Week 11: Impact Techniques 1

(Repetition – Rhetorical Questions – Groups of Three plus One)

Lead-in: How many examples of repetition and restatement can you find in Tracy
Goodwin’s comments? Think about words, phrases, sentences, sounds.

“I want to talk a minute about repetition... I want to talk a minute about repetition. It’s very,
very important in any speech that you do two things – repetition, restatement. You have to
remember that you wrote the speech, you research the speech, you studied and practised the
speech, you basically married the speech. You know it, but we don’t. So you have to repeat
and restate the important points. I repeat, you have to repeat and restate important points.”
Tracy Goodwin, communication professor

1. Repetition of words

Activity 1 (audio): Create greater impact in the presentation extracts below by replacing one
word in each with a word that has already been used. The first one has been done for you as
an example. Then listen and check your answers.

a. It's not a question of qualifications. It's a matter of talent. (question)

b. I always say total quality begins with absolute commitment.
c. What's the use of setting goals if your objectives are unrealistic?
d. One thing we don't need is more data. We're drowning in information as it is!
e. A decline in the market doesn't have to mean a drop in sales as well.
f. We're still running at zero profit. But, from nothing the only way is up.

Activity 2 (audio): Look at the statements below and underline words you could repeat after
a short pause to increase your impact. The first one has been done for you as an example.
Then listen and check your answers.

a. First of all, I'm pleased to report that profits are up by 38%.

First of all, I'm pleased to report that profits are up ... up by 38%.

b. It's a cliche. I know, but this firm has always put its people first.
c. Ladies and gentlemen, it's time to face the facts.
d. So, that's what happened - what I want to know is: why did we let it happen?
e. What's really important for us to do right now is this ...
f. One thing I know: we must never again lose our sense of focus.
g. Nobody likes failure, but some people are more afraid of success.
h. We've come a long way to get to where we are today.
i. And today we're announcing our biggest breakthrough ever.

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Activity 3: A mantra is a key phrase that is repeated several times throughout a speech — for
example, Barack Obama's 'Yes, we can!' Think of a presentation of your own. Can you
reduce your key message to a mantra of no more than seven words? Compare with others in
your group. Briefly give the background to your presentation and suggest improvements to
each other's mantras if you can.

2. Repetition of sounds
Activity 4: Repeating certain sounds can add power to your key points. Advertisers use this
technique a lot. Look at the following famous examples and identify the sounds being
repeated. Some repeat more than one.

Pleasing people the world over. (Holiday Inn)

You can be sure of Shell. (Royal Dutch Shell)
Where do you want to go today? (Microsoft)
Probably the best beer in the world. (Carlsberg)
Fly the friendly skies. (United Airlines)
Don't dream it. Drive it. (Jaguar)
Sense and simplicity. (Philips)
Functional. Fashionable. Formidable. (Fila)

Activity 5 (audio): Now replace the word in bold in each of the statements below with a
close synonym that echoes the highlighted sounds in the rest of the sentence. The first one
has been done for you as an example. Then listen and check your answers.

a. Properly priced, packaged and advertised, this product cannot fail. (promoted)
b. China is not our main market, but it may be a significant market in the future.
c. Of course, this is a serious problem to which there's no easy solution.
d. In the world of international finance this company remains a formidable force.
e. I know that if we work together as a group we can take on the competition.
f. If we cannot challenge change, then we have no option but to embrace it.
g. If we don't manage to break even on this by Q4 we may even go under.

Practice 1 (audio):
SPEECHWRITING With a partner, rewrite the short presentation extract below so that it
contains more repetition of words, phrases and sounds. You may need to break some of it up
into shorter sentences. Change or add whatever you need to. Then team-present your
rewritten presentation, emphasising the words and phrases you decided to repeat. Listen and
compare your version with the one in the audio file.

“There'll always be a market for quality. And that's what I want to talk to you about this
morning. So what do I know about it? Three things: it's better, it costs more and, importantly,
people actually want it to cost extra. It's not about your goods: it's about how people perceive
your goods. As Stella Artois's clever beer ad used to put it: 'Reassuringly expensive'. I don't
know a better definition of quality.”
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3. Rhetorical questions

Lead-in: Max Atkinson is the world's top researcher into audience reactions to public
speakers. In his comments above find examples of:
a. repetition of words and sounds
b. rhetorical questions
c. groups of three

“Is there anything you can do to get your message across with greater impact? Are there any
techniques that all successful speakers use to inspire, persuade and enthuse their audiences?
And, if so, can anyone learn to use them? The good news is that the answer to all these
questions is an emphatic yes. The same rhetorical techniques that were originally defined by
the ancient Greeks are still very much alive and well today. They are the way effective
speakers speak.”
Max Atkinson, Henley Business School

Brainstorm: Why do you think rhetorical questions are so powerful in a presentation?

Activity 6: Phrasing a key point as a question and echoing the question in the answer is often
more effective than just making your point. Look at the example and transform the other
statements in a similar way.

a. Piracy is the main challenge we face.

► So, what's the main challenge we face? The main challenge is piracy.

b. Viral marketing is the answer.

c. Converting leads into sales is the problem.
d. China is where the best opportunities are.
e. Big-budget advertising simply doesn't work, that's my point.
f. Give our project teams more autonomy, that's the plan.

Activity 7 (audio): Certain rhetorical questions are very common in presentations. Complete
the ones below using the pairs of words in the box. Then listen and check your answers.

where + go how + do what + do

why + selling what + talking how soon + expect
where + did what + waiting how much + wasted

a. We've tripled revenues in two years. So, ...how... did we ...do... it?
b. The whole of central Asia is one big golden opportunity. So, .......... are we .......... for?
c. We poured millions into this venture and it flopped. So, .......... .......... we go wrong?

English Department – Speaking Term 3 – Presentation Skills 3

d. When the patents run out on this product, our competitors will legally be able to clone it.
So, .......... are we going to .......... about it?
e. We spend fifty million dollars a year on internet advertising alone. But .......... of that
is .......... ?
f. It's by far the most cost-effective system on the market. So, .......... isn't it ..........?
g. In spite of offering excellent salaries and benefits, we're still failing to retain key
personnel. So, .......... do we .......... from here?
h. Retooling the plants is not going to be cheap. So, .......... sort of figure are we ..........
about?
i. We've considerably stepped up our R&D activity. So, .......... can we .......... to see results?

4. Groups of three (plus one)

Activity 8: Grouping points in threes seems to almost magically make them more
memorable. Match up the three presentation extracts below:

a. What will it take to achieve our goals?

b. How do we plan to become a more socially responsible firm?
c. Where do our key markets lie?

1. In Canada, Russia and Scandinavia.

2. Time, effort and tenacity.
3. Through our total commitment to clean energy, sustainability and fair trade.

Activity 9 (audio): Now, to each of the extracts in Activity 8, add a fourth point as the
'punchline'. Try delivering all four points, remembering to pause after the third. Then listen
and compare your version with the one in the audio file.

a. But, most of all, through our commitment to people.

b. But, first and foremost. Germany.
c. But, above all, talent.

Practice 2: Choose a rhetorical question from Activity 7 or formulate one of your own and
use it to create a 2-minute presentation of your own product or service or one you know well.
Use the following three-part structure:
Present the situation → Ask a rhetorical question → Answer the rhetorical question using
groups of three (plus one)
Phone addiction, also known as smartphone abuse, cell phone dependence is defined as
psychological or behavioral dependence on a smartphone. According to a survey by Common
Sense Media, more than 50% of teenagers when asked admit that they are addicted to mobile
phones, are always glued to the phone screen and have arguments with them. parents about
the use of this device. There are many different causes of smartphone addiction. So what are
the main causes of phone addiction? Scientists have given 3 main and most general causes,
which are: internet addiction, fear of missing information and lack of self-control.

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