persuasive speech outline

This example is from the Kentucky Community and Technical College.

Specific purpose

To persuade my audience to start walking in order to improve their health.

Central idea

Regular walking can improve both your mental and physical health.

Introduction

Let’s be honest, we lead an easy life: automatic dishwashers, riding lawnmowers, T.V. remote controls, automatic garage door openers, power screwdrivers, bread machines, electric pencil sharpeners, etc., etc. etc. We live in a time-saving, energy-saving, convenient society. It’s a wonderful life. Or is it?

Continue reading

Example 2: Persuasive speech

Tips for delivering your persuasive speech

• Practice, practice, and practice some more . Record yourself speaking and listen for any nervous habits you have such as a nervous laugh, excessive use of filler words, or speaking too quickly.
• Show confident body language . Stand with your legs hip width apart with your shoulders centrally aligned. Ground your feet to the floor and place your hands beside your body so that hand gestures come freely. Your audience won’t be convinced about your argument if you don’t sound confident in it. Find out more about  confident body language here .
• Don’t memorise your speech word-for-word  or read off a script. If you memorise your persuasive speech, you’ll sound less authentic and panic if you lose your place. Similarly, if you read off a script you won’t sound genuine and you won’t be able to connect with the audience by  making eye contact . In turn, you’ll come across as less trustworthy and knowledgeable. You could simply remember your key points instead, or learn your opening and closing sentences.
• Remember to use facial expressions when storytelling  – they make you more relatable. By sharing a personal story you’ll more likely be speaking your truth which will help you build a connection with the audience too. Facial expressions help bring your story to life and transport the audience into your situation.
• Keep your speech as concise as possible . When practicing the delivery, see if you can edit it to have the same meaning but in a more succinct way. This will keep the audience engaged.

The best persuasive speech ideas are those that spark a level of controversy. However, a public speech is not the time to express an opinion that is considered outside the norm. If in doubt, play it safe and stick to topics that divide opinions about 50-50.

Bear in mind who your audience are and plan your persuasive speech outline accordingly, with researched evidence to support your argument. It’s important to consider counter-arguments to show that you are knowledgeable about the topic as a whole and not bias towards your own line of thought.

15 Informative Speech Examples to Inspire Your Next Talk

• The Speaker Lab
• May 13, 2024

Table of Contents

A good informative speech is one of the most effective tools in a speaker’s arsenal. But with so many potential topics out there, it can be tough to know where to start. That’s why we’ve compiled 15 informative speech examples to help you find your perfect subject. Whether you’re unearthing secrets from history for your listeners or delving into future technologies, informative speeches can prove to be the recipe for the perfect talk.

But crafting an effective informative speech is about more than just picking a topic. You have to research topics, put your thoughts in order, and speak up clearly and confidently. In this post, we’ll explore strategies for each step of the process, so you can create a speech that informs, engages, and makes a lasting impact on your listeners. Let’s get started.

15 Informative Speech Examples

If you’re looking for some inspiration for your next informative speech, look no further. Below are 15 examples of informative speech topics that are sure to engage and educate your audience.

• The history and evolution of social media platforms
• The benefits and drawbacks of renewable energy sources
• The impact of sleep deprivation on mental and physical health
• The role of emotional intelligence in personal and professional success
• The science behind climate change and its potential consequences
• The importance of financial literacy for young adults
• The influence of artificial intelligence on various industries
• The benefits of regular exercise and a balanced diet
• The history and cultural significance of a specific art form or genre
• The impact of technology on interpersonal communication
• The psychology behind procrastination and effective strategies to overcome it
• The role of diversity and inclusion in fostering innovation and creativity
• The importance of mental health awareness and resources for students
• The future of space exploration and its potential benefits for humanity
• The impact of globalization on local economies and cultures

These topics cover a wide range of subjects, from technology and science to psychology and culture. By choosing one of these informative speech examples, you’ll have plenty of material to work with to create an engaging and educational presentation.

Remember, the key to a successful informative speech is to choose a topic that you’re passionate about and that will resonate with your audience. Do your research, organize your thoughts, and practice your delivery to ensure that your message comes across loud and clear.

What Is an Informative Speech?

If you’ve ever been to a conference or seminar, chances are you’ve heard an informative speech. But what exactly is an informative speech? Simply put, it’s a type of speech designed to educate the audience on a particular topic. The goal is to provide interesting and useful information, ensuring the audience walks away with new knowledge or insights. Unlike persuasive speeches that aim to convince the audience of a viewpoint, informative speeches focus on explaining a subject clearly and objectively.

Types of Informative Speeches

Informative speeches come in various forms, each with its own purpose. The most common types are definition, explanation, description, and demonstration speeches. Depending on the objective, an informative speech can take on different structures and styles.

For example, a definition speech aims to explain a concept or term, while a demonstration speech shows the audience how to perform a task or process. An explanatory speech, on the other hand, provides a detailed account of a complex subject, breaking it down into digestible parts.

Purpose of Informative Speeches

At its core, the purpose of an informative speech is to share knowledge with the audience. These speeches are characterized by their fact-based, non-persuasive nature. The focus is on delivering information in an engaging and accessible way.

A well-crafted informative speech not only educates but also sparks curiosity and encourages further learning. By dedicating yourself to providing valuable information and appealing to your audience’s interests, you can succeed as an informative speaker.

Strategies for Selecting an Informative Speech Topic

Choosing the right topic is crucial for an effective informative speech. You want a subject that is not only interesting to you but also relevant and engaging for your audience. Consider their knowledge level, background, and expectations when selecting your topic.

One strategy is to focus on a subject you’re passionate about or have expertise in. This allows you to speak with authority and enthusiasm, making your speech more compelling. Another approach is to address current events or trending topics that are on people’s minds.

When brainstorming potential topics, consider your speech’s purpose and the type of informative speech you want to deliver. Is your goal to define a concept, explain a process, describe an event, or demonstrate a skill? Answering these questions will help guide your topic selection.

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How to Write an Informative Speech

Now that you’ve selected your topic, it’s time to start writing your informative speech. The key to a successful speech is thorough preparation and a clear, organized structure. Let’s break down the steps involved in crafting an engaging and informative presentation.

Researching Your Topic

Before you start writing, it’s essential to conduct thorough research on your topic. Gather facts, statistics, examples, and other supporting information for your informative speech. These things will help you explain and clarify the subject matter to your audience.

As you research, use reliable sources such as academic journals, reputable websites, and expert opinions to ensure the accuracy and credibility of your information. Take notes and organize your findings in a way that makes sense for your speech’s structure.

Structuring Your Speech

A typical informative speech structure includes three main parts, namely, an introduction, body, and conclusion. The introduction should grab the audience’s attention, establish your credibility , and preview the main points you’ll cover.

The body of your speech is where you’ll present your main points and supporting evidence. Use clear transitions between each point to maintain a logical flow. The conclusion should summarize your key takeaways and leave a lasting impression on your audience.

Outlining Your Speech

Creating an outline is a crucial step in organizing your thoughts and ensuring a coherent flow of information. Start by listing your main points and then add subpoints and supporting details for each section.

A well-structured outline will serve as a roadmap for your speech, keeping you on track and helping you stay focused on your key messages. It also makes the writing process more efficient and less overwhelming.

Writing Your Draft

With your outline in hand, it’s time to start writing your draft. Focus on presenting information clearly and concisely, using simple language and avoiding jargon. Provide examples and analogies throughout your informative speech in order to illustrate complex ideas and make them more relatable to your audience.

As you write, keep your audience in mind and tailor your language and examples to their level of understanding. Use transitions to link your ideas and maintain a smooth flow throughout the speech.

Editing and Revising

Once you’ve completed your draft, take the time to edit and revise your speech. First, check for clarity, accuracy, and logical organization. Then, eliminate unnecessary details, repetition, and filler words.

Read your speech aloud to identify any awkward phrasing or unclear passages. Lastly, seek feedback from others and be open to making changes based on their suggestions. Remember, the goal is to create a polished and effective informative speech.

Delivering an Informative Speech

You’ve written a fantastic informative speech, but now comes the real challenge: delivering it effectively. The way you present your speech can make all the difference in engaging your audience and ensuring they retain the information you’re sharing.

Practicing Your Speech

Practice makes perfect, and this couldn’t be more true when it comes to public speaking. Rehearse your speech multiple times to build confidence and familiarity with the content. Practice in front of a mirror, family members, or friends to get comfortable with your delivery.

As you practice, focus on your pacing, intonation, and body language. Aim for a conversational tone and maintain eye contact with your audience. The more you practice, the more natural and engaging your delivery will become.

Using Visual Aids

Visual aids such as slides, charts, or props can enhance your informative speech by making complex information more accessible and engaging. When utilized in your informative speech, they can help illustrate key points, provide visual examples, and break up the monotony of a purely verbal presentation.

Of course, it’s important to ensure your visuals are clear, relevant, and easy to understand. Otherwise, they may end up obscuring your points instead of clarifying them. In light of this, avoid cluttering your slides with too much text or overwhelming your audience with too many visuals. Use them strategically to support your message, not distract from it.

Engaging Your Audience

Engaging your audience is crucial for a successful informative speech. Use rhetorical questions, anecdotes, or interactive elements to keep them involved and attentive. Encourage participation, if appropriate, and maintain a conversational tone to create a connection with your listeners.

Pay attention to your audience’s reactions and adapt your delivery accordingly. If you sense confusion or disinterest, try rephrasing your points or providing additional examples to clarify your message. Remember, your goal is to educate and inspire your audience, so keep them at the forefront of your mind throughout your speech.

Handling Nerves

It’s normal to feel nervous before and during a speech, but there are strategies to help you manage those nerves . Take deep breaths, visualize success, and focus on your message rather than your anxiety. Remember, your audience wants you to succeed, and a little nervousness can actually enhance your performance by showing enthusiasm and authenticity.

If you find yourself getting overwhelmed, take a moment to pause, collect your thoughts, and regain your composure. Smile, make eye contact, and remind yourself that you’ve prepared thoroughly and have valuable information to share.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

To deliver an effective informative speech, it’s important to be aware of common pitfalls and mistakes. One of the biggest errors is overloading your audience with too much information. Remember, less is often more when it comes to public speaking.

Another mistake is failing to organize your content logically or using complex jargon without explanation. Make sure your speech has a clear structure and that you’re explaining any technical terms or concepts in a way that your audience can understand.

Finally, don’t neglect the importance of practice and preparation. Winging it or relying too heavily on notes can lead to a disjointed and unengaging speech. Take the time to rehearse, refine your delivery, and internalize your key points.

By avoiding these common mistakes and focusing on the strategies we’ve discussed, you’ll be well on your way to delivering an informative speech that educates, engages, and inspires your audience.

Tips for Delivering a Compelling Informative Speech

Once you’ve chosen your topic and done your research, it’s time to focus on delivering a compelling speech. Here are a few tips to keep in mind:

• Start with a strong attention-grabbing opening that draws your audience in and sets the tone for your speech.
• Use clear, concise language and avoid jargon or technical terms that your audience may not understand.
• Incorporate storytelling, examples, and anecdotes to make your points more relatable and memorable.
• Use visual aids , such as slides or props, to enhance your message and keep your audience engaged.
• Practice your delivery and timing to ensure that you stay within your allotted time and maintain a natural, conversational tone.

By following these tips and choosing a topic that you’re passionate about, you’ll be well on your way to delivering an informative speech that educates and inspires your audience.

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20 Bonus Topics for Informative Speeches

In case the informative speech examples above didn’t pique your interest, we have several more for you to consider. Ranging from topics like science and technology to history and education, these 20 topics are perfect for your next presentation.

• The history and development of virtual reality technology
• The benefits and challenges of remote work
• The science behind the formation of hurricanes and tornadoes
• The impact of social media on political campaigns and elections
• The importance of sustainable fashion and its environmental benefits
• The role of emotional support animals in mental health treatment
• The history and cultural significance of a specific cuisine or dish
• The impact of plastic pollution on marine ecosystems
• The benefits and risks of gene editing technology
• The psychology behind conspiracy theories and their spread online
• The importance of digital privacy and data security in the modern age
• The role of music therapy in healthcare and wellness
• The impact of deforestation on biodiversity and climate change
• The history and evolution of a specific sport or athletic event
• The benefits and challenges of alternative education models
• The science behind the human immune system and how vaccines work
• The impact of mass incarceration on communities and families
• The role of storytelling in preserving cultural heritage and traditions
• The importance of financial planning for retirement and old age
• The impact of urban agriculture on food security and community development

Choosing a Topic That Resonates With Your Audience

When selecting a topic for your informative speech, it’s important to consider your audience and what will resonate with them. Think about their interests, backgrounds, and knowledge levels, and choose a topic that will be both informative and engaging.

For example, if you’re speaking to a group of high school students, you may want to choose a topic that relates to their experiences or concerns, such as the impact of social media on mental health or the importance of financial literacy for young adults. If you’re speaking to a group of business professionals, you may want to focus on topics related to industry trends, leadership strategies, or emerging technologies.

By choosing a topic that resonates with your audience, you’ll be more likely to capture their attention and keep them engaged throughout your speech. And remember, even if you’re not an expert on the topic, you can still deliver an informative and engaging speech by doing your research and presenting the information in a clear and accessible way.

FAQs on Informative Speech Examples

What is an example of informative speech.

An example includes breaking down the impacts of climate change, detailing causes, effects, and potential solutions.

What are the 3 types of informative speeches?

The three main types are explanatory (breaks down complex topics), descriptive (paints a picture with words), and demonstrative (shows how to do something).

What are the 5 useful topics of an informative speech?

Top picks include technology advances, mental health awareness, environmental conservation efforts, cultural diversity appreciation, and breakthroughs in medical research.

What is an effective informative speech?

An effective one delivers clear info on a specific topic that educates listeners without overwhelming them. It’s well-researched and engaging.

Informative speech examples are everywhere, if you know where to look. From TED Talks to classroom lectures, there’s no shortage of inspiration for your next presentation. All you have to do is find a topic that lights your fire while engaging your audience.

Remember, a great informative speech is all about clarity, organization, and engagement. By following the tips and examples we’ve covered, you’ll be well on your way to delivering an informative speech that educates, enlightens, and leaves a lasting impression. So go ahead, pick your topic, and start crafting your own informative speech today!

• Last Updated: May 9, 2024

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Trying to devise a structure for your essay can be one of the most difficult parts of the writing process. Making a detailed outline before you begin writing is a good way to make sure your ideas come across in a clear and logical order. A good outline will also save you time in the revision process, reducing the possibility that your ideas will need to be rearranged once you've written them.

The First Steps

Before you can begin outlining, you need to have a sense of what you will argue in the essay. From your analysis and close readings of primary and/or secondary sources you should have notes, ideas, and possible quotes to cite as evidence. Let's say you are writing about the 1999 Republican Primary and you want to prove that each candidate's financial resources were the most important element in the race. At this point, your notes probably lack much coherent order. Most likely, your ideas are still in the order in which they occurred to you; your notes and possible quotes probably still adhere to the chronology of the sources you've examined. Your goal is to rearrange your ideas, notes, and quotes—the raw material of your essay—into an order that best supports your argument, not the arguments you've read in other people's works. To do this, you have to group your notes into categories and then arrange these categories in a logical order.

Generalizing

The first step is to look over each individual piece of information that you've written and assign it to a general category. Ask yourself, "If I were to file this in a database, what would I file it under?" If, using the example of the Republican Primary, you wrote down an observation about John McCain's views on health care, you might list it under the general category of  "Health care policy." As you go through your notes, try to reuse categories whenever possible. Your goal is to reduce your notes to no more than a page of category listings.

Now examine your category headings. Do any seem repetitive? Do any go together? "McCain's expenditure on ads" and "Bush's expenditure on ads," while not exactly repetitive, could easily combine into a more general category like "Candidates' expenditures on ads." Also, keep an eye out for categories that no longer seem to relate to your argument. Individual pieces of information that at first seemed important can begin to appear irrelevant when grouped into a general category.

Now it's time to generalize again. Examine all your categories and look for common themes. Go through each category and ask yourself, "If I were to place this piece of information in a file cabinet, what would I label that cabinet?" Again, try to reuse labels as often as possible: "Health Care," "Foreign Policy," and "Immigration" can all be contained under "Policy Initiatives." Make these larger categories as general as possible so that there are no more than three or four for a 7-10 page paper.

With your notes grouped into generalized categories, the process of ordering them should be easier. To begin, look at your most general categories. With your thesis in mind, try to find a way that the labels might be arranged in a sentence or two that supports your argument. Let's say your thesis is that financial resources played the most important role in the 1999 Republican Primary. Your four most general categories are "Policy Initiatives," "Financial Resources," "Voters' Concerns," and "Voters' Loyalty." You might come up with the following sentence: ÒAlthough McCain's policy initiatives were closest to the voters' concerns, Bush's financial resources won the voters' loyalty.Ó This sentence should reveal the order of your most general categories. You will begin with an examination of McCain's and Bush's views on important issues and compare them to the voters' top concerns. Then you'll look at both candidates' financial resources and show how Bush could win voters' loyalty through effective use of his resources, despite his less popular policy ideas.

With your most general categories in order, you now must order the smaller categories. To do so, arrange each smaller category into a sentence or two that will support the more general sentence you've just devised. Under the category of "Financial Resources," for instance, you might have the smaller categories of "Ad Expenditure," "Campaign Contributions" and "Fundraising." A sentence that supports your general argument might read: "Bush's early emphasis on fundraising led to greater campaign contributions, allowing him to have a greater ad expenditure than McCain."

The final step of the outlining process is to repeat this procedure on the smallest level, with the original notes that you took for your essay. To order what probably was an unwieldy and disorganized set of information at the beginning of this process, you need now only think of a sentence or two to support your general argument. Under the category "Fundraising," for example, you might have quotes about each candidate's estimation of its importance, statistics about the amount of time each candidate spent fundraising, and an idea about how the importance of fundraising never can be overestimated. Sentences to support your general argument might read: "No candidate has ever raised too much money [your idea]. While both McCain and Bush acknowledged the importance of fundraising [your quotes], the numbers clearly point to Bush as the superior fundraiser [your statistics]." The arrangement of your ideas, quotes, and statistics now should come naturally.

Putting It All Together

With these sentences, you have essentially constructed an outline for your essay. The most general ideas, which you organized in your first sentence, constitute the essay's sections. They follow the order in which you placed them in your sentence. The order of the smaller categories within each larger category (determined by your secondary sentences) indicates the order of the paragraphs within each section. Finally, your last set of sentences about your specific notes should show the order of the sentences within each paragraph. An outline for the essay about the 1999 Republican Primary (showing only the sections worked out here) would look something like this:

I. POLICY INITIATIVES

II.  VOTERS' CONCERNS

III.  FINANCIAL RESOURCES

            A.  Fundraising

                        a.  Original Idea

                        b.  McCain Quote/Bush Quote

                        c.  McCain Statistics/Bush Statistics

            B.  Campaign Contributions

            C.  Ad Expenditure

IV.  VOTERS' LOYALTY

Copyright 2000, David Kornhaber, for the Writing Center at Harvard University

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The Wedding Speech Order You Should Follow at Your Reception

We outline traditional and modern approaches so you can choose the flow that works best for you.

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In This Article

When you think about it, wedding speeches are to the reception what vows are to the ceremony. They inject emotion, joy, and personality into your event—and give all guests a chance to know the couple (and the people closest to them) a bit better. Since these special toasts are arguably one of the most important parts of your party, you likely want to do all you can to ensure they go off without a hitch, from timing them right to observing the correct flow.

As with most big-day details, there is a traditional order of wedding speeches to follow. While this age-old format makes a lot of sense—it gives your wedding's biggest VIPs (your parents!) the opportunity to speak first—it isn't mandatory; in fact, there are plenty of ways to adjust the wedding speech order at your celebration so that it better reflects your family or your priorities. “Nowadays, couples have their choice of following whatever order they’d like—or doing away with speeches altogether,” says wedding planners Bianca Hall and Erica Vanco of Estera Events . “Weddings only need to follow the rules and values that are important to you as a couple.”

Meet the Expert

• Bianca Hall and Erica Vanco are the co-owners and lead planners of Estera Events , a firm based in Chicago. 
• Bree Swartz is the owner and creative director of Blossom Events , a Brooklyn-based full-service boutique design and planning company.
• Kelly McWilliams , the founder of her eponymous wedding planning business in southwest Florida, has been in the industry since 2002.
• A wedding and event planner and the founder of Rachel Behar Events , Rachel Behar is based in Brooklyn.

It's important to remember that while wedding speeches hold deep value, one size doesn't necessarily fit all. To help you navigate both the traditional and modern wedding speech order, we tapped Hall, Vanco, and a mix of other wedding planners for their best advice.

When Should Wedding Speeches Happen During the Reception?

Before we get into the order of wedding speeches, it's important to first determine when they should take place. Should the slate of toasts happen before or after the meal? According to our experts, there's a sweet spot: It's best to start speeches when food service begins. You have a few options. You can time a few speeches at the start of the meal, during the salad course, or begin during the main one, which often takes a little longer to get through. Another option is to hold off on speeches until dinner is just about finished; this allows satiated attendees to digest before getting back up for a full—and uninterrupted—night of dancing.

Wedding planner Kelly McWilliams, who has it down to a science, recommends the following reception timeline, with speeches peppered in strategically:

• Introductions
• First dance
• Parent speeches
• First course
• Best man or maid of honor speech
• Best man or maid of honor speech (the better speaker always goes last!)
• Cake cutting
• Second course
• Parent dances
• Couple speech
• Dance floor opens

The Traditional Order of Wedding Speeches

The traditional wedding speech order is a little old-school. “It originated as a way to reflect the dynamics of the families involved and symbolize them blending together on this special occasion—beginning with the bride’s parents, then the groom’s parents, followed by the groom and the best man,” say Hall and Vanco. “The curated sequence was also meant to conclude the formalities with lighthearted anecdotes and camaraderie, leading into the rest of the celebration.”

Below, you'll find the traditional order of wedding speeches, which is as follows: the father (or parents) of the bride, the father (or parents) of the groom, the groom (or couple), the maid of honor, and finally, the best man. 

1. The Father of the Bride or Parents of the Bride's Speech

Historically, the bride's father —or both of her parents—take the first speech of the night. “This is typically the way it was done because the parents of the bride would traditionally pay for the wedding, and having them kick off the toasts indicates to guests that they were the hosts,” say Hall and Vanco. 

2. The Father of the Groom or Parents of the Groom's Speech

The father or parents of the bride are usually followed by the father or parents of the groom. This formality gives a nod of respect to another essential couple of the evening. “Having the parents of the couple kick off the celebration is highly recommended. They are full of love, joy, and gratitude, and really sets the tone for the evening,” says Bree Swartz, a wedding and event planner.

3. The Groom or Couple's Speech

Tradition indicates that the groom (or both the bride and the groom!) make a brief speech next as a way of thanking everyone for gathering to celebrate. “Having the bride and groom toast next keeps the energy up—and they can express their gratitude to their parents and guests,” says Swartz. (This may be the traditional approach, but many couples give their toasts first or last—as always, do what's best for you).

4. The Best Man and Maid of Honor's Speeches

Though the traditional wedding order would jump straight to the best man's speech, these days the maid of honor typically always says a few words, too. The best man’s speech is usually saved for last.

It is typical for these wedding party VIPs to come at the end of the speech portion of the evening—and their remarks do typically follow the parents'. “Having the best man and maid of honor raise a glass towards the end of dinner helps kick off those party vibes that guests are looking for when it's time to hit the dance floor,” says Swartz. 

Getty Images / Anchiy

How to Switch Up Your Wedding Speech Order

While the traditional wedding speech order does provide a blueprint (and offers a good model for honoring your wedding's VIPs), it certainly isn’t set in stone. “The speech order may change based on various factors such as family dynamics, cultural traditions, or personal preferences,” Hall and Vanco say. And it's possible—probably, even—that you won't do all speeches at once. All of our planners champion couples to make their own decisions that align with their vision. “The only 'wrong' wedding speech order is one that doesn’t represent your style or feel right for you,” says Swartz. There are plenty of ways couples can shake up wedding speeches however they see fit.

Reduce the Number of Speakers

Many couples choose to shorten the length of their ceremony, and they can take the same approach during the speech portion of the reception to improve its overall flow. “We like keeping this to three speech-givers maximum,” says wedding planner Rachel Behar. “We’ve all seen them drag on and everyone just wants to get to dancing!” 

Space the Speeches Out

If having a full suite of speeches is important to you, but you want to keep everyone's energy up, take a brief pause; this can have the same impact as curtailing the total number of toasts. “We usually recommend a break in toasts before inviting the best man and maid of honor up. This gives guests a breather, and they are more likely to stay present when taking in two to three speeches at a time,” says Swartz. 

Stick to the Rehearsal Dinner Only

It’s quite common to hear speeches at rehearsal dinners these days. In fact, “some couples may choose to do all speeches the night before at the rehearsal dinner, rather than having any on the wedding day,” say Hall and Vanco. This will definitely encourage a simpler, tighter reception, and allow those preparing speeches to relax and enjoy the main event—but this certainly isn't for everyone.

Let the Most Nervous Person Go First

For couples unconcerned with the traditional order of wedding speeches, allowing the most anxious speaker to take the mic first is a compassionate choice. “If anyone is naturally nervous, have them go first,” affirms Behar. Remeber that “weddings need only follow the rules and values that are important to you as a couple,” Hall and Vanco say, so if ensuring that everyone stays as comfortable as possible during your party is a priority, this might be the right option for you.

Include Other Speakers

If the couple has a very important person in their life who isn’t necessarily a parent, maid of honor, or best man, there is no reason why they shouldn’t make a speech. “The only requirement is that this person be meaningful to the couple and should be a leading force in their lives, and that it feels natural and special,” says Behar. Hall and Vanco agree: “While each speaker contributes to the celebration, no one speaker is essential, allowing flexibility for couples to tailor the order as they see fit.”

Tips for Writing a Memorable Wedding Speech 

A great wedding speech is sweet, succinct, and best expressed when memorized—though Hall and Vanco say printing it off is fine. Here are some of our experts' best tips for writing a wedding speech that knocks it out of the park.

Speak from the Heart

Sure, we live in the era of AI—but your wedding toast should't be penned by a robot. "We recommend writing from the heart,” says Swartz. All of our experts agree that writing honestly about your connection to the couple and their best qualities makes for the best possible toast.

Follow an Outline 

Adhering to a loose structure, though, will help you stay on track, and there are plenty of online templates to lean on. “Go for an engaging opening, share meaningful anecdotes or memories, and offer well-wishes for their future together, while maintaining a balance of sincerity and humor throughout,” Hall and Vanco suggest as a framework. McWilliams echos the importance of nailing the opening, so be sure to focus on this part as you build out your toast: "Wedding speeches that resonate most start with a story and not an introduction," says McWilliams.

Thinking about the best way to open your toast? Skip the obvious first line, “For those who don’t know me...” and lead with a story, instead. "The truth is that nobody cares who you are until you tell a story that attaches you to the couple," advises McWilliams.

Consider the Audience 

If you’ve grown up with the bride or groom, there’s a good chance you have some colorful stories to share. However, the ability to read the room is key. “Consider the audience and tailor your content to resonate both with both the couple and their guests,” say Hall and Vanco. Save those crazy college stories for the bachelorette party. "Stories that contain anything that could embarrass the couple or anyone in the room should not be included," adds McWilliams.

Keeping your speech concise is also crucial for keeping your audience engaged. “No more than five minutes,” confirm Hall and Vanco.

Focus on the Couple

Sure, you should (at some point) introduce yourself—but remember who the speech is about. Focus on stories about the couple; you should be a secondary character, not the main one. “Give insight to the couple from when they were younger, to their school years, to now. Shine a light on who they were and who they have become,” says Behar. You can then parlay your observations. “Share the moment you knew this time was different for these two love birds or when you knew they were the one for each other,” offers Swartz. 

Offer Advice 

If you’re in a long-term, committed relationship, a wedding speech can be an ideal time to offer sage advice. “Find words of wisdom or draw from your own experience on what it takes to build a lasting partnership, and raise a glass as you share your wishes for this next step in their journey together,” says Swartz. If you don't have the personal experience to back these sentiments up, stick to warm words, instead. "I think including your personal hopes for their future is very thoughtful," says McWilliams, who suggests saying something like, "My hope for you, and I think all of us here, is that you have a lifetime of the love and happiness that you have always shown us and that you are feeling here today."

Tips for Delivering a Memorable Wedding Speech

Crafting a great speech is important, but delivery is everything. Set yourself up for success with some of these public speaking tips.

Print It Out (and Use a Large Font)

To avoid looking disengaged and oddly lit, our experts recommend not reading off your phone. Instead, print or write out your speech in a large typeface. “It is typically dark in the room and if there are lights, they are very bright,” says Behar. “The larger the font, the easier it will be for you to read.” 

Remember That Practice Makes Perfect 

Familiarizing yourself with your material is so important—we cannot overstate this. “Practice your speech beforehand to build confidence and ensure a smooth delivery,” Hall and Vanco say. If possible, read your speech out loud for another person you trust to gauge the audience’s reaction and get comfortable with flow.

Speak Slowly

Though you might be nervous, giving a speech isn’t like completing a race—faster is not better. Speak slowly and clearly while focusing on the couple. “Making eye contact with the couple can help you focus on the gift you’re giving them versus focusing on the crowd of people,” says Swartz. 

Taking space to breath will also keep your pace where it needs to be: “Embrace the moment with enthusiasm and sincerity, and remember to breathe and take pauses as needed,” Hall and Vanco suggest. If you’ve built in some laughs or tearful reactions, give them time to play out. 

Above all else, take control of the moment and stay calm. “Remember why this is meaningful to you,” says Behar. Additionally, Swartz suggests taking deep inhales and even slower exhales to help you feel grounded. “I’ve seen some ladies take off their heels before they toast so they feel extra grounded, and I’m here for it,” she says.

Ultimately, those giving speeches should practice and speak sincerely. And when it comes to the order of those speeches? Couples should do whatever they want. “This is your night to celebrate your love in your own way, and you should be nothing but excited to have your chosen loved ones raise a glass to you,” says Swartz.

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More From Forbes

5 chatgpt prompts to improve your public speaking (wow your audience).

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5 ChatGPT prompts to be a better public speaker (wow your audience)

If you find yourself on a stage or in the spotlight, you had better take it seriously. People are watching, so don’t let them down. Open with confidence, deliver with passion, and close with a bang. There is no other way. But if you’re not sure how to begin preparing, this might seem like a mammoth task. Luckily, there’s time to learn.

These five public speaking experts have you covered, along with a little help from ChatGPT. Copy, paste and edit the square brackets in ChatGPT, and keep the same chat window open so the context carries through.

Wow your audience with your words: ChatGPT prompts for public speaking

Get ideas for keynotes.

Keynote speaker, leadership performance coach, and host of the Compete Every Day podcast Jake Thompson uses ChatGPT to get ideas for keynotes, “as a baseline to start and then adjust the copy and tune.” He said it’s helpful if you’re “stuck generating a strong starting point.” Don’t let the blank page intimidate you. Give ChatGPT information about your audience and their goals, to get brand new ideas you can roll with in minutes. Prompt like a winner from the very start, following Thompson’s lead.

“You are an expert marketing copywriter. Create a list of five ideas for keynote speech titles for my talk for [describe your audience, e.g. new managers and leaders], aspiring to be [describe their goal, e.g. high performance in their role].”

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Once you have options for ideas, choose your favorite and request a framework with examples tailored to your field of expertise.

“The talk will discuss the importance of [outline the key learning objectives, e.g. self-leadership, building rapport with team members, investing in your professional network]. Create a structure for the talk. Include titles and subtitles that incorporate examples and metaphors from [your signature topic, e.g. sports, business] to [outcome you want to achieve, e.g. inspire, motivate] the audience.”

Resonate with your audience

Keynote speaker, corporate facilitator and founder of Breakthrough Play , Gary Ware, has worked with some household name brands, including HP HP , Intuit Intuit and GoFundMe, to improve the public speaking skills of their outward-facing team members. Ware is all about the audience. Use these prompts to make a speech you have already written super relevant to the people in the room. Don’t miss the mark by taking them in turn.

“The audience of my next talk consists of [describe your audience including their profession, typical age, and any other characteristics] and the theme of the [event, e.g. conference] is [describe the theme, e.g. marketing]. Based on this information, outline the key interests or concerns my speech should address to be most relevant to them.”

When you have your answer, incorporate the learning into your speech, then check it aligns.

“Based on your recommendations given, review my attached talk to ensure my message is aligned with this audience’s expectations and needs. [Paste speech]”

Balance warmth and competence

Vanessa Van Edwards is founder of The Science of People and bestselling author of books Captivate, unpacking the science behind succeeding with people, and Cues, mastering the secret language of charismatic communication . She delivers 50 keynote speeches every year and knows how to make a great impression that lasts long after her talk is over.

“The best presenters have the perfect blend of warmth and competence,” Van Edwards explained. “But most of us have an imbalance between the two.” To redress the balance, Van Edwards pastes her script into ChatGPT and asks for recommendations. Here’s a prompt you can try for yourself.

“Review the script for an upcoming keynote I’m delivering. Identify three sections that lack warmth, and suggest the most appropriate way to improve that (for example, with a story, joke, case study, example or warm words) being specific about what to add or remove. Then, identify three sections with the potential to signal more competence, and suggest what to add (for example data, facts, analytics or competent words), being specific. [Paste script]”

Breathe more often

Founder of Best Speech Mike Pacchione, a keynote coach who has worked with renowned speakers such as James Clear , Donald Miller, Amy Porterfield and Olympic gold medalist Scott Hamilton, wants you to focus on breathing. Sounds simple? There’s much more to it. “Speakers can speak with more power when they breathe frequently,” he explained. “But they write notes in paragraphs and long sentences. That leads to being out of breath by the time you hit a full stop.”

Pacchionne recommends that speakers write their scripts as if they're song lyrics. In other words, format your keynote wording in such a way where you are reminded to take a breath. An ideal task for ChatGPT.

"Rewrite the following text with the exact same words, but add a line break every 7-10 words. The end product should resemble song lyrics instead of written paragraphs. [Paste your script]"

When you have your reworked speech, Pacchionne recommends you “go back and make sure the breathing breaks are in natural spots,” adding that “a speaker would be far better served with that format versus paragraphs.”

Make a backup plan

Entrepreneur, bestselling author, podcast host and keynote speaker Liz Bohannon is hired to give keynotes of different lengths, usually between 30 and 60 minutes. But the story is sometimes different on the day. “Often the event is running late, so I have less time than I'd planned for.” Bohannon uses ChatGPT to make a robust backup plan, so she’s prepared for any eventuality before she arrives.

"This speech is [duration]. I need to shorten it by [number] minutes but maintain [topic of speech, lesson or takeaway] as the main point. Make suggestions as to which parts I can cut while maintaining the powerful message: [Paste script]"

Stand out on stage: ChatGPT prompts to show up and wow

Give your audience everything they want and more when you prepare well using ChatGPT. Get ideas for talks with suitable examples, resonate with your audience whatever the event, and balance warmth and competence for charismatic delivery. Don’t forget to breathe by seeing your paragraphs as lyrics, and make a backup plan to fit in with questionable organizer timings.

Show up, stand tall, and say your words with pride. Secure raving fans and repeat bookings. The mic is yours, don’t let us down.

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ChatGPT: Everything you need to know about the AI-powered chatbot

ChatGPT, OpenAI’s text-generating AI chatbot, has taken the world by storm. What started as a tool to hyper-charge productivity through writing essays and code with short text prompts has evolved into a behemoth used by more than 92% of Fortune 500 companies for more wide-ranging needs. And that growth has propelled OpenAI itself into becoming one of the most-hyped companies in recent memory, even if CEO and co-founder Sam Altman’s firing and swift return  raised concerns about its direction and opened the door for competitors.

What does that mean for OpenAI, ChatGPT and its other ambitions? The fallout is still settling, but it might empower competitors like Meta and its LLaMA family of large language models , or help other AI startups get attention and funding as the industry watches OpenAI implode and put itself back together.

While there is a more… nefarious side to ChatGPT, it’s clear that AI tools are not going away anytime soon. Since its initial launch nearly a year ago, ChatGPT has hit 100 million weekly active users , and OpenAI is heavily investing in it.

Prior to the leadership chaos, on November 6, OpenAI held its first developer conference: OpenAI DevDay. During the conference, it announced a slew of updates coming to GPT, including GPT-4 Turbo (a super-charged version of GPT-4 , its latest language-writing model) and a multimodal API . OpenAI also unveiled the GPT store , where users could create and monetize their own custom versions of GPT. Though the launch was delayed in December , it officially launched in January.

GPT-4, which can write more naturally and fluently than previous models, remains largely exclusive to paying ChatGPT users. But you can access GPT-4 for free through Microsoft’s Bing Chat in Microsoft Edge, Google Chrome and Safari web browsers. Beyond GPT-4 and OpenAI DevDay announcements, OpenAI recently connected ChatGPT to the internet for all users. And with the integration of DALL-E 3, users are also able to generate both text prompts and images right in ChatGPT. 

Here’s a timeline of ChatGPT product updates and releases, starting with the latest, which we’ve been updating throughout the year. And if you have any other questions, check out our ChatGPT FAQ here .

Timeline of the most recent ChatGPT updates

February 2024, january 2024, december 2023.

• November 2023 

October 2023

September 2023, august 2023, february 2023, january 2023, december 2022, november 2022.

• ChatGPT FAQs

ChatGPT’s mobile app revenue saw biggest spike yet following GPT-4o launch

The launch of GPT-4o has driven the company’s biggest-ever spike in revenue on mobile , despite the model being freely available on the web. Mobile users are being pushed to upgrade to its $19.99 monthly subscription, ChatGPT Plus, if they want to experiment with OpenAI’s most recent launch.

OpenAI to remove ChatGPT’s Scarlett Johansson-like voice

After demoing its new GPT-4o model last week, OpenAI announced it is pausing one of its voices , Sky, after users found that it sounded similar to Scarlett Johansson in “Her.”

OpenAI explained in a blog post that Sky’s voice is “not an imitation” of the actress and that AI voices should not intentionally mimic the voice of a celebrity. The blog post went on to explain how the company chose its voices: Breeze, Cove, Ember, Juniper and Sky.

We’ve heard questions about how we chose the voices in ChatGPT, especially Sky. We are working to pause the use of Sky while we address them. Read more about how we chose these voices: https://t.co/R8wwZjU36L — OpenAI (@OpenAI) May 20, 2024

ChatGPT lets you add files from Google Drive and Microsoft OneDrive

OpenAI announced new updates for easier data analysis within ChatGPT . Users can now upload files directly from Google Drive and Microsoft OneDrive, interact with tables and charts, as well as export customized charts for presentations. The company says these improvements will be added to GPT-4o in the coming weeks.

We're rolling out interactive tables and charts along with the ability to add files directly from Google Drive and Microsoft OneDrive into ChatGPT. Available to ChatGPT Plus, Team, and Enterprise users over the coming weeks. https://t.co/Fu2bgMChXt pic.twitter.com/M9AHLx5BKr — OpenAI (@OpenAI) May 16, 2024

OpenAI inks deal to train AI on Reddit data

OpenAI announced a partnership with Reddit that will provide the company access to “real-time, structured and unique content” from the social network. Content from Reddit will be incorporated into ChatGPT, and the companies will work together to bring new AI-powered features to Reddit users and moderators.

We’re partnering with Reddit to bring its content to ChatGPT and new products: https://t.co/xHgBZ8ptOE — OpenAI (@OpenAI) May 16, 2024

OpenAI debuts GPT-4o ‘omni’ model now powering ChatGPT

OpenAI’s spring update event saw the reveal of its new omni model, GPT-4o, which has a black hole-like interface as well as voice and vision capabilities that feel eerily like something out of “Her.” GPT-4o is set to roll out “iteratively” across its developer and consumer-facing products over the next few weeks.

OpenAI demos real-time language translation with its latest GPT-4o model. pic.twitter.com/pXtHQ9mKGc — TechCrunch (@TechCrunch) May 13, 2024

OpenAI to build a tool that lets content creators ‘opt out’ of AI training

The company announced it’s building a tool, Media Manager, that will allow creators to better control how their content is being used to train generative AI models — and give them an option to opt out. The goal is to have the new tool in place and ready to use by 2025.

OpenAI explores allowing AI porn

In a new peek behind the curtain of its AI’s secret instructions , OpenAI also released a new NSFW policy . Though it’s intended to start a conversation about how it might allow explicit images and text in its AI products, it raises questions about if OpenAI — or any generative AI vendor — can be trusted to handle sensitive content ethically.

OpenAI and Stack Overflow announce partnership

In a new partnership, OpenAI will get access to developer platform Stack Overflow’s API and will get feedback from developers to improve the performance of their AI models. In return, OpenAI will include attributions to Stack Overflow in ChatGPT. However, the deal was not favorable to some Stack Overflow users — leading to some sabotaging their answer in protest .

U.S. newspapers file copyright lawsuit against OpenAI and Microsoft

Alden Global Capital-owned newspapers including the New York Daily News, the Chicago Tribune, and the Denver Post are suing OpenAI and Microsoft for copyright infringement. The lawsuit alleges that the companies stole millions of copyrighted articles “without permission and without payment” to bolster ChatGPT and Copilot.

OpenAI inks content licensing deal with Financial Times

OpenAI has partnered with another news publisher in Europe, London’s Financial Times , that the company will be paying for content access. “Through the partnership, ChatGPT users will be able to see select attributed summaries, quotes and rich links to FT journalism in response to relevant queries,” the FT wrote in a press release.

OpenAI opens Tokyo hub, adds GPT-4 model optimized for Japanese

OpenAI is opening a new office in Tokyo , and has plans for a GPT-4 model optimized specifically for the Japanese language. The move underscores how OpenAI will likely need to localize its technology to different languages as it expands.

Sam Altman pitches ChatGPT Enterprise to Fortune 500 companies

According to Reuters, OpenAI’s Sam Altman hosted hundreds of executives from Fortune 500 companies across several cities in April, pitching versions of its AI services intended for corporate use.

OpenAI releases ‘more direct, less verbose’ version of GPT-4 Turbo

Premium ChatGPT users — customers paying for ChatGPT Plus, Team or Enterprise — can now use an updated and enhanced version of GPT-4 Turbo . The new model brings with it improvements in writing, math, logical reasoning and coding, OpenAI claims, as well as a more up-to-date knowledge base.

Our new GPT-4 Turbo is now available to paid ChatGPT users. We’ve improved capabilities in writing, math, logical reasoning, and coding. Source: https://t.co/fjoXDCOnPr pic.twitter.com/I4fg4aDq1T — OpenAI (@OpenAI) April 12, 2024

ChatGPT no longer requires an account — but there’s a catch

You can now use ChatGPT without signing up for an account , but it won’t be quite the same experience. You won’t be able to save or share chats, use custom instructions, or other features associated with a persistent account. This version of ChatGPT will have “slightly more restrictive content policies,” according to OpenAI. When TechCrunch asked for more details, however, the response was unclear:

“The signed out experience will benefit from the existing safety mitigations that are already built into the model, such as refusing to generate harmful content. In addition to these existing mitigations, we are also implementing additional safeguards specifically designed to address other forms of content that may be inappropriate for a signed out experience,” a spokesperson said.

OpenAI’s chatbot store is filling up with spam

TechCrunch found that the OpenAI’s GPT Store is flooded with bizarre, potentially copyright-infringing GPTs . A cursory search pulls up GPTs that claim to generate art in the style of Disney and Marvel properties, but serve as little more than funnels to third-party paid services, and advertise themselves as being able to bypass AI content detection tools.

The New York Times responds to OpenAI’s claims that it “hacked” ChatGPT for its copyright lawsuit

In a court filing opposing OpenAI’s motion to dismiss The New York Times’ lawsuit alleging copyright infringement, the newspaper asserted that “OpenAI’s attention-grabbing claim that The Times ‘hacked’ its products is as irrelevant as it is false.” The New York Times also claimed that some users of ChatGPT used the tool to bypass its paywalls.

OpenAI VP doesn’t say whether artists should be paid for training data

At a SXSW 2024 panel, Peter Deng, OpenAI’s VP of consumer product dodged a question on whether artists whose work was used to train generative AI models should be compensated . While OpenAI lets artists “opt out” of and remove their work from the datasets that the company uses to train its image-generating models, some artists have described the tool as onerous.

A new report estimates that ChatGPT uses more than half a million kilowatt-hours of electricity per day

ChatGPT’s environmental impact appears to be massive. According to a report from The New Yorker , ChatGPT uses an estimated 17,000 times the amount of electricity than the average U.S. household to respond to roughly 200 million requests each day.

ChatGPT can now read its answers aloud

OpenAI released a new Read Aloud feature for the web version of ChatGPT as well as the iOS and Android apps. The feature allows ChatGPT to read its responses to queries in one of five voice options and can speak 37 languages, according to the company. Read aloud is available on both GPT-4 and GPT-3.5 models.

ChatGPT can now read responses to you. On iOS or Android, tap and hold the message and then tap “Read Aloud”. We’ve also started rolling on web – click the "Read Aloud" button below the message. pic.twitter.com/KevIkgAFbG — OpenAI (@OpenAI) March 4, 2024

OpenAI partners with Dublin City Council to use GPT-4 for tourism

As part of a new partnership with OpenAI, the Dublin City Council will use GPT-4 to craft personalized itineraries for travelers, including recommendations of unique and cultural destinations, in an effort to support tourism across Europe.

A law firm used ChatGPT to justify a six-figure bill for legal services

New York-based law firm Cuddy Law was criticized by a judge for using ChatGPT to calculate their hourly billing rate . The firm submitted a $113,500 bill to the court, which was then halved by District Judge Paul Engelmayer, who called the figure “well above” reasonable demands.

ChatGPT experienced a bizarre bug for several hours

ChatGPT users found that ChatGPT was giving nonsensical answers for several hours , prompting OpenAI to investigate the issue. Incidents varied from repetitive phrases to confusing and incorrect answers to queries. The issue was resolved by OpenAI the following morning.

Match Group announced deal with OpenAI with a press release co-written by ChatGPT

The dating app giant home to Tinder, Match and OkCupid announced an enterprise agreement with OpenAI in an enthusiastic press release written with the help of ChatGPT . The AI tech will be used to help employees with work-related tasks and come as part of Match’s $20 million-plus bet on AI in 2024.

ChatGPT will now remember — and forget — things you tell it to

As part of a test, OpenAI began rolling out new “memory” controls for a small portion of ChatGPT free and paid users, with a broader rollout to follow. The controls let you tell ChatGPT explicitly to remember something, see what it remembers or turn off its memory altogether. Note that deleting a chat from chat history won’t erase ChatGPT’s or a custom GPT’s memories — you must delete the memory itself.

We’re testing ChatGPT's ability to remember things you discuss to make future chats more helpful. This feature is being rolled out to a small portion of Free and Plus users, and it's easy to turn on or off. https://t.co/1Tv355oa7V pic.twitter.com/BsFinBSTbs — OpenAI (@OpenAI) February 13, 2024

OpenAI begins rolling out “Temporary Chat” feature

Initially limited to a small subset of free and subscription users, Temporary Chat lets you have a dialogue with a blank slate. With Temporary Chat, ChatGPT won’t be aware of previous conversations or access memories but will follow custom instructions if they’re enabled.

But, OpenAI says it may keep a copy of Temporary Chat conversations for up to 30 days for “safety reasons.”

Use temporary chat for conversations in which you don’t want to use memory or appear in history. pic.twitter.com/H1U82zoXyC — OpenAI (@OpenAI) February 13, 2024

ChatGPT users can now invoke GPTs directly in chats

Paid users of ChatGPT can now bring GPTs into a conversation by typing “@” and selecting a GPT from the list. The chosen GPT will have an understanding of the full conversation, and different GPTs can be “tagged in” for different use cases and needs.

You can now bring GPTs into any conversation in ChatGPT – simply type @ and select the GPT. This allows you to add relevant GPTs with the full context of the conversation. pic.twitter.com/Pjn5uIy9NF — OpenAI (@OpenAI) January 30, 2024

ChatGPT is reportedly leaking usernames and passwords from users’ private conversations

Screenshots provided to Ars Technica found that ChatGPT is potentially leaking unpublished research papers, login credentials and private information from its users. An OpenAI representative told Ars Technica that the company was investigating the report.

ChatGPT is violating Europe’s privacy laws, Italian DPA tells OpenAI

OpenAI has been told it’s suspected of violating European Union privacy , following a multi-month investigation of ChatGPT by Italy’s data protection authority. Details of the draft findings haven’t been disclosed, but in a response, OpenAI said: “We want our AI to learn about the world, not about private individuals.”

OpenAI partners with Common Sense Media to collaborate on AI guidelines

In an effort to win the trust of parents and policymakers, OpenAI announced it’s partnering with Common Sense Media to collaborate on AI guidelines and education materials for parents, educators and young adults. The organization works to identify and minimize tech harms to young people and previously flagged ChatGPT as lacking in transparency and privacy .

OpenAI responds to Congressional Black Caucus about lack of diversity on its board

After a letter from the Congressional Black Caucus questioned the lack of diversity in OpenAI’s board, the company responded . The response, signed by CEO Sam Altman and Chairman of the Board Bret Taylor, said building a complete and diverse board was one of the company’s top priorities and that it was working with an executive search firm to assist it in finding talent. 

OpenAI drops prices and fixes ‘lazy’ GPT-4 that refused to work

In a blog post , OpenAI announced price drops for GPT-3.5’s API, with input prices dropping to 50% and output by 25%, to $0.0005 per thousand tokens in, and $0.0015 per thousand tokens out. GPT-4 Turbo also got a new preview model for API use, which includes an interesting fix that aims to reduce “laziness” that users have experienced.

Expanding the platform for @OpenAIDevs : new generation of embedding models, updated GPT-4 Turbo, and lower pricing on GPT-3.5 Turbo. https://t.co/7wzCLwB1ax — OpenAI (@OpenAI) January 25, 2024

OpenAI bans developer of a bot impersonating a presidential candidate

OpenAI has suspended AI startup Delphi, which developed a bot impersonating Rep. Dean Phillips (D-Minn.) to help bolster his presidential campaign. The ban comes just weeks after OpenAI published a plan to combat election misinformation, which listed “chatbots impersonating candidates” as against its policy.

OpenAI announces partnership with Arizona State University

Beginning in February, Arizona State University will have full access to ChatGPT’s Enterprise tier , which the university plans to use to build a personalized AI tutor, develop AI avatars, bolster their prompt engineering course and more. It marks OpenAI’s first partnership with a higher education institution.

Winner of a literary prize reveals around 5% her novel was written by ChatGPT

After receiving the prestigious Akutagawa Prize for her novel The Tokyo Tower of Sympathy, author Rie Kudan admitted that around 5% of the book quoted ChatGPT-generated sentences “verbatim.” Interestingly enough, the novel revolves around a futuristic world with a pervasive presence of AI.

Sam Altman teases video capabilities for ChatGPT and the release of GPT-5

In a conversation with Bill Gates on the Unconfuse Me podcast, Sam Altman confirmed an upcoming release of GPT-5 that will be “fully multimodal with speech, image, code, and video support.” Altman said users can expect to see GPT-5 drop sometime in 2024.

OpenAI announces team to build ‘crowdsourced’ governance ideas into its models

OpenAI is forming a Collective Alignment team of researchers and engineers to create a system for collecting and “encoding” public input on its models’ behaviors into OpenAI products and services. This comes as a part of OpenAI’s public program to award grants to fund experiments in setting up a “democratic process” for determining the rules AI systems follow.

OpenAI unveils plan to combat election misinformation

In a blog post, OpenAI announced users will not be allowed to build applications for political campaigning and lobbying until the company works out how effective their tools are for “personalized persuasion.”

Users will also be banned from creating chatbots that impersonate candidates or government institutions, and from using OpenAI tools to misrepresent the voting process or otherwise discourage voting.

The company is also testing out a tool that detects DALL-E generated images and will incorporate access to real-time news, with attribution, in ChatGPT.

Snapshot of how we’re preparing for 2024’s worldwide elections: • Working to prevent abuse, including misleading deepfakes • Providing transparency on AI-generated content • Improving access to authoritative voting information https://t.co/qsysYy5l0L — OpenAI (@OpenAI) January 15, 2024

OpenAI changes policy to allow military applications

In an unannounced update to its usage policy , OpenAI removed language previously prohibiting the use of its products for the purposes of “military and warfare.” In an additional statement, OpenAI confirmed that the language was changed in order to accommodate military customers and projects that do not violate their ban on efforts to use their tools to “harm people, develop weapons, for communications surveillance, or to injure others or destroy property.”

ChatGPT subscription aimed at small teams debuts

Aptly called ChatGPT Team , the new plan provides a dedicated workspace for teams of up to 149 people using ChatGPT as well as admin tools for team management. In addition to gaining access to GPT-4, GPT-4 with Vision and DALL-E3, ChatGPT Team lets teams build and share GPTs for their business needs.

OpenAI’s GPT store officially launches

After some back and forth over the last few months, OpenAI’s GPT Store is finally here . The feature lives in a new tab in the ChatGPT web client, and includes a range of GPTs developed both by OpenAI’s partners and the wider dev community.

To access the GPT Store, users must be subscribed to one of OpenAI’s premium ChatGPT plans — ChatGPT Plus, ChatGPT Enterprise or the newly launched ChatGPT Team.

the GPT store is live! https://t.co/AKg1mjlvo2 fun speculation last night about which GPTs will be doing the best by the end of today. — Sam Altman (@sama) January 10, 2024

Developing AI models would be “impossible” without copyrighted materials, OpenAI claims

Following a proposed ban on using news publications and books to train AI chatbots in the U.K., OpenAI submitted a plea to the House of Lords communications and digital committee. OpenAI argued that it would be “impossible” to train AI models without using copyrighted materials, and that they believe copyright law “does not forbid training.”

OpenAI claims The New York Times’ copyright lawsuit is without merit

OpenAI published a public response to The New York Times’s lawsuit against them and Microsoft for allegedly violating copyright law, claiming that the case is without merit.

In the response , OpenAI reiterates its view that training AI models using publicly available data from the web is fair use. It also makes the case that regurgitation is less likely to occur with training data from a single source and places the onus on users to “act responsibly.”

We build AI to empower people, including journalists. Our position on the @nytimes lawsuit: • Training is fair use, but we provide an opt-out • "Regurgitation" is a rare bug we're driving to zero • The New York Times is not telling the full story https://t.co/S6fSaDsfKb — OpenAI (@OpenAI) January 8, 2024

OpenAI’s app store for GPTs planned to launch next week

After being delayed in December , OpenAI plans to launch its GPT Store sometime in the coming week, according to an email viewed by TechCrunch. OpenAI says developers building GPTs will have to review the company’s updated usage policies and GPT brand guidelines to ensure their GPTs are compliant before they’re eligible for listing in the GPT Store. OpenAI’s update notably didn’t include any information on the expected monetization opportunities for developers listing their apps on the storefront.

GPT Store launching next week – OpenAI pic.twitter.com/I6mkZKtgZG — Manish Singh (@refsrc) January 4, 2024

OpenAI moves to shrink regulatory risk in EU around data privacy

In an email, OpenAI detailed an incoming update to its terms, including changing the OpenAI entity providing services to EEA and Swiss residents to OpenAI Ireland Limited. The move appears to be intended to shrink its regulatory risk in the European Union, where the company has been under scrutiny over ChatGPT’s impact on people’s privacy.

Study finds white-collar workers are uneasy about using ChatGPT

A study conducted by professors from Harvard and MIT , which is still under review, looked at how ChatGPT could affect the productivity of more than 750 white-collar workers, as well as their complicated feelings about using the tool. The study found that while ChatGPT was helpful with creative tasks, workers were led to more mistakes with analytical work.

The New York Times sues OpenAI and Microsoft over alleged copyright infringement

In a lawsuit filed in the Federal District Court in Manhattan , The Times argues that millions of its articles were used to train AI models without its consent. The Times is asking for OpenAI and Microsoft to “destroy” models and training data containing offending material and to be held responsible for “billions of dollars in statutory and actual damages.”

OpenAI re-opens ChatGPT Plus subscriptions

After pausing ChatGPT Plus subscriptions in November due to a “surge of usage,” OpenAI CEO Sam Altman announced they have once again enabled sign-ups. The Plus subscription includes access to GPT-4 and GPT-4 Turbo .

we have re-enabled chatgpt plus subscriptions! 🎄 thanks for your patience while we found more gpus. — Sam Altman (@sama) December 13, 2023

OpenAI and Axel Springer partner up for a “real-time” ChatGPT news deal

OpenAI has struck a new deal with Berlin-based news publisher Axel Springer , which owns Business Insider and Politico, to “help provide people with new ways to access quality, real-time news content through our AI tools.” OpenAI will train its generative AI models on the publisher’s content and add recent Axel Springer-published articles to ChatGPT.

Stanford researchers say ChatGPT didn’t cause an influx in cheating in high schools

New research from Stanford University shows that the popularization of chatbots like ChatGPT has not caused an increase in cheating across U.S. high schools. In a survey of more than 40 U.S. high schools, researchers found that cheating rates are similar across the board this year.

ChatGPT users worry the chatbot is experiencing seasonal depression

Starting in November, ChatGPT users have noticed that the chatbot feels “lazier” than normal, citing instances of simpler answers and refusing to complete requested tasks. OpenAI has confirmed that they are aware of this issue , but aren’t sure why it’s happening.

Some users think it plays into the “winter break hypothesis,” which argues that AI is worse in December because it “learned” to do less work over the holidays , while others wonder if the chatbot is simulating seasonal depression .

we've heard all your feedback about GPT4 getting lazier! we haven't updated the model since Nov 11th, and this certainly isn't intentional. model behavior can be unpredictable, and we're looking into fixing it 🫡 — ChatGPT (@ChatGPTapp) December 8, 2023

Judges in the U.K. are now allowed to use ChatGPT in legal rulings

The U.K. Judicial Office issued guidance that permits judges to use ChatGPT, along with other AI tools, to write legal rulings and perform court duties. The guidance lays out ways to responsibly use AI in the courts, including being aware of potential bias and upholding privacy.

OpenAI makes repeating words “forever” a violation of its terms of service after Google DeepMind test

Following an experiment by Google DeepMind researchers that led ChatGPT to repeat portions of its training data, OpenAI has flagged asking ChatGPT to repeat specific words “forever” as a violation of its terms of service .

Lawmakers in Brazil enact an ordinance written by ChatGPT

City lawmakers in Brazil enacted a piece of legislation written entirely by ChatGPT without even knowing. Weeks after the bill was passed, Porto Alegre councilman Ramiro Rosário admitted that he used ChatGPT to write the proposal, and did not tell fellow council members until after the fact.

OpenAI reportedly delays the launch of its GPT store to 2024

According to a memo seen by Axios , OpenAI plans to delay the launch of its highly anticipated GPT store to early 2024. Custom GPTs and the accompanying store was a major announcement at OpenAI’s DevDay conference , with the store expected to open last month.

November 2023

Chatgpts mobile apps top 110m installs and nearly $30m in revenue.

After launching for iOS and Androidin May and July, ChatGPT’s have topped 110 million combined installs and have reached nearly $30 million in consumer spending, according to a market analysis by data.ai.

ChatGPT celebrates one-year anniversary

OpenAI hit a major milestone: one year of ChatGPT . What began as a “low-key research preview” evolved into a powerhouse that changed the AI industry forever. In a post on X , CEO Sam Altman looked back on the night before its launch: “what a year it’s been…”

a year ago tonight we were probably just sitting around the office putting the finishing touches on chatgpt before the next morning’s launch. what a year it’s been… — Sam Altman (@sama) November 30, 2023

Apple and Google avoid naming ChatGPT as their ‘app of the year’

Neither Apple nor Google chose an AI app as its app of the year for 2023, despite the success of ChatGPT’s mobile app, which became the fastest-growing consumer application in history before the record was broken by Meta’s Threads .

An attack from researchers prompts ChatGPT to reveal training data

A test led by researchers at Google DeepMind found that there is a significant amount of privately identifiable information in OpenAI’s LLMs. The test involved asking ChatGPT to repeat the word “poem” forever, among other words, which over time led the chatbot to churn out private information like email addresses and phone numbers.

ChatGPT and other AI chatbots are fueling an increase in phishing emails

According to a new report by SlashNext , there’s been a 1,265% increase in malicious phishing emails since Q4 of 2022. The report alleges that AI tools like ChatGPT are being prominently used by cybercriminals to write compelling and sophisticated phishing emails .

South Africa officials investigate if President Cyril Ramaphosa used ChatGPT to write a speech

Following speculation, social media users fed portions of Ramaphosa’s November 21 speech in Johannesburg through AI detectors , alleging parts of it may have been written with ChatGPT. South African presidency spokesperson Vincent Magwenya refuted the claims, and local officials are investigating.

ChatGPT Voice can be used to replace Siri

Now that OpenAI’s ChatGPT Voice feature is available to all free users, it can be used to replace Siri on an iPhone 15 Pro and Pro Max by configuring the new Action Button. The new feature lets you ask ChatGPT questions and listen to its responses — like a much smarter version of Siri.

Sam Altman returns as CEO

Altman’s return came swiftly , with an “agreement in principle” announced between him and OpenAI’s board that will reinstate him as CEO and restructure the board to include new members, including former U.S. Treasury Secretary Larry Summers . The biggest takeaway for ChatGPT is that the members of the board more focused on the nonprofit side of OpenAI, with the most concerns over the commercialization of its tools, have been pushed to the side .

ChatGPT Voice rolls out to all free users

Even if its leadership is in flux, OpenAI is still releasing updates to ChatGPT . First announced in September and granted to paid users on a rolling basis, the text-to-speech model can create a voice from text prompts and a few seconds of speech samples. OpenAI worked with voice actors to create the five voice options, and you can give it a shot by heading to the settings in your mobile ChatGPT apps and tapping the “headphones” icon.

Sam Altman might return, but it’s complicated

The only constant within OpenAI right now is change, and in a series of interviews, Nadella hedged on earlier reporting that Altman and Brockman were headed to Microsoft .

“Obviously, we want Sam and Greg to have a fantastic home if they’re not going to be in OpenAI,” Nadella said in an interview with CNBC, saying that we was “open” to them settling at Microsoft or returning to OpenAI should the board and employees support the move.

Confirmation Sam Altman will not return as OpenAI’s CEO

A number of investors and OpenAI employees tried to bring back Altman after his sudden firing by the company’s board, but following a weekend of negotiations, it was confirmed that Altman would not return to OpenAI and new leadership would take hold. What this means for ChatGPT’s future, and for the OpenAI Dev Day announcements , remains to be seen.

Sam Altman ousted as OpenAI’s CEO

Sam Altman has been fired from OpenAI . He will leave the company’s board and step down as CEO, with OpenAI’s chief technology officer Mira Murati stepping in as interim CEO. In a blog post from OpenAI, the company writes that the board “no longer has confidence in [Altman’s] ability to continue leading OpenAI.”

In a statement on X , Altman said working at OpenAI “was transformative” for him and “hopefully the world.”

OpenAI explores how ChatGPT can be used in the classroom

OpenAI COO Brad Lightcap revealed at a San Francisco conference that the company will likely create a team to identify ways AI and ChatGPT can be used in education . This announcement comes at a time when ChatGPT is being criticized by educators for encouraging cheating , resulting in bans in certain school districts .

OpenAI pauses new ChatGPT Plus subscriptions due to a “surge of usage”

Following OpenAI’s Dev Day conference , Sam Altman announced the company is putting a pause on new subscriptions for its premium ChatGPT Plus offering. The temporary hold on sign-ups, as well as the demand for ChatGPT Plus’ new features like making custom GPTS , has led to a slew of resellers on eBay .

ChatGPT gets flagged as potentially unsafe for kids

An independent review from Common Sense Media, a nonprofit advocacy group, found that  ChatGPT could potentially be harmful for younger users. ChatGPT got an overall three-star rating in the report, with its lowest ratings relating to transparency, privacy, trust and safety. 

OpenAI blames DDoS attack for ChatGPT outage

OpenAI confirmed that a DDoS attack was behind outages affecting ChatGPT and its developer tools. ChatGPT experienced sporadic outages for about 24 hours, resulting in users being unable to log into or use the service.

OpenAI debuts GPT-4 Turbo

OpenAI unveiled GPT-4 Turbo at its first-ever OpenAI DevDay conference. GPT-4 Turbo comes in two versions: one that’s strictly text-analyzing and another that understands the context of both text and images.

GPT-4 gets a fine-tuning

As opposed to the fine-tuning program for GPT-3.5, the GPT-4 program will involve more oversight and guidance from OpenAI teams, the company says — largely due to technical hurdles.

OpenAI’s GPT Store lets you build (and monetize) your own GPT

Users and developers will soon be able to make their own GPT , with no coding experience required. Anyone building their own GPT will also be able to list it on OpenAI’s marketplace and monetize it in the future.

ChatGPT has 100 million weekly active users

After being released nearly a year ago, ChatGPT has 100 million weekly active users . OpenAI CEO Sam Altman also revealed that over two million developers use the platform, including more than 92% of Fortune 500 companies.

OpenAI launches DALL-E 3 API, new text-to-speech models

DALL-E 3, OpenAI’s text-to-image model , is now available via an API after first coming to ChatGPT-4 and Bing Chat. OpenAI’s newly released text-to-speech API, Audio API, offers six preset voices to choose from and two generative AI model variants.

OpenAI promises to defend business customers against copyright claims

Bowing to peer pressure, OpenAI it will pay legal costs incurred by customers who face lawsuits over IP claims against work generated by an OpenAI tool. The protections seemingly don’t extend to all OpenAI products, like the free and Plus tiers of ChatGPT.

As OpenAI’s multimodal API launches broadly, research shows it’s still flawed

OpenAI announced that GPT-4 with vision will become available alongside the upcoming launch of GPT-4 Turbo API. But some researchers found that the model remains flawed in several significant and problematic ways.

OpenAI launches API, letting developers build ‘assistants’ into their apps

At its OpenAI DevDay, OpenAI announced the Assistants API to help developers build “agent-like experiences” within their apps. Use cases range from a natural language-based data analysis app to a coding assistant or even an AI-powered vacation planner.

ChatGPT app revenue shows no signs of slowing, but it’s not #1

OpenAI’s chatbot app far outpaces all others on mobile devices in terms of downloads, but it’s surprisingly not the top AI app by revenue . Several other AI chatbots, like  “Chat & Ask AI” and “ChatOn — AI Chat Bot Assistant”, are actually making more money than ChatGPT.

ChatGPT tests the ability to upload and analyze files for Plus users

Subscribers to ChatGPT’s Enterprise Plan have reported new beta features, including the ability to upload PDFs to analyze and and ask questions about them directly. The new rollout also makes it so users no longer have to manually select a mode like DALL-E and browsing when using ChatGPT. Instead, users will automatically be switched to models based on the prompt.

ChatGPT officially gets web search

OpenAI has formally launched its internet-browsing feature to ChatGPT, some three weeks after re-introducing the feature in beta after several months in hiatus. The AI chatbot that has historically been limited to data up to September, 2021.

OpenAI integrates DALL-E 3 into ChatGPT

The integration means users don’t have to think so carefully about their text-prompts when asking DALL-E to create an image. Users will also now be able to receive images as part of their text-based queries without having to switch between apps.

Microsoft-affiliated research finds flaws in GPT-4

A Microsoft-affiliated scientific paper looked at the “trustworthiness” — and toxicity — of LLMs, including GPT-4. Because GPT-4 is more likely to follow the instructions of “jailbreaking” prompts, the co-authors claim that GPT-4 can be more easily prompted than other LLMs to spout toxic, biased text .

ChatGPT’s mobile app hits record $4.58M in revenue in September

OpenAI amassed 15.6 million downloads and nearly $4.6 million in gross revenue across its iOS and Android apps worldwide in September. But revenue growth has now begun to slow , according to new data from market intelligence firm Appfigures — dropping from 30% to 20% in September.

ChatGPT can now browse the internet (again)

OpenAI posted on Twitter/X that ChatGPT can now browse the internet and is no longer limited to data before September 2021. The chatbot had a web browsing capability for Plus subscribers back in July , but the feature was taken away after users exploited it to get around paywalls.

ChatGPT can now browse the internet to provide you with current and authoritative information, complete with direct links to sources. It is no longer limited to data before September 2021. pic.twitter.com/pyj8a9HWkB — OpenAI (@OpenAI) September 27, 2023

ChatGPT now has a voice

OpenAI announced that it’s adding a new voice for verbal conversations and image-based smarts to the AI-powered chatbot.

Poland opens an investigation against OpenAI

The Polish authority publically announced it has opened an investigation regarding ChatGPT — accusing the company of a string of breaches of the EU’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR).

OpenAI unveils DALL-E 3

The upgraded text-to-image tool, DALL-E 3, uses ChatGPT to help fill in prompts. Subscribers to OpenAI’s premium ChatGPT plans, ChatGPT Plus  and  ChatGPT Enterprise , can type in a request for an image and hone it through conversations with the chatbot — receiving the results directly within the chat app.

Opera GX integrates ChatGPT-powered AI

Powered by OpenAI’s ChatGPT, the AI browser Aria  launched on Opera in May to give users an easier way to search, ask questions and write code. Today, the company announced it is bringing Aria to Opera GX , a version of the flagship Opera browser that is built for gamers.

The new feature allows Opera GX users to interact directly with a browser AI to find the latest gaming news and tips.

OpenAI releases a guide for teachers using ChatGPT in the classroom

OpenAI wants to rehabilitate the system’s image a bit when it comes to education, as ChatGPT has been controversial in the classroom due to plagiarism. OpenAI has offered up a selection of ways to put the chatbot to work in the classroom.

OpenAI launches ChatGPT Enterprise

ChatGPT Enterprise can perform the same tasks as ChatGPT, such as writing emails, drafting essays and debugging computer code. However, the new offering also adds “enterprise-grade” privacy and data analysis capabilities on top of the vanilla ChatGPT, as well as enhanced performance and customization options.

Survey finds relatively few American use ChatGPT

Recent Pew polling suggests the language model isn’t quite as popular or threatening as some would have you think. Ongoing polling by Pew Research shows that although ChatGPT is gaining mindshare, only about 18% of Americans have ever actually used it .

OpenAI brings fine-tuning to GPT-3.5 Turbo

With fine-tuning, companies using GPT-3.5 Turbo through the company’s API can make the model better follow specific instructions. For example, having the model always respond in a given language. Or improving the model’s ability to consistently format responses, as well as hone the “feel” of the model’s output, like its tone, so that it better fits a brand or voice. Most notably, fine-tuning enables OpenAI customers to shorten text prompts to speed up API calls and cut costs.

OpenAI is partnering with Scale AI to allow companies to fine-tune GPT-3.5 . However, it is unclear whether OpenAI is developing an in-house tuning tool that is meant to complement platforms like Scale AI or serve a different purpose altogether.

Fine-tuning costs:

• Training: $0.008 / 1K tokens
• Usage input: $0.012 / 1K tokens
• Usage output: $0.016 / 1K tokens

OpenAI acquires Global Illumination

In OpenAI’s first public acquisition in its seven-year history, the company announced it has acquired Global Illumination, a New York-based startup leveraging AI to build creative tools, infrastructure and digital experiences.

“We’re very excited for the impact they’ll have here at OpenAI,” OpenAI wrote in a brief  post published to its official blog. “The entire team has joined OpenAI to work on our core products including ChatGPT.”

The ‘custom instructions’ feature is extended to free ChatGPT users

OpenAI announced that it’s expanding custom instructions to all users, including those on the free tier of service. The feature allows users to add various preferences and requirements that they want the AI chatbot to consider when responding.

China requires AI apps to obtain an administrative license

Multiple generative AI apps have been removed from Apple’s China App Store ahead of the country’s latest generative AI regulations that are set to take effect August 15.

“As you may know, the government has been tightening regulations associated with deep synthesis technologies (DST) and generative AI services, including ChatGPT. DST must fulfill permitting requirements to operate in China, including securing a license from the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT),” Apple said in a letter to OpenCat, a native ChatGPT client. “Based on our review, your app is associated with ChatGPT, which does not have requisite permits to operate in China.”

ChatGPT for Android is now available in the US, India, Bangladesh and Brazil

A few days after putting up a preorder page on Google Play, OpenAI has flipped the switch and  released ChatGPT for Android . The app is now live in a handful of countries.

ChatGPT is coming to Android

ChatGPT is available to “pre-order” for Android users.

The ChatGPT app on Android  looks to be more or less identical to the iOS one in functionality, meaning it gets most if not all of the web-based version’s features. You should be able to sync your conversations and preferences across devices, too — so if you’re iPhone at home and Android at work, no worries.

OpenAI launches customized instructions for ChatGPT

OpenAI launched custom instructions for ChatGPT users , so they don’t have to write the same instruction prompts to the chatbot every time they interact with it.

The company said this feature lets you “share anything you’d like ChatGPT to consider in its response.” For example, a teacher can say they are teaching fourth-grade math or a developer can specify the code language they prefer when asking for suggestions. A person can also specify their family size, so the text-generating AI can give responses about meals, grocery and vacation planning accordingly.

The FTC is reportedly investigating OpenAI

The FTC is reportedly in at least the exploratory phase of investigation over whether OpenAI’s flagship ChatGPT conversational AI made “false, misleading, disparaging or harmful” statements about people.

TechCrunch Reporter Devin Coldewey reports:

This kind of investigation doesn’t just appear out of thin air — the FTC doesn’t look around and say “That looks suspicious.” Generally a lawsuit or formal complaint is brought to their attention and the practices described by it imply that regulations are being ignored. For example, a person may sue a supplement company because the pills made them sick, and the FTC will launch an investigation on the back of that because there’s evidence the company lied about the side effects.

OpenAI announced the general availability of GPT-4

Starting July 6, all existing OpenAI developers “with a history of successful payments” can access GPT-4 . OpenAI plans to open up access to new developers by the end of July.

In the future, OpenAI says that it’ll allow developers to fine-tune GPT-4 and  GPT-3.5 Turbo , one of the original models powering ChatGPT, with their own data, as has long been possible with several of OpenAI’s other text-generating models. That capability should arrive later this year, according to OpenAI.

ChatGPT app can now search the web only on Bing

OpenAI announced that subscribers to ChatGPT Plus can now use a new feature on the app called Browsing , which allows ChatGPT to search Bing for answers to questions.

The Browsing feature can be enabled by heading to the New Features section of the app settings, selecting “GPT-4” in the model switcher and choosing “Browse with Bing” from the drop-down list. Browsing is available on both the iOS and Android ChatGPT apps.

Mercedes is adding ChatGPT to its infotainment system

U.S. owners of Mercedes models that use MBUX will be able to opt into a beta program starting June 16 activating the ChatGPT functionality . This will enable the highly versatile large language model to augment the car’s conversation skills. You can join up simply by telling your car “Hey Mercedes, I want to join the beta program.”

It’s not really clear what for, though.

ChatGPT app is now available on iPad, adds support for Siri and Shortcuts

The new ChatGPT app version brings native iPad support to the app , as well as support for using the chatbot with Siri and Shortcuts. Drag and drop is also now available, allowing users to drag individual messages from ChatGPT into other apps.

On iPad, ChatGPT now runs in full-screen mode, optimized for the tablet’s interface.

Texas judge orders all AI-generated content must be declared and checked

The Texas federal judge has added a requirement that any attorney appearing in his court must attest that “no portion of the filing was drafted by generative artificial intelligence,” or if it was, that it was checked “by a human being.”

ChatGPT app expanded to more than 30 countries

The list of new countries includes Algeria, Argentina, Azerbaijan, Bolivia, Brazil, Canada, Chile, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Estonia, Ghana, India, Iraq, Israel, Japan, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Lithuania, Mauritania, Mauritius, Mexico, Morocco, Namibia, Nauru, Oman, Pakistan, Peru, Poland, Qatar, Slovenia, Tunisia and the United Arab Emirates.

ChatGPT app is now available in 11 more countries

OpenAI announced in a tweet that the ChatGPT mobile app is now available on iOS in the U.S., Europe, South Korea and New Zealand, and soon more will be able to download the app from the app store. In just six days, the app topped 500,000 downloads .

The ChatGPT app for iOS is now available to users in 11 more countries — Albania, Croatia, France, Germany, Ireland, Jamaica, Korea, New Zealand, Nicaragua, Nigeria, and the UK. More to come soon! — OpenAI (@OpenAI) May 24, 2023

OpenAI launches a ChatGPT app for iOS

ChatGPT is officially going mobile . The new ChatGPT app will be free to use, free from ads and will allow for voice input, the company says, but will initially be limited to U.S. users at launch.

When using the mobile version of ChatGPT, the app will sync your history across devices — meaning it will know what you’ve previously searched for via its web interface, and make that accessible to you. The app is also integrated with  Whisper , OpenAI’s open source speech recognition system, to allow for voice input.

Hackers are using ChatGPT lures to spread malware on Facebook

Meta said in a report on May 3 that malware posing as ChatGPT was on the rise across its platforms . The company said that since March 2023, its security teams have uncovered 10 malware families using ChatGPT (and similar themes) to deliver malicious software to users’ devices.

“In one case, we’ve seen threat actors create malicious browser extensions available in official web stores that claim to offer ChatGPT-based tools,” said Meta security engineers Duc H. Nguyen and Ryan Victory in  a blog post . “They would then promote these malicious extensions on social media and through sponsored search results to trick people into downloading malware.”

ChatGPT parent company OpenAI closes $300M share sale at $27B-29B valuation

VC firms including Sequoia Capital, Andreessen Horowitz, Thrive and K2 Global are picking up new shares, according to documents seen by TechCrunch. A source tells us Founders Fund is also investing. Altogether the VCs have put in just over $300 million at a valuation of $27 billion to $29 billion . This is separate to a big investment from Microsoft announced earlier this year , a person familiar with the development told TechCrunch, which closed in January. The size of Microsoft’s investment is believed to be around $10 billion, a figure we confirmed with our source.

OpenAI previews new subscription tier, ChatGPT Business

Called ChatGPT Business, OpenAI describes the forthcoming offering as “for professionals who need more control over their data as well as enterprises seeking to manage their end users.”

“ChatGPT Business will follow our API’s data usage policies, which means that end users’ data won’t be used to train our models by default,” OpenAI  wrote in a blog post. “We plan to make ChatGPT Business available in the coming months.”

OpenAI wants to trademark “GPT”

OpenAI applied for a trademark for “GPT,” which stands for “Generative Pre-trained Transformer,” last December. Last month, the company petitioned the USPTO to speed up the process, citing the “myriad infringements and counterfeit apps” beginning to spring into existence.

Unfortunately for OpenAI, its petition was  dismissed  last week. According to the agency, OpenAI’s attorneys neglected to pay an associated fee as well as provide “appropriate documentary evidence supporting the justification of special action.”

That means a decision could take up to five more months.

Auto-GPT is Silicon Valley’s latest quest to automate everything

Auto-GPT is an open-source app created by game developer Toran Bruce Richards that uses OpenAI’s latest text-generating models, GPT-3.5 and GPT-4, to interact with software and services online, allowing it to “autonomously” perform tasks.

Depending on what objective the tool’s provided, Auto-GPT can behave in very… unexpected ways. One Reddit  user  claims that, given a budget of $100 to spend within a server instance, Auto-GPT made a wiki page on cats, exploited a flaw in the instance to gain admin-level access and took over the Python environment in which it was running — and then “killed” itself.

FTC warns that AI technology like ChatGPT could ‘turbocharge’ fraud

FTC chair Lina Khan and fellow commissioners warned House representatives of the potential for modern AI technologies, like ChatGPT, to be used to “turbocharge” fraud in a congressional hearing .

“AI presents a whole set of opportunities, but also presents a whole set of risks,” Khan told the House representatives. “And I think we’ve already seen ways in which it could be used to turbocharge fraud and scams. We’ve been putting market participants on notice that instances in which AI tools are effectively being designed to deceive people can place them on the hook for FTC action,” she stated.

Superchat’s new AI chatbot lets you message historical and fictional characters via ChatGPT

The company behind the popular iPhone customization app  Brass , sticker maker  StickerHub  and  others  is out today with a new AI chat app called  SuperChat , which allows iOS users to chat with virtual characters powered by OpenAI’s ChatGPT . However, what makes the app different from the default experience or the dozens of generic AI chat apps now available are the characters offered which you can use to engage with SuperChat’s AI features.

Italy gives OpenAI to-do list for lifting ChatGPT suspension order

Italy’s data protection watchdog has laid out what OpenAI needs to do for it to lift an order against ChatGPT issued at the  end of last month — when it said it suspected the AI chatbot service was in breach of the EU’s GSPR and ordered the U.S.-based company to stop processing locals’ data.

The DPA has given OpenAI a deadline — of April 30 — to get the regulator’s compliance demands done. (The local radio, TV and internet awareness campaign has a slightly more generous timeline of May 15 to be actioned.)

Researchers discover a way to make ChatGPT consistently toxic

A study co-authored by scientists at the Allen Institute for AI shows that assigning ChatGPT a “persona” — for example, “a bad person,” “a horrible person” or “a nasty person” — through the ChatGPT API increases its toxicity sixfold. Even more concerning, the co-authors found having the conversational AI chatbot pose as certain historical figures, gendered people and members of political parties also increased its toxicity — with journalists, men and Republicans in particular causing the machine learning model to say more offensive things than it normally would.

The research was conducted using the latest version, but not the model currently in preview based on OpenAI’s GPT-4 .

Y Combinator-backed startups are trying to build ‘ChatGPT for X’

YC Demo Day’s Winter 2023 batch features no fewer than four startups that claim to be building “ChatGPT for X.” They’re all chasing after a customer service software market that’ll be worth $58.1 billion by 2023, assuming the rather optimistic prediction from Acumen Research comes true.

Here are the YC-backed startups that caught our eye:

• Yuma , whose customer demographic is primarily Shopify merchants, provides ChatGPT-like AI systems that integrate with help desk software, suggesting drafts of replies to customer tickets.
• Baselit , which uses one of OpenAI’s text-understanding models to allow businesses to embed chatbot-style analytics for their customers.
• Lasso customers send descriptions or videos of the processes they’d like to automate and the company combines ChatGPT-like interface with robotic process automation (RPA) and a Chrome extension to build out those automations.
• BerriAI , whose platform is designed to help developers spin up ChatGPT apps for their organization data through various data connectors.

Italy orders ChatGPT to be blocked

OpenAI has started geoblocking access to its generative AI chatbot, ChatGPT, in Italy .

Italy’s data protection authority has just put out a timely reminder that some countries do have laws that already apply to cutting edge AI: it has  ordered OpenAI to stop processing people’s data locally with immediate effect. The Italian DPA said it’s concerned that the ChatGPT maker is breaching the European Union’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), and is opening an investigation.

1,100+ signatories signed an open letter asking all ‘AI labs to immediately pause for 6 months’

The letter’s signatories include Elon Musk, Steve Wozniak and Tristan Harris of the Center for Humane Technology, among others. The letter calls on “all AI labs to immediately pause for at least 6 months the training of AI systems more powerful than GPT-4.”

The letter reads:

Contemporary AI systems are now becoming human-competitive at general tasks,[3] and we must ask ourselves: Should we let machines flood our information channels with propaganda and untruth? Should we automate away all the jobs, including the fulfilling ones? Should we develop nonhuman minds that might eventually outnumber, outsmart, obsolete and replace us? Should we risk loss of control of our civilization? Such decisions must not be delegated to unelected tech leaders. Powerful AI systems should be developed only once we are confident that their effects will be positive and their risks will be manageable.

OpenAI connects ChatGPT to the internet

OpenAI launched plugins for ChatGPT, extending the bot’s functionality by granting it access to third-party knowledge sources and databases, including the web. Available in alpha to ChatGPT users and developers on the waitlist , OpenAI says that it’ll initially prioritize a small number of developers and subscribers to its premium ChatGPT Plus plan before rolling out larger-scale and  API  access.

OpenAI launches GPT-4, available through ChatGPT Plus

GPT-4 is a powerful image- and text-understanding AI model from OpenAI. Released March 14, GPT-4 is available for paying ChatGPT Plus users and through a public API. Developers can sign up on a waitlist to access the API.

ChatGPT is available in Azure OpenAI service

ChatGPT is generally available through the Azure OpenAI Service , Microsoft’s fully managed, corporate-focused offering. Customers, who must already be “Microsoft managed customers and partners,” can apply here for special access .

OpenAI launches an API for ChatGPT

OpenAI makes another move toward monetization by launching a paid API for ChatGPT . Instacart, Snap (Snapchat’s parent company) and Quizlet are among its initial customers.

Microsoft launches the new Bing, with ChatGPT built in

At a press event in Redmond, Washington, Microsoft announced its long-rumored integration of OpenAI’s GPT-4 model into Bing , providing a ChatGPT-like experience within the search engine. The announcement spurred a 10x increase in new downloads for Bing globally, indicating a sizable consumer demand for new AI experiences.

Other companies beyond Microsoft joined in on the AI craze by implementing ChatGPT, including OkCupid , Kaito , Snapchat and Discord — putting the pressure on Big Tech’s AI initiatives, like Google .

OpenAI launches ChatGPT Plus, starting at $20 per month

After ChatGPT took the internet by storm, OpenAI launched a new pilot subscription plan for ChatGPT called ChatGPT Plus , aiming to monetize the technology starting at $20 per month. A month prior, OpenAI posted a waitlist for “ChatGPT Professional” as the company began to think about monetizing the chatbot.

OpenAI teases ChatGPT Professional

OpenAI said that it’s “starting to think about how to monetize ChatGPT” in an announcement on the company’s official Discord server. According to a waitlist link OpenAI posted in Discord, the monetized version will be called ChatGPT Professional . The waitlist document includes the benefits of this new paid version of the chatbot which include no “blackout” windows, no throttling and an unlimited number of messages with ChatGPT — “at least 2x the regular daily limit.”

ShareGPT lets you easily share your ChatGPT conversations

A week after ChatGPT was released into the wild , two developers — Steven Tey and Dom Eccleston — made a Chrome extension called ShareGPT to make it easier to capture and share the AI’s answers with the world.

ChatGPT first launched to the public as OpenAI quietly released GPT-3.5

GPT-3.5 broke cover with ChatGPT , a fine-tuned version of GPT-3.5 that’s essentially a general-purpose chatbot. ChatGPT can engage with a range of topics, including programming, TV scripts and scientific concepts. Writers everywhere rolled their eyes at the new technology, much like artists did with OpenAI’s DALL-E model , but the latest chat-style iteration seemingly broadened its appeal and audience.

What is ChatGPT? How does it work?

ChatGPT is a general-purpose chatbot that uses artificial intelligence to generate text after a user enters a prompt, developed by tech startup OpenAI . The chatbot uses GPT-4, a large language model that uses deep learning to produce human-like text.

When did ChatGPT get released?

November 30, 2022 is when ChatGPT was released for public use.

What is the latest version of ChatGPT?

Both the free version of ChatGPT and the paid ChatGPT Plus are regularly updated with new GPT models. The most recent model is GPT-4 .

Can I use ChatGPT for free?

There is a free version of ChatGPT that only requires a sign-in in addition to the paid version, ChatGPT Plus .

Who uses ChatGPT?

Anyone can use ChatGPT! More and more tech companies and search engines are utilizing the chatbot to automate text or quickly answer user questions/concerns.

What companies use ChatGPT?

Multiple enterprises utilize ChatGPT, although others may limit the use of the AI-powered tool .

Most recently, Microsoft announced at it’s 2023 Build conference that it is integrating it ChatGPT-based Bing experience into Windows 11. A Brooklyn-based 3D display startup Looking Glass utilizes ChatGPT to produce holograms you can communicate with by using ChatGPT.  And nonprofit organization Solana officially integrated the chatbot into its network with a ChatGPT plug-in geared toward end users to help onboard into the web3 space.

What does GPT mean in ChatGPT?

GPT stands for Generative Pre-Trained Transformer.

What’s the difference between ChatGPT and Bard?

Much like OpenAI’s ChatGPT, Bard is a chatbot that will answer questions in natural language. Google announced at its 2023 I/O event that it will soon be adding multimodal content to Bard, meaning that it can deliver answers in more than just text, responses can give you rich visuals as well. Rich visuals mean pictures for now, but later can include maps, charts and other items.

ChatGPT’s generative AI has had a longer lifespan and thus has been “learning” for a longer period of time than Bard.

What is the difference between ChatGPT and a chatbot?

A chatbot can be any software/system that holds dialogue with you/a person but doesn’t necessarily have to be AI-powered. For example, there are chatbots that are rules-based in the sense that they’ll give canned responses to questions.

ChatGPT is AI-powered and utilizes LLM technology to generate text after a prompt.

Can ChatGPT write essays?

Can chatgpt commit libel.

Due to the nature of how these models work , they don’t know or care whether something is true, only that it looks true. That’s a problem when you’re using it to do your homework, sure, but when it accuses you of a crime you didn’t commit, that may well at this point be libel.

We will see how handling troubling statements produced by ChatGPT will play out over the next few months as tech and legal experts attempt to tackle the fastest moving target in the industry.

Does ChatGPT have an app?

Yes, there is now a free ChatGPT app that is currently limited to U.S. iOS users at launch. OpenAi says an android version is “coming soon.”

What is the ChatGPT character limit?

It’s not documented anywhere that ChatGPT has a character limit. However, users have noted that there are some character limitations after around 500 words.

Does ChatGPT have an API?

Yes, it was released March 1, 2023.

What are some sample everyday uses for ChatGPT?

Everyday examples include programing, scripts, email replies, listicles, blog ideas, summarization, etc.

What are some advanced uses for ChatGPT?

Advanced use examples include debugging code, programming languages, scientific concepts, complex problem solving, etc.

How good is ChatGPT at writing code?

It depends on the nature of the program. While ChatGPT can write workable Python code, it can’t necessarily program an entire app’s worth of code. That’s because ChatGPT lacks context awareness — in other words, the generated code isn’t always appropriate for the specific context in which it’s being used.

Can you save a ChatGPT chat?

Yes. OpenAI allows users to save chats in the ChatGPT interface, stored in the sidebar of the screen. There are no built-in sharing features yet.

Are there alternatives to ChatGPT?

Yes. There are multiple AI-powered chatbot competitors such as Together , Google’s Bard and Anthropic’s Claude , and developers are creating open source alternatives . But the latter are harder — if not impossible — to run today.

The Google-owned research lab DeepMind claimed that its next LLM, will rival, or even best, OpenAI’s ChatGPT . DeepMind is using techniques from AlphaGo, DeepMind’s AI system that was the first to defeat a professional human player at the board game Go, to make a ChatGPT-rivaling chatbot called Gemini.

Apple is developing AI tools to challenge OpenAI, Google and others. The tech giant created a chatbot that some engineers are internally referring to as “Apple GPT,” but Apple has yet to determine a strategy for releasing the AI to consumers.

How does ChatGPT handle data privacy?

OpenAI has said that individuals in “certain jurisdictions” (such as the EU) can object to the processing of their personal information by its AI models by filling out  this form . This includes the ability to make requests for deletion of AI-generated references about you. Although OpenAI notes it may not grant every request since it must balance privacy requests against freedom of expression “in accordance with applicable laws”.

The web form for making a deletion of data about you request is entitled “ OpenAI Personal Data Removal Request ”.

In its privacy policy, the ChatGPT maker makes a passing acknowledgement of the objection requirements attached to relying on “legitimate interest” (LI), pointing users towards more information about requesting an opt out — when it writes: “See here  for instructions on how you can opt out of our use of your information to train our models.”

What controversies have surrounded ChatGPT?

Recently, Discord announced that it had integrated OpenAI’s technology into its bot named Clyde where two users tricked Clyde into providing them with instructions for making the illegal drug methamphetamine (meth) and the incendiary mixture napalm.

An Australian mayor has publicly announced he may sue OpenAI for defamation due to ChatGPT’s false claims that he had served time in prison for bribery. This would be the first defamation lawsuit against the text-generating service.

CNET found itself in the midst of controversy after Futurism reported the publication was publishing articles under a mysterious byline completely generated by AI. The private equity company that owns CNET, Red Ventures, was accused of using ChatGPT for SEO farming, even if the information was incorrect.

Several major school systems and colleges, including New York City Public Schools , have banned ChatGPT from their networks and devices. They claim that the AI impedes the learning process by promoting plagiarism and misinformation, a claim that not every educator agrees with .

There have also been cases of ChatGPT accusing individuals of false crimes .

Where can I find examples of ChatGPT prompts?

Several marketplaces host and provide ChatGPT prompts, either for free or for a nominal fee. One is PromptBase . Another is ChatX . More launch every day.

Can ChatGPT be detected?

Poorly. Several tools claim to detect ChatGPT-generated text, but in our tests , they’re inconsistent at best.

Are ChatGPT chats public?

No. But OpenAI recently disclosed a bug, since fixed, that exposed the titles of some users’ conversations to other people on the service.

Who owns the copyright on ChatGPT-created content or media?

The user who requested the input from ChatGPT is the copyright owner.

What lawsuits are there surrounding ChatGPT?

None specifically targeting ChatGPT. But OpenAI is involved in at least one lawsuit that has implications for AI systems trained on publicly available data, which would touch on ChatGPT.

Are there issues regarding plagiarism with ChatGPT?

Yes. Text-generating AI models like ChatGPT have a tendency to regurgitate content from their training data.

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