How do you identify and prioritize the needs and expectations of your audience?

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As a technical communicator, you need to understand your audience's needs and expectations before you create any document, presentation, or product. Audience analysis is the process of gathering and evaluating information about your potential or actual readers, listeners, or users. It helps you tailor your message, design, and delivery to suit their goals, preferences, and context. In this article, you will learn how to identify and prioritize the needs and expectations of your audience in four steps: define, research, analyze, and adapt.

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1 Define your audience

The first step of audience analysis is to define who your audience is and what they want from your communication. Depending on your purpose and scope, you may have one or more audiences, such as primary, secondary, or tertiary. Primary audiences are those who directly use or act on your information, such as customers, managers, or decision-makers. Secondary audiences are those who indirectly use or support your information, such as reviewers, assistants, or regulators. Tertiary audiences are those who have a general interest or stake in your information, such as competitors, media, or public. For each audience, you should identify their main characteristics, such as demographics, background, knowledge, attitude, and motivation.

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Dikhitaa Mhatre

8x LinkedIn Top Voice'24??| MMS | Human Resource | Recruitment & Induction | IT & Non-IT | 17k+ Followers
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Here are few strategies: -Identify common pathways and pain points. -Develop detailed user personas that represent different segments of your audience. -Create user journey maps to visualise the steps users take when interacting with your product and documentation. -Include demographics, goals, and challenges. -Use a prioritisation matrix to categorise needs by urgency and importance, helping you decide what to address first. -Be ready to adjust your understanding of audience needs as trends and technologies evolve.

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2 Research your audience

The second step of audience analysis is to research your audience to collect relevant and reliable data about their needs and expectations. You can use various methods and sources to gather information, such as surveys, interviews, observations, focus groups, feedback, reports, or analytics. The type and amount of research you conduct will depend on your resources, time, and objectives. You should aim to answer questions such as: What are the audience's goals and problems? What are their preferences and constraints? How do they access and use your information? How do they communicate and interact with you and others?

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3 Analyze your audience

The third step of audience analysis is to analyze your audience to interpret and organize the data you collected. You can use various tools and techniques to analyze your data, such as SWOT analysis, personas, scenarios, or empathy maps. The goal of analysis is to identify patterns, trends, gaps, and opportunities in your audience's needs and expectations. You should aim to answer questions such as: What are the audience's main pain points and desires? What are their strengths and weaknesses? How do they perceive and evaluate your information? How can you meet or exceed their expectations?

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4 Adapt your communication

The fourth and final step of audience analysis is to adapt your communication to align with your audience's needs and expectations. You can use various strategies and principles to adapt your communication, such as plain language, user-centered design, accessibility, or intercultural communication. The goal of adaptation is to create and deliver information that is clear, relevant, useful, and engaging for your audience. You should aim to answer questions such as: What are the best formats and channels for your communication? What are the key messages and arguments for your communication? What are the appropriate tone and style for your communication? How can you measure and improve your communication?

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5 Here’s what else to consider

This is a space to share examples, stories, or insights that don’t fit into any of the previous sections. What else would you like to add?

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Debra Cirillo

Established Tech Writer and Document Management Specialist ?? Clinical Pharmaceutical Research Coordinator and Award Winning ADP Implementation Manager
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Defining the audience jumps right into assessing audience levels. There should be more emphasis placed on exactly how to pinpoint the key audience, and from there, solidifying the goals of the communication. Audiences at other levels will automatically fall into place due to the nature of their own respective goals and objectives.

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How do you identify and prioritize the needs and expectations of your audience?

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1 Define your audience

2 Research your audience

3 Analyze your audience

4 Adapt your communication

5 Here’s what else to consider

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