Audience Analysis Paper

Audience Analysis Paper

Karla Ramirez

University of Phoenix

Audience Analysis Paper

Effective communication is essential in any business to succeed. "Effective communication is all about conveying your messages to other people clearly and unambiguously. It's also about receiving information that others are sending to you, with as little distortion as possible" (Mind Tools Ltd., para. 1). Presenting any message to a group requires an individual to know the audience. Analyzing the audience will allow the sender to understand the audience motivation in addition how to connect with the audience. Prior to addressing an audience, the sender will consider the characteristics of the audience, appropriate communication channels, the diversity of the audience and ensuring the message is effective.

Characteristics of the Audience

Speaking to a group of individuals one will encounter many personalities. While preparing a message the sender must consider the characteristic of the audience. In a group presentation, the sender may try to find a common ground among his or her audience looking at common characteristics. The sender can profile his or her audience using demographic and psychographic characteristics. "Demographic characteristics are measurable features that can be counted objectively: age, sex, race, religion, education level, income, and so on" (Locker & Kienzler, 2008, p. 44). "Psychographic characteristics are qualitative rather than quantitative: values, beliefs, goals, and lifestyles" (Locker & Kienzler, 2008, p. 45).

Profiling the audience by demographic characteristics the sender should consider the audience age range. Bearing in mind individual of different age ranges appeal to different things as well as keeping his or her receiver's attention. Another characteristic the sender will consider is the gender breakdown of the audience. Male and female audience member react in different ways to different types of messages. The make up of a male and female is different neurologically, emotionally, and psychologically so the reaction will differ. Women tend to view or receive a message from an emotional viewpoint vs. men will in take the message on a mental level.

There are many characteristics to look at knowledge is one of them. What is the level of education between the audience members? Depending on the level of education some concepts discuss in a presentation do not require detail explanations. Cultural characteristic is another area to consider. Many individuals make comments regarding religion and politics in a joking manner. The intention of the joke teller is to provide some comic relief. However, in some countries, such jokes about religion and politics are offensive and can alienate some people. Many things one individual considered normal for example, slang terms, abbreviation, or formats can confuse or irritate one or more members of the intended audience.

The sender can also profile his or her audience observing the psychographic characteristics. Using Values and Life Styles (VALS) to outline these characteristics can identify the audience primary motivation and resources. The idea of primary motivation is to shed some light about the attitudes and behaviors of the audience based on ideals, achievement, or self-expression. Using this tool will allow the sender to gear the message to motivate the audience through knowledge and principles or social and physical activity. Resource is another factor use to evaluate the audience. Innovation, leadership, energy play a significant part combine with demographics to determine resources, which improves or limits an individual primary motivation (Strategic Business Insights, 2010).

Communication