Think Fast Talk Smart: Communication Techniques - 25. Quick Thinks: All Effective Communication Must Start With This

Episode Date: December 4, 2020

As we look back on more than 20 interviews with Think Fast, Talk Smart guests, we’ve heard one piece of advice over and again: Know Your Audience. This wisdom echoes what research clearly shows: Content that is relevant and meaningful to an audience is more likely to be heard, retained and acted upon. The word communication comes from the Latin for to “make common,” yet many of us start our message from the wrong place. As lecturer and podcast host Matt Abrahams shares in this Quick Thinks episode, by taking the time to learn about our audience and their needs, we can better craft our messages for them and be more useful, engaging and successful.Connect:Premium Signup >>>> Think Fast Talk Smart PremiumEmail Questions & Feedback >>> [e-mail] Transcripts >>> Think Fast Talk Smart WebsiteNewsletter Signup + English Language Learning >>> FasterSmarter.ioThink Fast Talk Smart >>> LinkedIn,  Instagram, YouTubeMatt Abrahams >>> LinkedIn ********Thank you to our sponsors.  These partnerships support the ongoing production of the podcast, allowing us to bring it to you at no cost.Strawberry.me. Get 50% off your first coaching session today at Strawberry.me/smartJoin our Think Fast Talk Smart Learning Community and become the communicator you want to be. 

Hi, Matt here with some exciting news for potential Think Fast Talk Smart sponsors. We're continuing our expansion into video with Apple Podcasts this May. We plan to be one of the first Apple video shows. If you've been thinking about sponsoring Think Fast Talk Smart, this is a great opportunity because we'll have featured placement and organic promotion from Apple before it gets too crowded. We're running a two-month pilot, and we have two founding sponsor spots available. This is a chance to work directly with me and my team and reach our global audience. To learn more about this great opportunity, check out FasterSmarter.io slash sponsor.

FasterSmarter.com slash sponsor. Now a word from one of our sponsors. Their support allows us to bring you quality content free of charge. If you've ever thought, I know I can do more, but something's holding me back, you're not alone. Whether you're navigating career growth, seeking better balance, or wanting to communicate with more confidence, coaching can help you bridge the gap between intention, and action. At strawberry.me, you'll get matched with a professional coach who's trained to help you clarify your goals, build lasting confidence, and make intentional choices professionally and personally.

This is not therapy. It's not consulting. It's a thought partnership designed to help you take action with more clarity and purpose. I strongly believe in the value of coaching. All of us can benefit from the help of a coach. Visit strawberry.comme slash smart to get matched up with your coach today. That's strawberry.me slash smart and get 50% off your first coaching session. It's the most affordable time ever to see if coaching is right for you. How would you feel if you receive the love letter addressed to whom it may concern? Confused, distracted, disconnected? Well, this is how your audience will likely feel if you craft communication that isn't tailored to their needs. I'm Matt Abrahams, and I teach strategic

communication at Stanford Graduate School of Business. Welcome to a quick-think-thinks episode of Think Fast, Talk Smart, the podcast. As host of this podcast, I have had the privilege to interview many communication experts. And while said in different ways, almost every one of my guests has highlighted that effective communication, that which educates, motivates, defends, and inspires, starts by honing messages to our audiences' needs. My guest's advice echoes what research clearly shows. Content that is relevant and meaningful to an audience is much more likely to be attended to, retained, and acted upon. The word communication comes from the Latin for to make common. Yet many of us forget this goal. Rather, when it comes to communicating,

most of us start from the wrong place. We focus on what do I want to say, rather than what does my audience need to hear. This small but powerful change in perspective fundamentally shifts how we approach our communication. I am reminded of a great story I heard in the book, Made to Stick by Dan and Chip Heath. They recount a story from the 1980s in Texas. In the state of Texas, they had a tremendous littering problem. There was trash all over the place. It didn't look good and it wasn't healthy. So the government invested in a public service campaign featuring Woodsy the Owl. Give a hoot. Don't pollute. And this ad campaign was on Billboard. radio and television. Unfortunately, this ad campaign was not very successful. Two years after

Woodsey was on radio, television, and billboards, littering actually got worse. This caused great concern. So the government went to a group of academics, and they asked them to help. And the very first thing the academics did was try to figure out who was doing the littering. Now, this won't surprise many of you. It was men, not just any men, but men between the ages of 18 and 34. And these researchers dug deeper. They wanted to know more about these men. So they looked at their attitudes, their habits. And one of the things that they learned is that these men were very proud of being from Texas. And in fact, knowing who was doing the littering and some of their attitudes, they were able to create an ad campaign that you can still see today.

Don't mess with Texas. This was a wildly successful ad campaign. In fact, it reduced littering a lot. And it was based simply on understanding your audience. It's a play on words. Don't mess, meaning don't make a mess. But also don't mess. I take great pride.

So understanding your audience's needs can help you craft communication that really motivates and changes behavior. But in order to know what your audience needs, you have to ask several questions. What are they expecting to hear? What history or background does my audience have with my topic? What is their knowledge level regarding what I intend to discuss? What attitudes might they have towards my topic?

Are they favorable, hesitant, or agnostic? What areas of concern or reason? What resistance might they hold? And finally, what inspires or motivates them? With answers to these questions, we can better understand where to start, the depth we need to cover, and how to handle skepticism and hesitation. For example, if your audience has a history of familiarity with your topic, you can often hit the ground running. Otherwise, starting with some storytelling or positioning might be important for you and for them. Or you may need to focus on scaffolding and layering concepts, terms, and background information

for a less knowledgeable audience. Finally, if you're confronting a reluctant or resistant audience, you might be well served to start with questions rather than declarations. Using words such as faster, cheaper, and more efficient, can often soften opposing viewpoints. Given the many benefits of knowing our audience, how to be able to be able to be able to be. do we learn about them? We need to engage in reconnaissance, reflection, and research. Explore social media. Check out LinkedIn profiles, corporate bios, personal websites. Send out survey

questions to audience members prior to preparing your content. Confer with people who have communicated with this audience before. Invite audience members to a practice run or a sneak peek and solicit input and feedback. Almost all of my podcast guests have declared the value of knowing our audience before creating our content. Their message is simple and clear. By taking the time to learn about our audience and their needs, we can better craft and hone our messages for them and therefore be more useful, engaging, and successful. Before I wrap up this quick thinks episode, I am thrilled to announce that Think Fast, Talk Smart will be back in the new year with more episodes.

We will likely have some changes to our format and release frequency, but we will remain focused on bringing you valuable insights that you can apply to your communication. Thank you for tuning in to Think Fast Talk Smart, a production of the Stanford Graduate School of Business. To learn more, go to gsb.standford.edu. Please download other episodes wherever you find your podcasts. Thanks for joining me for this quick thanks episode. If these takeaways were helpful, I'd love for you to listen to the full episode that started this conversation. There's more context, more stories, and more tools to support your communication. Give it a listen.

And as always, thanks for your support. Before we wrap up, I just want to say thank you for listening. It really means a lot to hear how. people all over the world are using these ideas in their own lives. It inspires me and the whole team that brings you this show. If you want more episodes and resources, feel free to follow, subscribe, and explore past conversations. We're grateful for your support of Think Fast Talk Smart.