Great speeches are remembered and recited. Boring, mundane
speeches are too often forgotten. John F. Kennedy, Martin Luther King Jr., and
Mel Gibson yelling “freedom” in “Braveheart” each had plenty of passion. All
these speakers knew what they were dealing with and were successful in
mobilizing groups of people.
Speeches are also important in business. Speeches are
integral components for organizations to effectively communicate to audiences.
Speeches not only inform and educate publics, but are also opportunities to
establish and reinforce an organization’s brand.
One of the
difficulties in public relations is changing behaviors. Attitudes, stances and
behaviors can be strong and stable. Nonprofit leaders face this battle each day
to keep their organization afloat. They have to constantly motivate sponsors
and donors every step of the way in order to be successful.
A key ingredient to a great speech is a dash of revolution.
In the business world, this was portrayed by Steve jobs. Jobs excited and revolutionized
the world of technology.
For example, Jobs introduced Apple’s iPad to a crowd
on January 27, 2010. In his speech, Jobs raised questions. The questions Jobs
asked were logical and some of the same questions consumers had been asking. He
spoke as an ordinary person, and appeared as one. He played off the timeless
marketing trick of identifying the problem and offering a solution. Jobs kept
it simple. His language and presentations were simple and easy to understand.
This was an effective style to introduce totally new and revolutionary products
to the entire world.
The speech can be seen by clicking this link.
In doing so, Jobs was the face of Apple. It wasn’t some
gimmicky mascot or cartoon character; it was the leader of the organization
that reinforced Apple’s brand.
Speeches have always held a special relationship with
sports. Sometimes a player, coach, owner or manager can become the face or
voice of an entire franchise. Tim Tebow, former quarterback of the Florida
Gators, became the face of both his team and school. Tebow gave a speech known
today as “The Promise” after his team lost to Alabama in 2008. Tebow and the
rest of his team didn’t lose a game the entire next season and went on to win
the BCS National Championship. This speech alone reinforced the school’s athletic
ethic and Tebow became the brand ambassador.
Tebow’s “promise” can be seen here.
Direct communication has and always will be effective. Whatever
the situation may be, delivering a strong, value-centered speech is a great
opportunity to spread information or establish an organization’s brand.
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