Monroe’s Motivated Sequence Outline & Description

Monroe’s Motivated Sequence is an organizational pattern that is designed to provide an audience with a
rationale and a means for taking action. The general idea behind this format is that for an audience to be
persuaded to do something, they must first perceive a need/problem. Once a problem has been identified and a
sense of need has been created, a speaker can then present a plan/solution that will solve the problem and satisfy
the audience’s need. Once the audience knows that there is a way to satisfy or alleviate their need, the next step is
to help the audience visualize what their future will be like if the plan is put into place (or how horrible things will
be if it isn’t). The sequence concludes with a call to action that asks the audience to do something in order to get
the plan and the satisfaction it provides into place.
The Sequence consists of five main steps (Attention, Need, Satisfaction, Visualization, and Action).
Within each step, there are sub-points that need to be developed to justify the specific action the audience should
take. Be careful to keep the steps distinct. That is, do NOT give away the plan, satisfaction, and action until
the audience is convinced that a need/problem exists and is thus “persuade-able.” Also, remember to add as
many supporting points [1., a), etc.] and connecting devices as necessary.

Introduction (Attention Step)

I. Attention-getter. Something that grabs your audience’s attention and orients them to the issue at
hand (a humorous or dramatic story, a question, a quotation, a startling statement, etc.). For
example, in a speech designed to get your listeners to purchase an environmentally safe cleaner,
you might cite some statistics about pollution caused by existing soaps or detergents.
II. Orientation to need. Build upon your attention-getter and direct the audience to something that
is wrong, but NOT the plan/solution that you propose to implement. Here, give a brief
indication of the s ig n ific an c e of the need/problem and its re le v an c e to the audience (i.e.,
you’re basically saying that there is an important problem that affects the audience). Remember,
the point is to create the need before laying out the plan. If you give away the solution too soon,
the need won’t really be experienced by the audience.
III. Speaker qualifications/credibility. Tell your audience why you are a good source for this
material. Things like personal experience, knowledge, or your skills work well.
IV. Thesis/Preview. Again, do NOT preview your specific solution. Instead, simply state that you
will offer a solution to the problem that you will discuss. For example, you might state, “The
cleaning products many of us use are polluting our environment, which has led to problems such
as . . . . First, I will discuss these problems. Then, I will propose and describe the benefits of a
product that will resolve these problems. Finally, I will explain a specific action you can take.”

Body
I. Need Statement. In a single, declarative sentence, clearly state what the need/problem is. Avoid
stating the need in terms of the lack of satisfaction you wish to provide. For example, do not
state something such as, “You need to have an environmentally safe cleaning product,” because
this isn’t the problem, it’s the solution. The need statement for this topic would be better phrased
as, “Today’s cleaning products are polluting our environment, to disastrous effect.”
A. Explanation. You must then elaborate upon the need statement by describing the problem.
Provide examples which illustrate the need and/or statistics or testimony to show the extent
or seriousness of the problem. In short, demonstrate that there is a need for change.
B. Who is affected. Indicate and describe who is affected by the need. Specifically, you must
show–through examples, statistics, etc.–how the problem d ire c tly affe c ts y o u r au d ie n c e
(e.g., their health, happiness, security, values, etc.).
C. Consequences. Here, briefly identify and describe the negative outcomes if the problem
isn’t solved. Provide evidence that these outcomes will occur. By the end of this step, your
listeners should be primed for your solution.

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II. Satisfaction Statement. In a single, declarative sentence, clearly state what your
plan/solution to the problem is. Remember, this is not the action step. At this point, do
NOT tell the audience what you want th e m to do. Instead, tell them what solves the
larger problem. For example, tell the audience, “The solution to the problem of
environmental pollution is XYZ Cleaner.” Avoid jumping ahead by stating something like,
“By signing my petition, you will be starting the process of developing measures to protect
wildlife”–save that for the action step later.
A. Explanation. After stating your plan/solution, you must describe it; provide enough
details about what your plan is and what it entails so that your audience can understand
it. In the case of a product that you are proposing, explain what the product is, its design,
its features, its background, etc. It’s a good idea to break this sub-point down into
supporting points and develop all the major aspects of the solution that are to be
implemented. Remember, if things such as raising taxes or passing laws are involved, you
need to consider the p rac tic ality of such things; they’re much easier said than done. As
explained below, your plan must be “workable.”
B. Remedy. This is a fancy way of saying, “Explain how your plan/solution logically meets
the need or solves the problem.”
• Fit. Begin with the plan’s fit (how the plan “fits” the need) by going back and
touching upon the issues that you raised in the “Explanation” of the need statement
(I.A.). For example, if you discussed the dangerously high levels of pollution in our
oceans, tell the audience how XYZ Cleaner does not contain environmentally
harmful products that’ll pollute the oceans. In short, explain how your plan can
prevent/resolve the specific aspects of the problem you identified earlier.
• Suitability. Move on to discuss how your plan is suitable for those mentioned in the
“Who is affected” portion of the need step (I.B.). Explain and provide evidence
which shows how those affected (i.e., your audience!) will be satisfied by your
solution.
• Workability. End this section by showing how and why your plan has worked or
will work. You could use analogies to show how similar plans have resolved similar
problems. Or, you could use any other type of evidence (examples, statistics,
testimony, or visuals such as diagrams or charts) that shows that your solution will
do what you say it’s going to do. Again, your plan must be p rac tic al to implement.
For example, throwing money at a problem might fix it, but where is that money
going to come from? Think through your plan.
C. Superiority. If there are arguments against your plan/solution or alternative solutions to
the problem (and there usually are), spend some time explaining how your policy is
better than the others.
• Alternatives. If the audience is likely to know about other solutions, discuss them.
• Drawbacks to Alternatives. Then, briefly address the disadvantages of those
alternatives and why your plan is better.

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III. Visualization Statement. In a single, declarative sentence, tell the audience how their lives
will change, depending upon whether your plan is implemented or not. The purpose of this
step is to project your audience into the future and intensify their desire for your
plan/solution by helping them p ic tu re its results. So, in the following points, SHOW these
effects, both negative and positive.
A. Negative Scenario. Describe what the world will continue to be like if your plan is not
implemented. Basically, be all “doom and gloom” here. This is an extension of the
“Consequences” section in the need step (I.C.), but this is the v is u alizatio n step–be
descriptive, use v iv id and concrete language, and personalize your ideas for your
listeners.
B. Positive Scenario. Then, describe what things will be like if your plan is implemented.
Spend some time telling the audience how much better things will be. Play up the
b e n e fits and, again, be vivid and descriptive here. For example: “Imagine having clean
oceans with their bounty of food and recreation. Think about being able to surf without
having to dodge dying sea creatures,” and so on.
Note: Using only the negative scenario can be tricky because you don’t want your audience to get
too uncomfortable now that you’ve solved the problem. For this reason, it’s good to use a
comparison/contrast visualization in which you start out by describing how bad the world
looks without your plan, then move to describing how good it will look with your solution in
place.

Conclusion (Action Step)

I. Summary. Tie up what you’ve said thus far so that the next step seems logical. You’re
gearing up to tell the audience how th e y can help solve the problem. If you’ve done a good
job of convincing them that the problem is severe and affects them, they should want to
take action at this point.
II. Action Statement. Tell your audience e xac tly what they should do NOW. This includes
when and where to do it, how and how often to do it, etc. Don’t leave anything to chance;
provide detailed, specific, and concrete directions.
III. Appropriateness of action. Then, address how the audience c an take the action you want
them to. If the action is not feasible, they won’t be motivated to help. So, emphasize how
the audience has the ability and the resources (time, money, power, etc.) to take the desired
action. Also, be sure to emphasize that without the audience’s action the problem will not be
solved.
IV. Closing thought. As always, end with something brief and memorable that will make your
audience think . . . or better yet, something that gets them to take action!

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