An audience is like a large corporate body— in fact, you will do well to consider a speech as a conversation with a large, conglomerate person, comprised of all the personalities within the group. And like any “person,” an audience with common interests shares common or similar attitudes, values, beliefs and opinions. The audience also has a selfish need to be fed the kind of information in which it has an interest. In essence, the effective speaker must address the audience on its own terms, always keeping in mind, “What you can do for the audience.” Let’s analyze some of the characteristics of any audience you might encounter.
First, consider the audience’s interest in your topic. In teaching, this is called the “teachable ...
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