--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Who is your audience? What do you need…" description: "\"“Who is your audience? What do you need them to know or do? This chapter describes the importance of understanding the situational context, including t..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/18f/cole-nussbaumer-knaflic-20054_communication_who-is-your-audience-what-do-you-need-th_3064722.jpg" --- # Who is your audience? What do you need them to know or do?… ![“Who is your audience? What do you need them to know or do? This chapter describes the importance of understanding the situational context, including the audience, communication mechanism, and desired tone.” quote by Cole Nussbaumer Knaflic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/18f/cole-nussbaumer-knaflic-20054_communication_who-is-your-audience-what-do-you-need-th_3064722.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/18f/cole-nussbaumer-knaflic-20054_communication_who-is-your-audience-what-do-you-need-th_3064722.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/18f/cole-nussbaumer-knaflic-20054_communication_who-is-your-audience-what-do-you-need-th_3064722.jpg) > ““Who is your audience? What do you need them to know or do? This chapter describes the importance of understanding the situational context, including the audience, communication mechanism, and desired tone.”” [Cole Nussbaumer Knaflic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cole-nussbaumer-knaflic/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Effective communication requires knowing who you address, what you want them to learn or do, and tailoring the message’s tone and channel accordingly. **In simple terms:** Know audience and purpose before communicating. Key Takeaway Design messages that fit audience and goal. Themes communication audience analysis message design Mood analytical professional Type educational strategic When to use this quote - presentations - marketing copy - educational material - public speaking Key Concepts cognitive psychology information design Questions to Reflect On - Who is your primary audience? - What action do you want them to take? A Different Perspective Overemphasis on audience can stifle authentic voice. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Communication](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/communication/) ## Related quotes > [As a media artist and filmmaker, I'm constantly considering the role of situational context when creating my work.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jason-silva/as-a-media-artist-and-filmmaker-i-m-constantly-considering-the-role/) [Jason Silva](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jason-silva/) > [I think the main thing is to continue being true to myself. I'll never do anything just to cater or pander to the audience…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carrie-hope-fletcher/i-think-the-main-thing-is-to-continue-being-true-to-myself-i-ll-never/) [Carrie Hope Fletcher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carrie-hope-fletcher/) > [Not my biggest fear, but my biggest problem onstage is over-emphasizing what I do. I'm pushing too hard. You need to engage an audience.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-cave/not-my-biggest-fear-but-my-biggest-problem-onstage-is-over/) [Nick Cave](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-cave/) > [When you're making the record, you're not thinking about an audience, but you still need them and you want them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexis-taylor/when-you-re-making-the-record-you-re-not-thinking-about-an-audience/) [Alexis Taylor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexis-taylor/) > [Making a show is also economics. Because the irony is, or the shame of it is, you cannot create a show instantaneously. It needs…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-winkler/making-a-show-is-also-economics-because-the-irony-is-or-the-shame-of/) [Henry Winkler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-winkler/) > [Perhaps storytellers don't need to care as much about the future as executives and investors do. After all, isn't it possible that technology will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-landgraf/perhaps-storytellers-don-t-need-to-care-as-much-about-the-future-as/) [John Landgraf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-landgraf/) > [I'm realistic about it. It's been quite some years since I've worked full-time in that area, so I no longer have any material that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-bana/i-m-realistic-about-it-it-s-been-quite-some-years-since-i-ve-worked/) [Eric Bana](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-bana/) > [“So build an audience. Speak, write, blog, tweet, make videos - whatever. Share information that's valuable and you'll slowly but surely build a loyal…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jason-fried-david-heinemeier-hansson-matthew-linderman-37-signals/so-build-an-audience-speak-write-blog-tweet-make-videos-whatever/) Jason Fried, David Heinemeier Hansson, Matthew Linderman, 37 Signals > [It is not the job of artists to give the audience what the audience want. If the audience knew what they needed, then they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-moore/it-is-not-the-job-of-artists-to-give-the-audience-what-the-audience/) [Alan Moore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-moore/) > [If you really do want to be an actor who can satisfy himself and his audience, you need to be vulnerable.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/if-you-really-do-want-to-be-an-actor-who-can-satisfy-himself-and-his/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Whats the point of fighting with out an audience? You always need people there to watch them fall.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-mccarty/whats-the-point-of-fighting-with-out-an-audience-you-always-need/) [Kevin McCarty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-mccarty/) > [But the general audience, if you want to grow your audience you need to tell stories, you need to have characters, and that's how…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eli-drake/but-the-general-audience-if-you-want-to-grow-your-audience-you-need/) [Eli Drake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eli-drake/) > [We should have a conversation when we hang up.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benedict-cumberbatch/we-should-have-a-conversation-when-we-hang-up/) [Benedict Cumberbatch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benedict-cumberbatch/) > [The problem posed by indirect speech acts is the problem of how it is possible for the speaker to say one thing and mean…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-searle/the-problem-posed-by-indirect-speech-acts-is-the-problem-of-how-it-is/) [John Searle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-searle/) > [Some people still believe you should just fall in line with what's going on - and that's scary. It makes a mockery of freedom…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emily-robison/some-people-still-believe-you-should-just-fall-in-line-with-what-s/) [Emily Robison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emily-robison/) ## More by Cole Nussbaumer Knaflic > [“My base color is grey, not black, to allow for greater contrast since color stands out more against grey than black. For my attention-grabbing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cole-nussbaumer-knaflic/my-base-color-is-grey-not-black-to-allow-for-greater-contrast-since/) [Cole Nussbaumer Knaflic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cole-nussbaumer-knaflic/) > [“What do you need your audience to know or do? This is the point where you think through how to make what you communicate…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cole-nussbaumer-knaflic/what-do-you-need-your-audience-to-know-or-do-this-is-the-point-where/) [Cole Nussbaumer Knaflic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cole-nussbaumer-knaflic/) > [“The biggest shift was from a bar graph to a line graph. As we’ve discussed, line graphs typically make it easier to see trends…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cole-nussbaumer-knaflic/the-biggest-shift-was-from-a-bar-graph-to-a-line-graph-as-we-ve/) [Cole Nussbaumer Knaflic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cole-nussbaumer-knaflic/) > [“When you have just a number or two that you want to communicate: use the numbers directly.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cole-nussbaumer-knaflic/when-you-have-just-a-number-or-two-that-you-want-to-communicate-use/) [Cole Nussbaumer Knaflic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cole-nussbaumer-knaflic/) > [“Concentrate on the pearls, the information your audience needs to know.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cole-nussbaumer-knaflic/concentrate-on-the-pearls-the-information-your-audience-needs-to-know/) [Cole Nussbaumer Knaflic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cole-nussbaumer-knaflic/) > [“Will you be encountering each other for the first time through this communication, or do you have an established relationship? Do they already trust…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cole-nussbaumer-knaflic/will-you-be-encountering-each-other-for-the-first-time-through-this/) [Cole Nussbaumer Knaflic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cole-nussbaumer-knaflic/) > [“Never again will you simply show data. Rather, you will create visualizations that are thoughtfully designed to impart information and incite action.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cole-nussbaumer-knaflic/never-again-will-you-simply-show-data-rather-you-will-create/) [Cole Nussbaumer Knaflic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cole-nussbaumer-knaflic/) > [“Don’t show the second y-axis. Instead, label the data points that belong on this axis directly. 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In the original…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cole-nussbaumer-knaflic/alignment-the-single-change-having-the-biggest-impact-in-the/) [Cole Nussbaumer Knaflic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cole-nussbaumer-knaflic/) > [“What would a successful outcome look like? If you only had a limited amount of time or a single sentence to tell your audience…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cole-nussbaumer-knaflic/what-would-a-successful-outcome-look-like-if-you-only-had-a-limited/) [Cole Nussbaumer Knaflic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cole-nussbaumer-knaflic/) > [“Highlighting one aspect can make other things harder to see One word of warning in using preattentive attributes: when you highlight one point in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cole-nussbaumer-knaflic/highlighting-one-aspect-can-make-other-things-harder-to-see-one-word/) [Cole Nussbaumer Knaflic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cole-nussbaumer-knaflic/) > [“We’ll discuss six principles here: proximity, similarity, enclosure, closure, continuity, and connection.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cole-nussbaumer-knaflic/we-ll-discuss-six-principles-here-proximity-similarity-enclosure/) [Cole Nussbaumer Knaflic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cole-nussbaumer-knaflic/) [Explore all 31 Cole Nussbaumer Knaflic quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cole-nussbaumer-knaflic/) ## More Communication quotes > [Some people still believe you should just fall in line with what's going on - and that's scary. 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The bad poet harangues at the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-r-delany/a-poet-is-wounded-into-speech-and-he-examines-these-wounds/) [Samuel R. Delany](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-r-delany/) > [“To engage in dialogue is to serve others via whatever is real inside you; to engage in debate is to ultimately serve the illusions…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oli-anderson/to-engage-in-dialogue-is-to-serve-others-via-whatever-is-real-inside/) [Oli Anderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oli-anderson/) > [What it comes down to for me is this: Will the technologies of communication in our culture, serve to enlighten us and help us…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-waters/what-it-comes-down-to-for-me-is-this-will-the-technologies-of/) [Roger Waters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-waters/) > [In dialogue, there is opposition, yes, but no head-on collision. Smashing heads does not open minds.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deborah-tannen/in-dialogue-there-is-opposition-yes-but-no-head-on-collision-smashing/) [Deborah Tannen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deborah-tannen/) > [A dialogue is very important. It is a form of communication in which question and answer continue till a question is left without an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jiddu-krishnamurti/a-dialogue-is-very-important-it-is-a-form-of-communication-in-which/) [Jiddu Krishnamurti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jiddu-krishnamurti/) > [I get afraid of the dark if I'm in a great deal of dark, and I have to move around inside of that fear...…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emil-ferris/i-get-afraid-of-the-dark-if-i-m-in-a-great-deal-of-dark-and-i-have-to/) [Emil Ferris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emil-ferris/) > [I've been in a serious conversation with one of my children, and a fan has come up. 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The “integrated” agency will be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yoram-wind/women-will-be-at-least-50-percent-of-the-communications-community/) Yoram Wind > [There are certain things you must not say in spite of the fact that supposedly democracy means free speech. No. You are not allowed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-eubank-sr/there-are-certain-things-you-must-not-say-in-spite-of-the-fact-that/) [Chris Eubank Sr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-eubank-sr/) [Browse all 21,506 Communication quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/communication/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Who is your audience? What do you need them to know or do? 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