Creating Audiences
In addition to tailoring their messages to audiences, persuaders often create audiences that have attitudes consistent with their message. The "audience"is generally only some segment of the entire population. It may be a group of people who are of the same age or income level. Assembling the right people to hear, read and see the message is often crucial to the persuader's success. For example. advertisers target their messages to audiences that are created for them by television networks, newspapers and magazines. Knowing that an audience comprised of 18-34 year old women will have attributes that are attractive to certain high-paying advertisers, television production companies create shows that this audience will want to watch. Advertisers are willing to pay advertising rates to networks that air these shows. The television network creates an audience for the advertiser. Audiences are commodities that are bought by persuaders and sold by media organizations.
Politicians create target audiences as well. It is common for presidential elections to focus on middle-class working families. Anticipating that this audience will cast the crucial votes in an election, the candidates campaigne on issues that would interest this group of voters: healthcare, social security and targeted tax-cuts. Although the candidates may ignore the needs and concerns of the larger audience.
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Attorneys create audiences for their trials as well, in most jurisdictions more jurors are called to jury duty than will eventually hear the case. Attorneys choose from the larger groups of jurors those who they believe will be sympathetic to their case and will fairly evaluate the evidence. Jury consultants help attorneys make decisions about which jurors to seat and how to appeal to the jury. Our judicial system is set up so that attorneys have some control over the creation of the jury panel, their audience.
In some situations persuaders use polling to directly assess audience attitudes toward a topic. Or persuaders use audience segmentation techniques to infer their audience's attitudes. Some persuaders also use ratings of media audiences to determine audience size and attitudes. In all of these instances persuaders use audience analysis to more precisely target their message toward receptive receivers.
Geodemographics
Geodemographics is an audience analysis technique that shows where audiences with particular demographic characteristics live. Persuaders can divide counties and cities into one block units and target their communication even more narrowly. The outdoor advertising industry uses geodemographic information in sales of billboards. Billboards are an effective way to reach young and active adults who spend a lot of time driving and less time in front of the television. A research firm in Illinois takes pictures of car license plates as the drivers pass by its billboards. Each plate is then tracked to its owner's address, giving the billboard advertiser a great deal of information about who is exposed to particular billboards
Altoids, "the curiously strong peppermint" is a popular product among young adult consumers. Research found that most potential consumers were not exposed to traditional advertising on television or radio. Using geodemographics, Altoid's ad agency determined where potential customers lived. The agency then placed ads in nontraditional locations, such as telephone booths, bus shelters and on city buses - places potential customers visited each day. In each of the 12 markets tested, sales increased 50 percent.
In Sum
Whether you are selling a political candidate or pitching an idea to your supervisors, understanding your audience is crucial. The audience for persuasive messages today is potentially large, anonymous and able to circumvent the persuasive process. Mediated audiences can be quite small, known to persuaders and powerless in the face of the persuasive process
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