Page 36 - Today’s Business Communication; A How-to Guide for the Modern Professional

CHAPTER 3

Why Must I Put My

Audience First?

One of the most difficult lessons for business communicators to mas-
ter is putting the audience first. So much of business communication
is strategic, which means we need people to change a belief, attitude, or
behavior in order for our communication to be effective. To be successful,
we have to think clearly about our audience and how they will react to
our communication. In this chapter, we provide advice for achieving your
communication goals while paying special attention to your audience.
One of the components of putting your audience first is making sure
you provide them with a quality product. Therefore, we provide you with
substantial advice on how best to avoid writing mistakes. Remember that
one of us used to work for a boss who refused to read beyond a single error
in a letter. That boss probably isn’t the only person in the business world
who holds such high standards.

Be Mission Driven

Whenever you prepare a business message of any kind, ask yourself the
following: Why am I preparing this message? If you can’t answer that
question clearly and succinctly, then you really must consider whether
you should be preparing your message at all.
Business communication is strategic. You’re always trying to (1) get your
audience to understand your message, and (2) get your audience to respond
appropriately to your message. To be effective, all business communications
need to accomplish those two goals. After all, it’s not enough for your man-
ager to understand that you deserve a salary increase if he or she doesn’t
grant your request. In order to fulfill these two goals, you must first have
an idea of what you want to say and what type of response you’re looking