How do you tailor your speech writing samples?

1 Analyze the audience and occasion

Before you write or select a speech sample, you need to understand who you are writing for and why. Who is the intended audience of your speech? What are their demographics, interests, values, and expectations? Ask questions to determine how familiar your audience is with the topic and the speaker. What is the occasion or event that requires a speech? Understand the tone, mood, and format of the event. What is the main objective or message of the speech? These questions will help you determine the appropriate level of formality, language, humor, emotion, and evidence for your speech sample.

2 Choose a relevant and engaging topic

Your speech sample should showcase your ability to write about a topic that is relevant and engaging for the audience and occasion. You want to demonstrate that you can research, analyze, and present information in a clear, concise, and compelling way. You also want to show that you can craft a speech that has a clear purpose, a logical structure, a strong opening and closing, and a memorable takeaway. Avoid topics that are too generic, controversial, or complex for your speech sample. Instead, choose topics that are specific, timely, and interesting for your target audience and occasion.

3 Adapt your style and tone

Your speech sample should also reflect your ability to adapt your style and tone to suit the audience and occasion. You want to use a voice that is appropriate, consistent, and authentic for the speaker and the message. You also want to use a tone that is respectful, confident, and engaging for the audience and the event. Depending on the context, you may need to use more formal or informal language, more humor or seriousness, more emotion or logic, more facts or stories, more persuasion or information. You can also use rhetorical devices, such as repetition, contrast, questions, metaphors, and anecdotes, to enhance your style and tone.

4 Format and label your samples

Format and label your samples in a way that makes them easy to read and understand. Use a clear font, size, and spacing for your text. Headings, subheadings, bullet points, and transitions can help organize your speech sample. Include a title, a brief introduction, and a summary for each sample. The title should capture the main idea or theme of your speech. The introduction should provide some background information on the audience, occasion, speaker, and purpose of your speech. The summary should highlight the main points and the takeaway of your speech.

By following these tips, you can tailor your speech writing samples to different audiences and occasions. You can also showcase your skill and versatility as a speech writer. You can use your speech writing portfolio and samples to impress potential clients, employers, or collaborators with your talent and professionalism.