Re: Topic 5: RE--Audience Analysis -- Rockhurst OC 3300 Business Communication Forum

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Date Posted: 10:18:51 09/03/02 Tue
Author: Terry Welsh
Subject: Re: Topic 5: RE--Audience Analysis
In reply to: Kathy Oskison 's message, "Re: Topic 5: RE--Audience Analysis" on 12:50:35 09/01/02 Sun

>>Picture this:
>>
>>You have been asked to teach a half-day seminar on
>>'describing your job' to several groups of children at
>>a local school. How would you change your message so
>>that each age level of children would enjoy and
>>remember your presentation?
>>
>>To be successful at understanding your audience, you
>>need to do an audience analysis on the groups of
>>children and adults you will be speaking to during
>>that half-day. Then strategize on what you should do
>>in your speech that will help your audience to be able
>>to listen and learn from you during the presentation.
>>
>>Describe in the next few sentences--how you would
>>explain your job when giving a half-day presentation
>>to the following age-groups:
>>
>>
>>5-year-olds-- Audience analysis: I really can't
>imagine reaching this age group with a half-day
>seminar. For this age, a brief session (30 minutes -
>about the time it would take to read a short story to
>them) would be about all they could assimilate. Even
>then, it would have to be very scaled down to fit
>their vocabulary and level of understanding. I would
>have to use an informal, "story-telling" way of
>delivering my message to them. I would probably bring
>in lots of visual aids, and even some props (perhaps a
>Maxine life-sized doll, cards designed for children,
>Crayola products) to talk to them about Hallmark.
>Again, the message would have to be quite simple and
>very brief. I would probably gather them in a circle
>around me on the floor, and sit on a very low chair to
>talk to them.
>As for telling them what I do in my particular job
>with Hallmark, I would think that would bore them and
>they would be much more interested in the company as a
>whole.
>>
>>9-year-olds-- I think I might be able to talk to this
>age group for about an hour without loosing their
>interest. I would still use visual aids as for the 5
>year olds, but I would include some of the cooler
>stuff that we market such as the Harry Potter line,
>and some of the games, puzzles, pens, etc. that kids
>this age like to collect and exchange. I could
>probably tell this group about what I do in my job,
>but that message would only be secondary to focussing
>on Hallmark as a whole. I would definitely ask for
>participation and throw out a few questions to this
>age group.
>>
>>High school freshman-- This group might be good for
>about a one and one-half hour presentation. Still, a
>half-day seminar for this age would bore them to tears
>about my job or about Hallmark. I would include some
>videos and other visuals (such as the Hallmark
>commercials) for this group. This group would be a
>good one to talk to about the basics of what an admn.
>does, and to expand on how I build and maintain
>websites in DreamWeaver for the Hallmark Intranet.
>This age group would be a good one to show our
>hallmark.com Internet site and show them how to send
>e-cards to their friends and relatives for free. It
>would be a good group to talk to about our new 9/11
>Patriot Day cards. I would ask questions of this
>group and get participation from them to keep them
>from getting bored.
>>High school seniors-- I would talk to this group as I
>have done in the past during Career Day speeches. I
>still think a half day would be way too long - one to
>two hours tops would do or you will totally loose
>them. For this group, I would focus on encouraging
>them to continue their education and going to college
>- even if they have to work and go to school. I would
>share with them how hard it is to get where you want
>to go without a degree, and how hard it is to go back
>to school when you are my age. I would encourage them
>to go to a large company for their first job so they
>can see what is really out there. They may think they
>know what they want to be until they see what that
>involves first-hand.
>>
>>Your own peers in your Rockhurst University class--
>I could describe what I do in my job, and it may be a
>surprise to some people what an administrative
>assistant really does in the year 2002. Again, I
>would use visuals, and show some Hallmark commercials,
>give them information about the Hallmark Channel,
>Hallmark Hall of Fame presentations, our Gold Crown
>memberships and discounts, and all of the great things
>out there on hallmark.com that they may or may not
>know about. However, speaking to this group is like
>preaching to the choir. I can't imagine talking to
>this group for more than 90 minutes, tops on this
>topic.
Kathy, don't kid yourself. You've got a great company behind you. Don't underestimate your audience. It's up to you as the presenter to "keep" the audience's attention no matter what the age group.

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