CREATING AND DELIVERING THE MESSAGE

CREATING AND DELIVERING THE MESSAGE

If a person wants the audience to understand and accept his message, he is the only one who can help. He just cannot depend upon others to do it for him! It would, therefore, be useful to learn the correct way to go about it – earliest the better.

(1) First think of the purpose and the audience

Followings need to be done:

(i) Purpose

Define the purpose of the message clearly. Clearer the purpose, clearer will be the thinking and more systematic and logical will be the message. One must start keeping the end in view. Describe why of the message and visualize the outcome in terms of what the audience would do, if convinced.

(ii) Audience analysis

Communicators have to learn about the audience:
 Its current position versus the outcome intended to achieve
 Their willingness to understand and accept the message

(iii) Message as a bridge

Senders must appreciate that their message is a bridge of words that would move their audience from their current position to the new position, almost identical to their own.

(2) Telling what you are going to tell

A communicator is judged by the first few paragraphs in case of written communication and in the first few minutes in case he is doing an oral presentation. A good communicator acts as a guide to the audience in their journey. He provides them with a road map of the territory they are going to cover with him. He tells them what they are getting from the trip. Apart from telling the purpose, he tells them the main topics going to be covered. It helps audience to link and connect the topics with the purpose and get convinced.

(3) Telling what you want to tell

Being the body of your presentation, oral or written, it is the most critical part. A few useful guidelines are:

(i) Using concrete and specific language

The message may involve difficult, abstract and even boring material. A good communicator must help audience to understand and remember it. Highlight the following steps:
 First state the idea
 Use vivid and concrete examples to help visualization
 Use words that help to create a mental picture including the colours, objects, scents, sounds, tastes etc – they sink in to the memory quickly
 Specific details should also be vivid and attract receivers‟ attention

(ii)Sticking to the point

A good communicator eliminates all the information that does not contribute directly to the purpose. Following guidelines can help:
 Avoid overloading the message – most audience require a few pertinent points either to answer questions or to facilitate decision-making
 A lean or short message is easier to absorb
 By leaving unnecessary details, sender helps receiver to focus on a few important points
 Be brief and discuss three instead of eight points (say) as that may dilute the message
 If an idea is worth including, it is worth explaining properly

(iii) Connecting new information to existing ideas

Mind absorbs ideas by categorizing them in to similar mental files. It helps receivers understand and remember if sender indicates how the idea is related to existing files already in the human mind. In the absence of this link, new idea / material may get lost. A few tips are:
 Meaning of new concept is clarified by its relationship to the existing ones
 Receivers have a wealth of knowledge already – all they need is to apply it to the new
 Most fear the unknown – if new idea is similar to what one is familiar with, he becomes confident
 In general, if it is something similar, it is picked up quickly – it is looked at carefully and made a part of own collection / retention

(4) Telling what you have told

Recapitulating main points of the message is another good way of helping the audience to understand and remember. This is done by clever use of certain words, phrases and body language:
 When one comes to an important point, it must be so declared.
 Use headlines and bold types in written messages
 Use italics or other means of highlighting the main points
 Reinforce the message by using charts, graphs, maps, diagrams and illustration
 Oral messages use body language and voice power
These have a telling impact on the audience!
Before concluding, restating the main purpose and showing how the main points are supportive enhance the impact of the message.