Identifying your audience

Pretend you are telling one of your best friends about a first date.…Now imagine that you are telling one of your parents about the same date.…Chances are you are probably going to alter your story somewhat.…You are going to change your tone, your word choices, and you are probably even…going to edit certain details.…Thinking in terms of your audience is a critical step as you prepare for…crafting a speech or presentation.…Before you write one single word, spend some time developing an audience persona.…An audience persona is an individual representation of your entire audience.…

Instead of thinking of a large faceless group, think of one single person that…you'll be talking to.…Developing a persona can help you keep a consistent tone, and putting a face on…one person instead of thinking of a large faceless group can help you develop a…more personal connection to your audience.…To develop a persona, take steps to understand your audience as thoroughly as you can.…This involves getting answers to key audience identification questions.…