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Any speech worth its salt has a great intro. Without it, there is no transition from your host and the start of your presentation. An introduction provides a starting pistol setting a tangible marker for all involved that something is starting.T-minus thirty…
As the host grabs the microphone the countdown starts until you will be onstage. Keep your introduction to 4-6 sentences noting that your host has to read it aloud and expect the introduction to take between 15-30 seconds, and for longer speeches up to one minute. Most importantly, an introduction gets you and the audience into the correct frame of mind by giving a glimpse into your topic and teases what you’ll be talking about.Recipe for a good intro
A great introduction should position you as an expert on the WordPress topic you are presenting and the intro must include:- Your full name, job title, and company;
- Speech topic and your background on the topic. For example, if you specialize in search engine optimization the intro should mention your client solutions provided with analytics, years experience, etc; and
- Emphasize the speech title
Sample WordCamp Speech Introduction
Five years ago while walking through the break room at WordCamp Los Angeles, Organizer Alex Vasquez handed him a microphone and asked him to talk about himself and his connection to WordPress. Afterward, Alex stated, “You should do a WordCamp speech someday.” That someday is today as Joe Simpson presents “90 Days to Live: Finding Your Place in the WordPress Community.”