Know Your Audience Before Speaking to a Group
Posted in Communication
Evaluating your audience is a critical but frequently overlooked aspect of presentation preparation. When you ensure that you understand your audience and their expectations, you will be able to better tailor your presentation content, language, and style to communicate effectively with them. How do you learn enough about your audience to be able to do your best? Allow some time to ask yourself the questions below. If you don’t know the answers, consult with those coordinating the presentation event.
You don’t need to memorize these questions. Just think about them carefully. They are commonsense questions. If you read them over a few times, you will find you begin to ask them automatically as you prepare yourself to make any kind of speech.
- How many people will be there? (You can be less formal in front of a small group.)
- Are they friends or strangers? (Who are the strangers? What do they expect to hear?)
- What do they have that you want? (A job? Financial backing for a project?)
- Are they a general audience or are they specialists? (A general audience will want to hear ideas that are broad and readily understood.)
- How old are they? (If your speech has any historic references, you may have to explain them to the younger people in the audience.)
- Are they men, women, or both? (The examples you use to illustrate your ideas may be affected.)
- What educational and cultural level are they? (The depth of your presentation may be affected.)
- What social, political, economic, and racial backgrounds do they represent? (You cannot impress an audience favorably if you offend them.)
- What do they know about your subject? (Don’t bore people by repeating what they know already. Don’t confuse them by assuming they know more than they do.)
- How do you feel about the subject itself? (If you are going to ask people to think about changing a deeply ingrained habit, expect s hostile audience. Incidentally, when speaking before a hostile audience, you can do as much good with your good nature as you can with the logic of your ideas: Stick to your guns, but be fair and open-minded.)
- What do they know about you? (Do they know your good reputation? Are you meeting the friend of a friend? Are you representing a reputable film or organization? Are you well qualified by training, and experience to present your ideas? Make sure you fill them in on who you are. Live up to or surpass their expectations.)
If you know the answers to all these questions while getting ready to speak before a group, then you have met a basic requirement: know your audience.
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