230 11.1 ConClUdinG YoUr speeCh
is not inherently wrong, but such a cue gives listeners unspoken permission to
tune out. (Notice what students do when their professor signals the end of class:
Books and notebooks slam shut, pens are stowed away, and the class generally
stops listening.) A concluding transition needs to be followed quickly by the
final statement of the speech.
motiVatE thE aUdiEnCE to REspond Another way to provide closure
to your speech is to motivate your audience to respond in some way. If your
speech is informative, you may want your audience to take some sort of
appropriate action—write a letter, buy a product, make a telephone call, or
get involved in a cause. In fact, an action step is essential to the persuasive
organizational strategy called the motivated sequence, which we discuss in
Chapter 17.
At the close of her speech on negligent landlords, Melanie included a simple
audience response as part of her action step:
By a show of hands, how many people in this room rely on rental hous-
ing? Look around. It’s a problem that affects us all, if not directly, then
through a majority of our friends.^5
Another speaker ended a speech to an audience of travel agents by recom-
mending these specific action steps:
• Continuously develop and improve your professional and business skills.
• Embrace and utilize the new technologies. You are either riding on the new
technology highway, or you are standing in the dust, left behind.
• Continuously build and strengthen your top industry organizations locally
and nationally so their brands, endorsement, and influence can work pow-
erfully on your behalf.
• Develop a passion for this business and inspire the same in your employees
and coworkers.^6Signal the End of Your Speech
Verbal cues
• Use transitional phrases such as finally, for my last point, and (use with care) in conclusion.
• Be careful that your cues don’t give the audience unspoken permission to tune out. Be quick
to follow your transition with the final statement of your speech.
Nonverbal cues
• Pause between the body of your speech and its conclusion.
• Slow your speaking rate.
• Move out from behind a podium to make a final impassioned plea.
• Use a falling vocal inflection to signal your final statement.How To