In the context of this series, an entertaining speech is one whose sole purpose is to have the audience enjoy the presentation. The purpose of an entertaining speech is not to educate, inform or inspire … it is to make the audience smile, relax, enjoy and maybe even laugh their heads off. (Figuratively, of course … real heads falling off would cause a nasty mess!)
Let’s be honest here, entertainment truly is in the eye of the beholder. What one person finds entertaining, another may find duller than dishwater. So, you really have to know your audience in order to entertain them.
But what does that mean?
Although many — if not most — entertaining speeches are funny, they do not need to include humor to be entertaining. Dramas are entertaining but not funny, right? Here are some tips for creating an entertaining speech:
How to write an entertaining speech
There are many ways to entertain an audience. You can:
- tell jokes
- tell funny stories
- dramatize an anecdote
- tell a scary story
When it comes right down to it … there are probably as many ways to entertain as there are entertainers … and audiences.
That said, there are some guidelines for creating an entertaining speech.
- Chose an appropriate topic:
You don’t want the topic to be too dense, complicated or heavy. Remember, you’re not trying to give your audience a greater understanding of anything. You’re there to help them have a good time. - Enjoy yourself:
Believe it or not, it is hard for an audience to enjoy your presentation if it looks like you are not enjoying presenting it! - Keep it simple:
Your presentation should be easy to follow. Don’t make it hard for your audience to keep up with you mentally … or in any other way. - Make it visceral:
Use vivid word pictures. This is not the type of presentation where you can be lazy in your descriptions. Make your words pop with strong images that pop in their minds. - Say it like a roller coaster, baby!
Add unexpected twists and turns to your presentation. When you surprise your audience with where your story is going, that adds to the entertainment factor.
Resources for developing entertaining speeches:
- List of Funny Speech Topics
- How to Write an Entertaining Speech for Any Occasion
- How To Make An Entertaining Speech/Presentation
Did you miss these?
Here are the previous posts in this “Type of Speeches” series:
The next post in this series is The Demonstration.
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