The Art of Public Speaking
CHAPTER 5
Analyzing the Audience
Contents
1. Why does a successful speaker need to
analyze the audience?
2. How to analyze the audience?
3. How to adapt to the audience?
Why does a successful speaker need to
analyze the audience?
Audience- Centeredness
• To whom I am speaking?
• What do I want them to know?
• What is the most effective way of composing
and presenting my speech to accomplish that
aims?
• “ Keeping the audience foremost in mind a
every step of speech preparation and
presentation”
The Psychology of Audiences
• What do people want to hear?
• Egocentrism: the tendency of people to be
concerned above all with their own values,
beliefs, and well-being
“ Good speakers are audience-centered.
Whether speaking formally or informally, they
work hard to find creative ways to evoke an
enthusiastic response from their listeners”.
How to analyze the audience?
• Demographic Audience Analysis
(age, gender, sexual orientation, religion,
group membership, racial, ethic or cultural
background)
• Situational Audience Analysis
(size, physical setting, disposition toward the
topic, the speaker, the occasion)
Techniques
In the classroom:
- Observation
- Conversation
Outside the classroom:
- Ask the person who invites you to speak
- Interview
- Circulate a questionnaire
How to adapt to the audience?
• Before the speech
- Keep your audience in mind as you prepare
the speech
- Put yourself in their place
- Anticipate questions and objections
- Find the ways to answer the questions in
advance
• During the speech
- Keep an eye for audience feedback