Focus on AUDIENCE

Most of us realize when we talk to children that we must use a different vocabulary than we use for work peers. Business people address their customers in a respectful tone and use a specific vocabulary for the occasion.  But have you ever given much thought to the details of your communication to friends, club members, or strangers?

    Once some friends and I were submitting a textbook we had written to publishers. Many publishers asked, "Who is your AUDIENCE?" At the time I was confused by this question. In this context, I think the publishers wanted to recommend this textbook for a specific course or at least a field of study.  We knew that our book was designed for college English classes, but we were not sure whether it would be more appropriate for college freshmen or for a graduate level course. To complicate our thinking, we knew that many colleges were limiting the number of required courses for most students and only English majors would be likely to take more than an introductory course and one research course in English. Emphasis in the curriculum was trending to more courses in one's major field of study, such as music, physics, or economics. Eventually we decided that the contents would be more suitable for freshmen level English classes. As writer, we hoped to reach a majority of students.

    This experience led me to consider how informal speakers need to FOCUS more on AUDIENCE.   I am not talking about public speaking, but daily conversation. Do most of us consciously or unconsciously adapt our speech to the listener?  All of us speak daily, and yes, if we have specific questions, we may be specific. For example, have we tried to get to know the person we want to understand us?  By this I mean, do you know and call them by their name?  Do you know their Interests? Have you LISTENED carefully for background information... what is the person seeking, what is he/she disturbed about recently, or what is he/she hoping for the future. If we first understand the person, we can target our communication with more accuracy. Focus on your audience.