Writing to Your Target Audience
An Energetic Technique and Article
By Jeanie Marshall
Connecting with readers in your target audience is essential. There are many different strategies that support an effective connection, including such writing skills as: using good grammar, selecting the same words as your reader, speaking to and about them, knowing and addressing their problems or situations, providing relevant examples, etc.
Effective Writing Requires Knowing Your Readers
Writers, especially on the Internet, tend to be so general that they stay on the surface of real issues. While it's important to describe general principles, valuable writing needs to also include specific examples. Stating the obvious can be a helpful beginning place, but when you want to reach an intelligent audience, you need to offer a fresh perspective.
You can prime the pump any way that works for you to get the words down on your paper or screen. If you know your target audience really well, you might find that you write so easily that you can create something without any such technique. And even if you know your readers really well, sometimes you might either feel out of touch or want to connect more deeply.
So here's one approach to make your writing more relevant and personal for readers in your target audience. This energetic technique is intended as part of a writing process, rather than the total process. If you use it, you can create a wonderful flow of words and energy that help you to tap extraordinary wisdom.
An Energetic Technique
This energetic technique assumes you know your target audience, are conversant with the subject or general idea you want to write about, and have valuable information to share. After you've written something by using this or any such technique — you still have work to do to re-write, edit, and proofread.
First, identify one person. This needs to be a real person — not a composite or a profile. Just one. For example, an individual
- Who has asked you a question or has inspired your topic, or
- Whom you know well who falls within the target audience, or
- Whom you can connect with in such a way that the words flow easily, or
- Whom you respect who has extensive knowledge or wisdom on the topic.
Second, sit quietly. Remove distractions and organize to avoid interruptions. Take three slow, conscious breaths to relax yourself. Then, think about the person you have chosen to connect with. If it feels natural to you, imagine the person is with you or "tune in" to the person. Just bringing the person into your awareness is enough.
When the energetic connection is strong with both your inner self and with this one specific person, begin to write. Let the words flow. If the flow seems to stop, reconnect or change partners. Continue to write until your inner prompting says to pause or stop.
As you write, you might imagine that the person is asking questions or encouraging you by saying something like, "Say more." Or, "What else?" Or "Can you give me an example?"
When you approach your writing this way, you'll embed a quality of intimacy that all your readers will feel. In the next step, you can check to be certain that your writing is not so intimate that it excludes the members of your target audience that you most want to reach. You'll have to find your balance, which is why this writing technique is only PART of a process.
Now You have a First Draft, What's Next?
A lot of the writing on the Internet is really of first-draft quality. In many circles, it's quite acceptable. However, if your target audience is made up of intelligent people and you want to create real value for them, you probably need to take more into consideration than the thoughts that one person inspires.
With your first draft in hand, broaden and deepen it. Generalize your concepts and add more examples that make the ideas specific in other ways. Read it through at least once imagining that you are a reader from your niche — this usually works best if you print out your writing and take it to another location.
Another powerful way to broaden and deepen your writing so that it includes more members of your target audience is to imagine that you're reading your piece out loud to a room full of individuals in your niche. This taps your imagination and inspiration in another way.
Ask Yourself Hard Questions Before You Publish
Does this writing say what I want it to say?
Is it finished? If you're writing for your own web site or blog, you might consider that it's never really finished, so a better question might be: Is this finished enough so that readers in my target audience will benefit from reading it?
Or ask the questions of a mathematician: What more can I add to make it more relevant? What do I need to subtract/delete? Do I need to multiply or divide some of the sentences, paragraphs, or sections?
Does this meet the original need? Or, Does it answer the original question?
Do I enjoy reading it?
Energetic Techniques Blend with Other Approaches
As I said earlier, this Energetic Technique is part of a writing process. It's a powerful technique that I've shared with many individuals. When you practice this simple exercise, your writing can become more efficient and effective, especially when you're attentive to fine-tuning other writing skills.
© 2010 Marshall House. All Rights Reserved. Jeanie Marshall, Personal Development Consultant and Coach, uses energetic techniques and empowering practices in her work with clients. http://www.empowering-personal-development.com
This Article is Writing to your Target Audience
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