Part 1.
In this post, in order to answer the questions related to informative speeches, this post will be taking Steve Job’s speech while launching the iPod.
The form of informative speaking used by Steve Jobs for the launch of the iPod, is that of a speech of demonstration, where he vividly described the various special features of the device, while visually demonstrating the usage of the device in front of the audience.
In a speech of demonstration, the speaker briefs the audience about the step-by-step processes of an activity, or about an occurrence, usually by visually aiding them with the steps. In other words, the speaker explains the audience about how exactly to do something, or how a particular activity is done or takes place.
The most appealing part of this speech of demonstration by Steve Jobs, is the way in which he simplifies the usage of a complex and innovative device, which was previously unknown by the audience (Niebuhr et al., 2016). The speech was perfectly decipherable because of the perfect and crisp visual aids that Jobs provided the audience with, in order to convey the knowledge to the audience. The way in which he made a demonstrative speech interactive in nature was commendable as well.
The least appealing part of this speech however, was the pace of the speech, which was apparently a little bit more tardy than required. This could have led to losing the attention of the audience, if it were not for the interesting nature of the topic itself.
As the speaker, the one thing which I would have done differently in this case would be to simply be more dynamic on stage and regulate the pace of the speech at times to keep the audience entertained.
Part 2.
Topic: The importance of investing in the development of sports in a country.
Purpose: To inform the audience about how investing in sports can prove to be fruitful for a nation.
Audiences: The population of United States; the population of India.
How the message conveying the importance of investing in sports will be sent to the audience, depends on analysing the psychographic characteristics of the target audience of USA and India respectively (O’Hair, Rubenstein & Stewart, 2007). Currently, basketball, baseball and American football hold the positions for the two of the most popular sports in America. However, ice-hockey too shows a potential for being highly popular in the nation; perhaps as popular as baseball is (Lim & Pendersen, 2018). While addressing how investing in sports can be fruitful for a nation, a speaker must use an explanatory form of informative speech in order to communicate to the audience about the statistics that ice-hockey has exhibited over the last decades in the country. Focus should be on how much the government alongside the sports organizations in the country have been investing in the sport, and also refer to the craze of the sport outside of USA which can also be the scenario in the US itself, if the sport grows in the country. They should be clearly explained why and how the sport has been taken casually by the audience in recent times, despite its potential (Stojanov, 2018). The message should be statistically correct and motivating in order to persuade the audience into buying the intended message, referring to the popularity of the sport in Canada.
However, while structuring the same message for the population of India, focus should be more on football than any other sport. Facts and statistics must compel the audience about how talented their footballers are, and informing them about the insignificant investment that takes place to develop the sport in the country. The style of the speech delivery would be different from the previous case, as in this case, a more descriptive form of informative as well as persuasive speech style is needed to be adopted. The descriptive style of speech should also include how much football matters around the rest of the world, and how much the football fanatics in the country want the sport to succeed in the nation. The overall message should be themed on how emerging as a footballing nation to reckon with, can improve India’s image on a global scale, and earn significant economic benefits for the country since it is the most popular sport in the world.
References
Lim, N., & Pedersen, P. M. (2018). Examining Determinants of Sport Event Attendance: A Multilevel Analysis of a Major League baseball Season. Journal of Global Sport Management, 1-18.
Niebuhr, O., Brem, A., Novák-Tót, E., & Voße, J. (2016). Charisma in business speeches: A contrastive acoustic-prosodic analysis of Steve Jobs and Mark Zuckerberg. In Proc. 8th International Conference of Speech Prosody, Boston, USA (pp. 79-82).
O’Hair, D., Rubenstein, H., & Stewart, R. A. (2007). A pocket guide to public speaking. Bedford/St. Martin’s.
Stojanov, D., Martel, K., Workman, A., & Mcgregor, S. J. (2018). Use Of Player Worn Sensors To Identify Fatigue During A Usa Select National Hockey Development Camp: 2757 Board# 40 June 1 2. Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise, 50(5S), 672.
