Starting a speech with “Thank you so much for having invited me, it’s really nice to see all of you today, I have been looking forward to this event…… and so on”, is of course boring and obviously regarded predictable. Your audience may react and tell themselves, “okay, and so?” All of us want to hear something that will have an impact on us, otherwise we won’t listen.
One of the best way to start it is to say something that will grab your audience’s attention. As Jill Bremer of ImagE-Zine at http://www.bremercommunications.com/ puts it, “say something compelling, humorous, shocking or imaginative. We want to open with flair, style and impact!”
As with other speech experts, according to Jill, here are various ways of starting a speech:
Quotation
A quotation from a well known personality can be a great speech opening directed towards the topic. Because part of the impact itself comes from the knowledge of the person itself, it never fails and will make your audience think. For presentations about time management skills for example, we could use Mark Twain’s “Never put off till tomorrow what you can do today.” Or still other similar quotations from famous people.
Ask A Question
Asking a question at the beginning of a speech will make your audience pause and think. Oftentimes, they answer within themselves. You want to capture their attention by making their minds work. “Where were you on September 11th?” With one hand raised in the air as you ask, your audience will get that you want not a verbal response but an interest in what you discuss.
Declarative Statement
Another good way to open a speech is a startling statement. These statements are followed with “according to so-and-so in his book….” And then pause. The idea is to make your audience think and realize something.
Scenario
The goal is to create a scene in the minds of your audience. It usually begins with “Imagine yourself …” The audience will remember the picture as they visualize it in their minds.
Before you start a presentation, consider one or two of these methods. Preparation is the key to any effective delivery.