Adapting Communication for Different Audiences
One of the keys to effective communication is to tailor your communication to your audience. This can be achieved in a variety of ways and, if done correctly, will allow you to attract your audience quickly and with optimal results, according to fleximize.com
1. Know your audience
In business, you communicate with many different people in many different ways. It may include marketing, networking, staff meetings, client and supplier meetings, disciplinary procedures, as well as communication with regulators or government agencies.
In each situation, your communication will have as many goals and you want to achieve these goals as much as possible. If you are speaking in a room full of colleagues, you can use jargon and company ideals to reflect your idea. However, if you show up in a room full of potential customers, it may not be a sale.
As such, having a thorough understanding of your audience is important so that you can tailor your message and tone of voice to best suit their needs.
2. Communication objectives
It’s vital to think about the objectives of each communication, as this will help you design your message. You can then take what you already know about the audience to anticipate their reactions and tailor your message, tone, and medium.
For example, are you communicating with customers to inform them of a change to your brand, or are you writing to them to promote new products and encourage sales? Each objective will result in very different messaging, including content, tone of voice, and the communications channel you employ.
3. Communicating through different channels
Thinking about the channel you are using is also crucial for effective communication as a business. For example, the script given to sales staff or relationship managers when undertaking customer diligence checks over the phone would be entirely different from the tone of voice used when writing a Tweet about your latest product launch.
As such, it’s important to think about audience segmentation and which channels of communication each of your target audience groups will most likely be using. For a restaurant, sending a text to remind a customer of their upcoming reservation would work.
4. Adapting communication
Whenever you communicate with an audience, you should be measuring and assessing their reaction, whether that’s in terms of sales, inquiries, leads, or even direct feedback. Each time you do this, you’ll learn more about what works and what doesn’t.
You’ll then be able to refine your next communication with that audience to better meet your objectives.
Adapting your communication style is also important depending on if the communication is face-to-face or digital. For example, in-person communication with customers or team members will allow you to pay attention to body language and adapt your tone or message accordingly.
Meanwhile, over email or digital communication, it’s important to take extra time to consider if your communication fits the right tone for your audience, as this more linear form of communication won’t offer as much feedback as in-person communication.
Failing to modify your communication style to the audience can result in confusion, misunderstanding, and even offense. It’s therefore essential that business owners take the time to fully assess which communication style and the channel is best suited to each situation.
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