The Motivated Sequence

The Motivated Sequence is a tool for persuasion that was designed by Professor Alan Monroe in his efforts to find a method for improving sales presentations.  The organizational scheme is meant to follow a sequence of steps, with each step preparing the audience for the next step, leading to the final - and hopefully successful - step of taking action.

Each step of the sequence is described below. 

Attention

In the attention step, the speaker calls audience attention to the topic or situation.  You can use any of the attention-getting devices we have discussed for other types of introductions -- rhetorical questions, shocking statements, descriptions, stories.

Need

The need step is a vital part of the motivated sequence.  In this step, the speaker describes the need for change and explains how the problem relates to the needs of the audience.  The speaker may appeal to an overt need the audience faces, or the speaker may try to create a sense of need in the audience by tapping into some of the psychological needs all people have (remember our discussion of Maslow's hierarchy).

Satisfaction

Once the speaker has established a sense of need in the audience, he/she provides an answer to that need.  The solution should meet each of the elements addressed in the "need" section of the speech.

Visualization

In this section of the sequence, the speaker draws a mental picture for the audience of what will happen as a result of their choice.  The speaker can choose to focus on the positive results of  adopting the given solution, or he/she may focus on the negative results of not adopting the solution.  A speaker can also combine the positive and negative results for a contrast effect.

Action

The Motivated Sequence always ends with an explicit call to action.  In this section, the speaker tells the audience what kind of action is needed to bring about the solution to eliminate the "need" described earlier in the speech.

To see an example of a speech outline using the Motivated Sequence, click here.

To take a quiz on the Motivated Sequence, click here.