Audience and Reception Essay

According to Communicating in the Workplace, by Thomas Cheesebro, Linda O’Connor, and Francisco Rios, no matter what type of informative speech or letter you have the opportunity to present, a key step in your preparation process is analyzing your audience. Consequently, you will need to spend some time finding out about your audience. To begin this process, you will want to determine the demographic composition of your listeners. Demographic characteristics are observable or measurable. They include factors such as age, race, ethnicity, gender, socioeconomic status, and so on. (Pearson Education, 2010) Assertiveness is the tone you should use when presenting a letter to management. â€Å"Assertiveness is stating what you think, feel, want, or need in a way that is direct, honest, and respectful of others. Specific purposes identify the desired audience response at the conclusion of your speech.†(Communication in the workplace, 2012) In other words, what do you want your listeners to know, think,or do after they have heard your presentation? Although you do not actually state the specific purpose in the context of your speech, you use this statement to give direction to the development and organization of your information. According to Communicating in the Workplace, by Thomas Cheesebro, Linda O’Connor, and Francisco Rios, to be effective, a specific purpose statement should meet the following guidelines: It should be a complete sentence, It should contain only one key idea. And It should be stated in measurable terms. â€Å"Think of the central idea as the core or foundation of your presentation. A central idea states, in a single sentence, the essence of the speech. It needs to be clear, concise, and focused for the audience. So important is this central idea that the effectiveness of the entire presentation is largely dependent upon it. It tells the audience what the speech is all about and prepares your listeners for the information that is to come.†(Pearson Education, 2010) In summary, â€Å"keep in mind that developing the skills are required to deliver effective presentations can increase your confidence and success both personally and professionally. The process of analyzing your audience, selecting a topic, determining your specific purpose, and formulating your central idea will enable you to achieve a truly memorable presentation.†(Communication in the workplace, 2012) Not doing so can really hurt your presentation, and your credibility.