Historically, communicating with each other through speech, people gradually created certain language structures and rules. They greatly simplified the communication process and facilitated effective interaction.
But speech is not only the process of speaking itself, but also various speeches on a wide variety of topics to specific audiences. On this basis, celebratory, greeting, closing, business and other types of speech are distinguished . They can be both independent units, and elements of one big performance.
Welcoming speech, an example and definition of which will be given in this article, is precisely the subject of our conversation.
The importance of our words
The first impression is very significant. It is known that it cannot be produced twice. Therefore, there are special requirements for welcoming speech.
Its function is to adequately start any event, greet those present, defuse the atmosphere, and outline the prospects for further conversation. There is work on the audience.
And it doesn’t matter at all that sometimes a welcome speech at the opening can consist of only a couple of sentences. The main thing here is not to make a mistake: a too long speech will make the audience bored, and a very short one, on the contrary, will give the organizers the impression of a frivolous approach to the event.
Welcome speech: an example and basic principles
Here are some tips and techniques for working with your audience. And it doesn’t matter at all whether it will be a welcome speech at the competition, the opening of any event, before the lecture, and elsewhere.
Hospitality
Even if the audience is completely unfamiliar to the lecturer, it is necessary to communicate with her by the tone in which conversations are conducted with old friends. This will immediately attract people and create the necessary atmosphere of trust.
Brevity is the soul of wit
A little about this principle has already been mentioned above. The opening remarks should not be very stretched. First, a general greeting, easy highlighting of especially important guests, then a few touches about a future event (without mentioning details), and that’s all.
Representation
Acquaintance with the audience contains any welcome speech (we will consider an example below). Even if people familiar to him are sitting in front of the speaker, he must definitely name himself, his position or occupation, if they are directly related to the event.
The ability to correctly convey information
Any performance requires at least a little preparation. The audience or hall should be known and inspected in advance. This is necessary in order to understand whether it will be visible and heard from all places who will speak.
Eye contact with the audience, maintained throughout the entire time, certainly contains high-quality welcoming speech, an example of which should be noted by all lecturers.
Before the performance, you should practice, check the microphone, the sound of the voice, so that then there is no interference.
The use of humor and jokes
This technique is not suitable for many. Jokes should be subtle, not evil and not vulgar. If there is no self-confidence as a skilled comedian, it is better not to use it. A bad joke can negate all the previous excellent speech, and the remaining sediment from it will not change.
Director's welcome speech
Particularly, corporate speeches by the heads of various enterprises and firms in front of their teams can be highlighted. Directors, as a rule, take a welcoming speech at all kinds of celebrations, summing up the results of the year, honoring veterans, and awarding leading workers.
We give an example of one of these speeches by the head:
“My dear colleagues! I am glad to see you at the celebration of the anniversary of the company!
You are its main wealth and decoration! Selfless employees, responsible suppliers and reliable partners. You helped the company go forward, not turn off the intended course. You were not afraid of temporary difficulties that we managed to overcome together.
Thanks to all of you, today the company is the undisputed leader in its industry. We have achieved excellent results and are not going to stop there!
We deserve this holiday! I wish you a pleasant evening in a good company of friends. I hope that the event will be pleasant, give a wonderful mood and leave pleasant memories. And invited artists will help create a festive atmosphere.
Thanks for attention!"
As you can see from the text, the same principles work here as in other performances. If the leader adheres to them, then this contributes to team building, works for the corporate culture. If the atmosphere in the company is friendly, directors appreciate and respect, this directly affects the results of work, qualitative and quantitative indicators.
Conclusion
A successful welcome speech can demonstrate to all listeners the friendly attitude of the speaker to them. Then all the subsequent presentation, lecture, upcoming holiday or business event will be held with a bang. Therefore, do not spare the time and effort to prepare a welcoming speech. This is sure to pay off later.