SPEECH ASSIGNMENT

INFOMERCIAL

For your next speech assignment, you must prepare and present a three-minute infomercial. An infomercial is a long commercial that provides an extensive product or service description and sales information. It's like a documentary or news program that highlights a specific product or service.

Although infomercials are generally 30 minutes to one hour long, your infomercial should last only three minutes. Use the following procedure to complete this assignment:

Preparing the Speech

Prepare your speech by following these steps:

1. Select a speech goal.

a. Brainstorm to select a topic. Choose a product or service that you want to highlight in your infomercial. Your choice may be real or imaginary. It can be something tangible (like a cell phone or a vacuum cleaner), or it can be intangible (like a diet plan or financial services).

b. Decide what methods you'll use to inform your audience. You can inform by describing, defining, comparing and contrasting, narrating, and demonstrating. Describing: Create an accurate and vivid verbal picture of an object, feature, event, person, or image.

This approach answers questions of who, what, and where. Explain features such as its size, shape, color, composition, age, condition, and spatial organization.

Defining: Explain the meaning of something.

Differentiate it from similar ideas. Explain its history and its function. Use synonyms and antonyms to give your subject more depth.

Comparing and contrasting: Focus on ways in which your subject is similar to or different from other things. For example, if you've chosen to talk about a new type of pot scrubber, you might point out how much it resembles another brand in capability, but point out how it's softer and less abrasive than that other one.

Narrating: This is essentially storytelling, and it can be done using first person (I and we), second person (you), or third person (he, she, and they).

Orient the listener by describing when and where an event occurred. Introduce the important characters. Explain the sequence of events. Recount a complication or problem and how it was solved. Use vivid language.

Demonstrating: Show how something is done or how something works. This showing can be done in just a few steps, or it can be complex. Demonstrations require you to have expertise, so be sure to practice.

c. Understand your audience and adapt to it. Realize that your audience will be made up of diverse members. Analyze your audience members to assess their familiarity with your topic.

You should know what your audience's interest in your topic will be, so that you can adjust your content to that audience. Before you begin, be sure to determine how you'll establish your own credibility with the audience.

d. Consider how the occasion affects how you present your speech.

e. Develop a speech goal statement.

2. Gather and evaluate information for your speech.

a. Examine what you already know and where you need additional information.

b. Locate, evaluate, and select different sources. If necessary, gather information on your product or service; otherwise, make a list of the topics you want to mention in your speech. If you gather information from other sources, be sure to credit them in your speech.

Use legitimate resources, which can be identified using the table on page 102 of your textbook. Use research cards to make notations of your information.

6. Once you've rehearsed your speech and you're satisfied with your delivery, record the speech.

a. Begin the recording by reading the following sentences.

In this persuasive speech, I will be _______ (reasoning with the audience or motivating the audience). The audience I'm addressing is _______.

b. Pause a few seconds (count to five in your head), and then begin your speech.