Carefully consider which stakeholder will need to hear your argument. •In order to persuade an audience, you need to understand them.
oWhat do they know about your issue? What do they not know?
oHow do they experience this issue? Does it impact their personal lives, professional lives, relationships? Or is there some other impact?
oAre they causing the problem, contributing to it, receiving the negative effects, or do they have the potential to solve the problem?
oHow do they feel about this issue? Do they see it as a problem? Or are they benefitting from it somehow?
oWhat beliefs or values impact their opinions about this issue?
oWhat do you have in common with your audience?
oWhere do your opinions and the audience’s opinions differ?