Summary
Highlights
The first step is to identify different types of audiences, such as gatekeepers (who control message flow), primary audiences (decision-makers), secondary audiences (those who influence the decision), auxiliary audiences (those who read for information), and watchdog audiences (those with legal or social power).
Analyzing audiences involves using common sense and empathy. For individuals, you can gather information by talking to them or using personality tests like the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator, which categorizes people as introverted/extroverted, sensing/intuitive, thinking/feeling, or judging/perceiving.
For groups, consider common features, demographics (age, income, education), and psychographics (values, beliefs, lifestyles). For organizations, understand their culture, values, attitudes, philosophies, and how they use resources. Discourse communities are characterized by preferred media, discussion topics, and required evidence.
Selecting the right communication channel (email, text, phone call, in-person, etc.) is crucial. Factors to consider include immediacy, cost, accuracy, number of messages, number of people reached, and the desired level of efficiency and goodwill.
To adapt your message, ask: how will the audience react initially? How much information do they need? What obstacles must be overcome? What positives can be emphasized? What do you have in common? And what writing style do they prefer?
Good audience benefits highlight the advantages the audience gains from your services, products, policies, or ideas. These benefits can be direct reasons to comply (for informative messages) or reasons to act (for persuasive messages).
Audience benefits should be adapted to the specific audience, based on intrinsic (built-in rewards) or extrinsic (added-on incentives). They should also be supported by clear logic and vivid details, or at least sound logical.
To develop benefits, identify the audience's needs, feelings, and wants that motivate them. Then, connect these to the objective features of your product or policy, showing how those features meet the audience's needs.
When addressing multiple audiences, recognize that a one-size-fits-all approach is often ineffective. Adjust content, level of detail, organization, formality, and technical level based on the specific audience (e.g., gatekeeper vs. primary audience).