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why are speeches important

Informative speaking equips communities to decide. A community has to understand an issue before it can choose what to do about it, so someone has to supply that shared understanding first. Informative speaking does that job: it draws attention to a public concern, presents reliable information from credible sources, and helps people make sense of it together. Because it is educational, it typically comes before any solution is picked or advocated, not after. Picture a town meeting about water safety. A speaker explains what a contaminant is, where it likely came from, and what the testing numbers mean, all in plain language. Only after residents understand those basics can they reasonably weigh the real options, so the informative part of the speech is what makes the later decision possible. The same pattern explains why informative speaking helps people participate in civic concerns more confidently and actively: understanding comes first, and confidence in taking part follows from it. One limit to keep in mind: this reason applies mainly to informative and civic speaking, and the link between good information and better decisions is an argument rather than a tested result. A speech can also inform badly, leaving a confused audience no closer to a sound decision. Try applying this to a new scenario: imagine a neighborhood meeting about a proposed bike lane. Which part of the speech has to come first, and why? - Good answer: The informative part, explaining traffic patterns and how other cities' lanes worked, because the community needs to understand the issue before it can select a solution. - Weak answer: Advocating for or against the lane right away, because deciding or persuading before people understand the issue leaves them unable to weigh the options. To see how informative and deliberative speeches differ in what they owe an audience, continue with the section on deliberative speaking.

A closer look

Speeches matter because a community must understand an issue before deciding, so informative speaking supplies that shared understanding. In a town water-safety meeting, a speaker first explains contaminants plainly, so residents can weigh real options. This mainly fits civic settings, rests on argument rather than tested evidence, and speeches can inform badly.

  • Speeches matter because a community must understand an issue before it can decide, so informative speaking supplies that shared understanding first.

  • Picture a city council weighing whether to add bike lanes. Nobody can vote sensibly on a proposal they barely understand, so a speaker explains what the plan actually involves.

  • The speaker then walks through one concrete case. A neighbouring city added lanes and saw more cyclists use its main street. The speaker describes what that city did, what it cost, and what changed, using plain facts the audience can check.

  • So the crowd moves from vague impressions to a shared picture of the actual option. That picture is what the deliberative part depends on.

  • Once it exists, residents compare several possibilities, such as painted lanes, protected lanes, or doing nothing, because the speech gave them the vocabulary and background to discuss each one. Understanding comes first, and choosing comes after.

  • The same residents participate more confidently afterwards. Someone who understands what a protected lane is can speak at the microphone, sign a petition, or question a claim, instead of staying silent because the topic felt technical. Knowledge turns bystanders into participants, which is the civic payoff the speech enables.

The understanding-then-deciding reason has a natural limit. Because it depends on people needing to know something before they can choose, it applies to deliberative settings where a decision is actually on the table. Some speeches matter for different reasons entirely. A toast celebrates a couple, and a eulogy honors a life, and neither aims to help anyone decide anything, so the civic payoff described above does not apply to them.

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