thinkitcreative

Common among the best, most memorable speeches you’ll hear is an old trick among speechwriters: themes. Whether it’s an allegory to help explain a complex topic, or a personal anecdote to help break the ice with a little bit of humour, themes can be a big help to a speaker, keeping the audience interested in the topic at-hand.

Fletcher Dean, who runs the excellent and much-quoted thespeechwriter.com has posted some helpful tips on using themes in a speech. I’ll share some highlights:

True ‘happened-to-me’ stories — This isn’t a “while I was waiting on the taxi” theme but a real event in the life of the speaker. These not only have the benefit of providing a good theme, but they endear the speaker to the audience.

Stories — Folk tales and fairy tales can even provide memorable introductions into your main topic. These are especially useful for international speakers when you can find a local tale familiar to the audience. It shows the speaker has done his or her homework and appreciates the local culture.

Quotes — A good quote can set the tone early in a speech and give you an interesting theme. If the person being quoted is well-known and well-liked, this technique has the added benefit of letting your speaker borrow credibility.

Reference to an historical event — One of my favorites, this often requires some legwork to ferret out but is easily worth the effort. Listeners appreciate the historical perspective and anecdotes this technique provides, especially if it’s tied to a “day-in-history” event.

Current events — A quick scan of the news can often provide just the hook you need to develop a theme. Because speeches are often written days, if not weeks ahead, however, it’s most useful to look for news events that have staying power. These may even include books on the best-seller list, popular movies and television shows or even print and broadcast ads.

Statistics — In a category all by themselves, statistics can often be elevated to theme status if you find the right ones. Economic and education stats are often useful but so are demographics if you can use them to illustrate a point. The key here, of course, is to bring those statistics down to a personal level.

Earlier this summer when I was in New York on business, I took a detour to check out the new Apple Store on Fifth Avenue. I’m really fond of these shops because they’re chock-full of insight about how to market to savvy consumers.

But I had another reason for this particular visit.

My good friends at Marketcircle (who just so happen to be a client), just launched their all-new version of Daylite³ and the product had just hit the shelves. Box copy is by yours truly.

As a copywriter, It’s always a great feeling when you get to see your work on the shelf (that my copy’s selling on Fifth Avenue is fine bonus, too).

But the real boost for me was to be there to see it hit the shelf and the watch customers picking it up and making the decision to buy.

Coming soon to this blog: my own list of time-saving tips using Daylite³.

Time for a fun post. If you had to be David Bowie for the rest of your life, but you could pick only one of his many personae, which one would it be:

ZiggyBowie — Decorate yourself in 70s getup, play guitar, including the requisite jammin’ good with Weird and Gilly and them Spiders from Mars;

AlladinsaneBowie — All the glam and glitter you can carry, but be weighed down with so many phamaceuticals that the entire experience is little more than a blur when you look back years after the fact;

The Thin White Duke Bowie — Be Germanically obsessed, androgynous and shellshocked by life’s misfortunes. But at least you wind up with a closet full of snappy Italians suits;

LowBowie — Produce a work of sheer artistic genius that fails miserably as a commercial product;

ScarymonsterBowie — Be consigned to a Kornilof clown costume while producing your very best work, but in which people only fully appreciate until decades after the fact;

Let’sDanceBowie — Make music as bad as your haircut. And laugh all the way to the bank; or

QuinquegenarianBowie — Produce fantastic material year after year that gets limited but enthusiastic support. Oh and more bad haircuts.

What’s my pick? QuinquegenarianBowie, hands down. Always do your very best at what you do and there will always be a market for it.

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