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Knowing the Audience
Isn't as Important as You Think
People are more alike than different, and
they are united by their interest in the topic.
You should know your audience... but you don’t need to study them nearly as much as you think you do.
Audiences are more alike than they are different. Consider the typical questions we ask:
Why are they coming to this talk or reading this essay?
What do they want from the speaker or the author?
How do they feel about the topic?
What do they expect to hear or read? What would they like to hear or read?
Is there anything unique that might motivate them to take action?
The answers are almost always obvious -- and they don't involved details about some specific audience. They involve basic qualities of people in general.
Audiences rarely go to the trouble of paying attention to things that don't matter to them. That's most of what you need to know about an audience.
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What about demographics? They matter little unless those qualities are related to the topic. To spend much energy writing “for parents" or “for Catholics” or for any other group takes the writer into a risky area: assuming that qualities you attribute to a group are true for most or all members of your particular audience.
For any given trait, an “average” group includes few people who are average. Some have the trait in abundance, some have it not at all, and the rest are situated across the spectrum.
Writing toward the average is usually writing for someone who doesn’t exist. This leads to speaking in stereotypes. If you know details about an audience and you're certain, make use of it. But never assume.
The good news is, again, you don't have to assume much of anything because we're dealing with humans, a species we know firsthand. The wise move is to focus on what motivates humans in general in the context of the topic. For instance, no matter how educated we are, we are all susceptible to an initial emotional reaction. Logic, on the other hand, is less effective as a tool of argument than as a way to justify a choice already made. In addition, people like stories. People like tension and release. People like to feel a personal connection to the problem at hand. They like to understand. They like to be made to feel smart. They like to figure things out on their own.
This is true whether it's a room full of computer programmers, senators, activists, or potential customers. We are humans first.
Consider what motivates people not because of their membership in a group but because they are people.
As you get to know an audience and why they are there, don’t get carried away. Material that changes minds and drives action rarely focuses on those few things that make an audience unique. A strong speech succeeds by building on what every audience is, human.
Mike's Calendar
| Topic |
Organization |
Date |
Location |
| Creative Writing |
Georgetown University |
Through October 28 |
Registration closed |
| November Writing Webinar |
Members of Mike Long's The Magic Show |
November |
Online |
| Proposal Writing Series |
Government Contracting Firm |
Oct 29, Nov 5 & 11 |
Washington, DC |
| European Festival of Political Rhetoric: Speechwriting in the American Style |
European Speechwriters Network |
Nov 18 & 20 |
Online
Registration |
| Media Writing |
Philanthropy |
Nov 20 |
Washington, DC |
| Digital Platform Writing |
Philanthropy |
Dec 4 |
Washington, DC |
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