Audience Analysis Paper
Sheila Coy
COM/285
02/24/2011
Susannah Arnim

Audience Analysis Paper
To make any business successful in this time and age, we must communicate appropriately to all audiences. No matter who the information is for, one must catch the attention of the person to who is for. For the process of communication requires intrapersonal and interpersonal skills, which may include and not set the boundaries too speaking and most importantly listening. Without the essential communication skills the business will fall apart and not be able to become or stay a successful company. Knowing the audience will include most of the many different types of stakeholders could influence what is to be presented. This will influence how the speaker will address the audience. If I were to speak to the Vice president of Winco, the presentation would be straight forward and very clean, but if it were of my peers, I would make sure that it was interesting and catching to the audience.
Preparation is the key to any successful presentation. Making sure that everyone is included in the activity is extremely important to keeping the audience’s attention. When writing the presentation the audience’s stakeholders must come into play as in to include everyone from managers to the customers, plus anyone in between. Next after taking into account what the audience will be made of we could then figure out which type of communication would be the best way to get the information out to everyone so that they are not left or uninvolved. In writing this presentation I need figure out who the audience is and what do they know. I need to know what their background knowledge, as in the stakeholders the company. I need to make sure that the presentation is not all company lingoes so that everyone can understand what is being said, but I also need to keep it to the min because I don’t want to dumb it down too much.
One of the most important factors in the types of communication that will be used is that it also allows the sales person conducting the meeting and presentation to be able to adapt to the audiences needs.
During an audience’s analysis, characterization of them is the key. First being the one who the message will be given to? Well the message will be delivered is to the managers of the company, sales persons, and the customers. Each audience has different levels of knowledge. In this presentation there are the primary and the secondary. The primary will be constructed of the individuals who can decide rather or not to take the information given and move forward. The secondary audience would consist of the others that could be asked to comment on the message at a later time, (Locker & Kienzler, 2008).
Some of the considerations that I will have to consider would be the knowledge and the effectiveness the information is to the audience. Now in seeing this I can either recite numbers from the quarterly sales report or I can make it interesting playing games and involve the stakeholders in the information process and give prizes away to those who retain the knowledge.
Just giving numbers to the audience that is so diverse will not work to well because the audience is not all made up of accountants and economist that have knowledge of what all the numbers mean. But in involving more than one group into the diverse audience will help everyone to understand all the information given without leaving any one person or group out. One way to make sure that the information is given out for them to understand is to test them, but who’s to say this is the best action. I mean who really wants to take a test at a meeting, not I. I also have thought of ways to make the both or all audiences to retain the information would be to make sure that all the information is correct and that all the audience does understand it. In combination with the audio and oral communication the information given could be presented and received in such a way that all the relevant information is received and retained in a meaningful manner. Another type of communication that would be used in this particular manner would be business communication that is typically very professional. By weighing the diversity of the group, the person giving the presentation could indeed use their given motives for the quarterly sale report might be able to use the background of the audience to keep them interested. In giving the report the audience must not have any physical distractions, language barriers, or even offer limited frames of reference thus keeping the information very dry. In trying to remember what to do Lenny Laskowski say’s to remember the 9 P’s which would be to “Prior Proper Preparation Prevents Poor Performance of the Person putting on the Presentation” (Laskowski, 1996). Nothing will relax one more than being properly prepared. Laskowski also stated that an audience analysis should include: Analysis, Understanding, Demographics, Interest, Environment, Needs, Customized, Expectations, all the information given are the keys to a great presentation.

Conclusion

In reviewing all the information given the main points would be to include everyone from the smartest to the ones who do not get all the business information. One must also need to identify the audience’s objectives and needs for the presentation also incorporating all the information of the sales report to make an interesting meeting. Addressing diverse audiences the person presenting the information must keep the goals in mind, be able to produce a document for all to understand and include navigation aids if needed. Allowing all the information to be given the person holding the meeting must be able to hold the attention of the stakeholders involved. Creating an audience profile also helps in giving the presentation so that everyone is included in the meeting and not left out because of misinterpretation or lack of knowledge. Creating a presentation that involves everyone is not an easy task to complete, but in doing so you can make sure that your time and theirs is not wasted but not being able to convey the information in an insightful manner. Leaving no areas for flaws and knowing all the information right will keep the person involved and all the other stakeholders, management ,sales people, customers well informed on how well the company and they are doing.