FACULTY OF ICT BIM 111 COMMUNICATION SKILLS Joachim

FACULTY OF ICT BIM 111: COMMUNICATION SKILLS Joachim. Bibuli Lecturer

Introduction • Understanding your audience is key in ensuring effective communication. • In essence we have to understand their cultures, interests, needs and goals. • The primary goal here really is transforming information into knowledge • Knowledge into understanding • Understanding into action • Ps: therefore effective communication should be audience centred

Key issues in audience research Who is my audience What are my trying to sell them Why are they important What do I need to know about my audience After the analysis, what do I do with the information • What if my audiences have different needs • How do I reach my audience • • •

Audiences • • The primary audience Secondary audience The gate keeper (e. g. policy makers) The watchdog audience (e. g consumer organizations, NGO forum, media Council, Communication Commission etc )

Understanding Audiences • The purpose of your message • Characteristics relevant to this particular message • Differences within your audience • Selling benefits to audiences • Organization culture

Channels of communication • This is dependent on your message objectives (product, service or processes) • How much information you need to get out • Related challenges i. e cost, audience demography etc

M & E process • • The relevance of monitoring and evaluation Using feedback to improve products/services Continuous assessment Involving audiences in product/service improvement

Discussion question • How do we design an effective message for a local community product/ service etc