WRITING
TO A RESISTANT AUDIENCE
At some point in your writing career, you're
likely to have to deliver a message that your audience doesn't
want to read and is, therefore, unlikely to react positively to.
It may be truly bad news ("de-hiring" an employee); a
message that requires powerful persuasion (your job is secure,
but we're transferring you to Antarctica); or conflict resolution
(we can only pay half your relocation expenses). Of course, you
might be able to just "bulldoze" your way through the
issue. This may work in the military, but in the business world
it often creates conflict which can inhibit progress. Even if you
change your audience's behaviour, you may not change their
underlying attitude. Most successful business pros have learned
that it pays to minimize ill feelings. Your job, as a
communicator, is to "soften the blow" but get the job
done.
In order to get the job done, your audience must
really hear what you have to say and modify his/her
behaviour accordingly. Unfortunately, readers often don't really
listen when the issue is contentious. Why not? Imagine a
memo or letter that brings you bad news or orders you to do
something you don't want to do. What do you do while you're
reading? You probably try to think up counter-arguments as your
emotions skyrocket. It's natural to feel threatened by change or
aggression. This typical reaction blocks comprehension and
creates resistance! Your job as a persuasive writer is to
overcome resistance so that effective communication can take
place. Special strategies for writing to a resistant audience are
what you need.
Many
of these strategies can be applied successfully in oral
communication.
<Business Communication Today> contains
two excellent chapters on what bad-news and persuasive messages
should be like (chapters 10 & 11) so I'll try not to repeat
their information, but rather to share with you strategies to
manage the underlying writing process.
One final caution: The art of persuasion has
serious ethical implications. You should always consider the
level of honesty involved in the persuasive tactics you choose to
use. To persuade does NOT mean to deceive!
THE THREE LEVELS OF PERSUASIVE APPEAL
EMOTIONAL: You should acknowledge your
reader's feelings.
ETHICAL: You should consider your reader's
sense of fairness.
LOGICAL: You should satisfy your reader's
ability to reason.
RELATED ONLINE SITES:
Main Strategies
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