Communication And The Audience
Characteristics of the audience that should be considered
The speaker who reads out the quarterly sales information should keep in mind that the audiences who will get to hear about the report are not restricted to the immediate audience that is present during the meeting. The mediate audience that consists of other stakeholders and sales people who were unconvinced by time as well as space should also be considered. In this aspect, the speaker should present details which are not only simple to understand but also less contradicting hence those who were physically present will be on the same page with those who will access the report later on. Most probably those who are absent will get to learn about the quarterly sales report courtesy of their friends or representatives who were present during the physical meeting. Hence the speaker has to simplify the terms and vocabulary used to cater for the mediate audience (Wrench, McCroskey & Richmond, 2008).
The other characteristic of the audience is its combination which accounts for aspects such as age bracket, professions and the relevance of the details of the quarterly sales report. This is because different groups interpret the details differently depending on the meaning of the figures to them. The stakeholders use the information to make decisions on investments while the sales team will see it as a criterion to lay strategies in the next quarter. The speaker has to provide sufficient details for each of these categories so that at the end of the meeting they will have benefited from details that were presented (Guffey, Rogin and Rhodes, 2009).It is also important to understand the dialect that is most easily understood by majority of the audience. This is in line with their professions as the nature of jargon to be used is dependent on the comprehensive ability of the audience. As the essence of a meeting is to convey messages and receive feedback the audience, as well as, the speaker will not carry out effective communication if each side is conversant with the terminology being used (Almonte and Guffey, 2009).
Appropriate communication channels
In a quarterly sales meeting, the most appropriate channels of communication are based on the efficiency in communicating the intended message, as well as, meeting the targets set by the speaker of satisfying the audience. For this reason, the speaker in the quarterly sales report meeting can combine publication with face to face word of mouth. Such work well in combination as the participants will be in a position to hear and read out the details such that clarifications are easily identified and sought immediately. The face to face verbal presentation is accompanied by a PowerPoint presentation that will enable the deaf to follow the proceedings as well. PowerPoint presentations can be prepared in a colorful way to break boredom which is common in such meetings. Similarly, it will act as a distraction for those with short lived attention spans (Almonte, 2009).The publications are effective in acting as evidence for those who have hearing problems or the mediated audience such that they can confirm at their own timing. The publication also allows the stakeholders to possess a record which they shall be referring to when trying to trace the performance of the sales. The word of mouth which is carried out as a presentation by the speaker enables the audience to get the pronunciations right and incase of any problems in the print publication, it is identified in due time and rectified. Similarly, the speaker can also maximize on scanning through the key figures or concepts as the audience will seek for the finer details in the print publication.By combining the two channels of communication, the speaker will be assured of carrying out effective communication as it will cater for all cadres of audiences (Guffey, 2009).
Considerations in diversity
For mixed audiences where diversity is an extremely big issue, use of translators or interpreters can be very helpful. This is because use of non-verbal communication can have disastrous effects due to diverse interpretations. Consequently, certain elements of the diverse audience such as mixed signals are interpreted differently and the speaker may end up portraying a poor picture of their self. Therefore, the speaker has to evaluate the language that is understood by most participants in the audience such as English. English is a widely used language though most people learn it as a second language hence are not as competent as the native English speakers. In such a scenario, the speaker is able to make his report known to those who are equally fast in comprehending English while the rest make use of the print publications hence solving the issues (Wrench, 2008).It is equally important to engage translators or various versions of the publications especially if the speaker is assured of having a diverse audience during the quarterly sales report presentation. The diverse audience can also be dealt with by presenting the participants by using the internet to reach those who feel out of place in the mixed audience. The report can be posted there and a section for questions set up so that all who are part of the firm will be knowledgeable on the events or ideas that are present in the sales reports (Almonte, 2009).
Ensuring the message is effective
The speaker should have carried out relevant preparations prior to presenting the report hence the objectives of the meeting should be met by the quarterly sales report findings. This is because the audience will be expecting certain information in the overall report such that failure to have that information makes the message less effective as there will be many unanswered questions (Guffey, 2009).One way through which the speaker can get assurance on message effectiveness is through asking indirect questions to various categories of the audience. In this line the sales people can have questions, the managers their question and the stakeholders as well. This can be done in between the speech to increase attentiveness of the participants. Consequently, the message is made effective is by presenting an overall questions and answer after the presentation. This will entail all participants taking part in the regulated session such that clarifications are carried out promptly (Wrench, 2008).
References
Almonte, R. and Guffey, M.E. (2009), Essentials of Business Communication. Cengage Learning
Guffey, M.E., Rogin, P. and Rhodes, K. (2009), Business Communication: Process and Product. Cengage Learning
Wrench, J. S., McCroskey, J. C., & Richmond, V. P. (2008). Human communication in everyday life: Explanations and applications. Boston, MA: Allyn & Bacon.
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