SAE
Attention Getters & Clinchers
As you know, the average audience remembers most clearly the first and last things you say.
Therefore, it is important both to get their attention and to leave them with something to
think about. Attention getters can take many forms:
•a rhetorical question (question designed to provoke thought)
•a startling statistic
•an anecdote (short story that illustrates the thesis)
•a quotation
Clinchers, although just as important, are more difficult to come up with, and are
consequently overlooked by many speakers. Sometimes. speakers will resort to an
uninspiring question or quotation. A good clincher leaves the audience thinking, but ending
with a question isn’t always an effective device, and a quotation isn’t as persuasive; after all, it’s
someone else’s words. Consider these clinchers:
•answer the rhetorical question with which you started the speech
•incorporate one final startling statistic that hammers home your thesis
•return to your opening anecdote, to finish or follow-up on the story
Using related attention getters and clinchers is called “bookending.” You give your speech
more structure by giving it bookends, which provide a sense of closure for your audience, and
bring the speech full circle.