Tap to Read ➤

Interesting Persuasive Speech Topics

Pankaj Chobharkar
The most important and tough part of preparing for a persuasive speech is selecting a topic. This story  lists some good and interesting topics for you to choose from.
"He who wants to persuade should put his trust not in the right argument, but in the right word. The power of sound has always been greater than the power of sense."
― Joseph Conrad
Persuasive speech is different from informative speech in many ways. You must have experienced it yourself. What is more easy? Conveying information to someone or persuading them to believe that information? The other difference is in the choice of the speech topics.
An informative speech can be prepared and delivered on any topic one can think of. But the choice of topics for a persuasive speech has to be made very carefully.
The key here is to choose an interesting topic that you are familiar with. You should have a good understanding of the subject before you give a speech on it. Listed below are some good persuasive speech topics that will set your imagination in motion and help you come up with your own topics. Take a look!

General Speech Topics

  • Existence of Aliens
  • Youth activism
  • Business Process Outsourcing
  • Can terrorist attacks be justified?
  • Medical tests on animals
  • Should cigarette advertisements be banned?
  • Legalizing gay marriages
  • Dating websites
  • Adult online games
  • Human cloning ― right or wrong?
  • Is domestic violence a private matter?
  • Internet censorship
  • Legalizing prostitution-right or wrong?
  • Should violence in movies be censored more strictly?
  • Evolution- theory or reality?
  • Social networking good or bad?
  • Banning nuclear weapons all over the world
  • Drunk driving should be punished more strictly
  • Adoption laws
  • Should smoking in public places be banned?
  • Parapsychology research
  • Mercy killing right or wrong?
  • Should the media be censored?
  • Are anti aging products any good?

For High School Students

  • Are on line degrees any good?
  • Amazing Inventions
  • Do ghosts exist?
  • The Bermuda Triangle
  • Teenage pregnancy
  • Premarital sex
  • Racism
  • Are immigrants a threat?
  • Faith curing
  • One night stand
  • Is it right to give sex education in school?
  • Should cell phone use be banned in college?
  • Should tobacco and its products be banned
  • Censorship in song lyrics
  • Video games violence
  • The big bang theory
  • Do fad diets work?
  • Does area 51 exist?
  • Schools searching student's lockers ― Right or wrong?
  • Violation of copyrights on the Internet
  • Cosmetic surgery
  • Is beauty more than skin deep?
  • Gambling websites

For Kids

  • Should exams be removed from the curriculum?
  • The unfair education system
  • Technology pros and cons
  • April fool's day jokes
  • Punishments for not doing homework
  • Does god exist?
  • Is it fair to keep animals in the zoo?
  • Television ― pros and cons
  • Should school uniform be compulsory?
  • Should every student be expected to be an all rounder?
  • Home schooling
  • Is democracy the best form of government?
  • Should farming be completely organic?
  • Should textbooks be loaned to students for free?

Important Tips

  • Remember that these topics have been listed here to guide you to come up with your own topic. Also, the choice of topic should be made after considering the age of the audience. The reason is obvious, if your audience cannot relate with your topic, you can forget about persuading them.
  • After you have chosen a suitable topic for your speech, the next step is to use local examples to prove your points and be ready with a logical explanation for every point.
  • Predicting and working on every kind of audience response and reaction is also crucial. Try to involve your audience in your persuasive speech.
  • Make them feel like they arrived on the conclusion of your speech themselves.
  • Make eye contact and deliver the speech confidently.
  • Do a number of rehearsals before your friends and take their feedback.
  • In the end, keep your goals realistic. Do not hope to persuade entire audience. Even if you convince one person in the audience, consider your speech successful.
Note that, some topics in the above list can be tricky. So, do not just choose them just because they seem interesting. Depending on the event and the audience, you can also have a go at a funny speech topics. Also, you have to understand and agree with the topic of your speech to be able to persuade someone else to believe it. All the best!