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Consider your audience

Image contains large black, block letter words that say "Consider your audience." Next to the words are three cartooned people from the shoulders up, alternating between orange and teal.

Use these questions to consider your communication partner or audience:

Who is your audience? 

  • What is their age, education, background? 
  • What are their professional roles or interests? 
  • What are their hobbies and passions?  
  • What are their perspectives? Values? Mindsets? 
  • What is their knowledge of your field? 
  • What is their cultural or geographic context? 
  • What are their day-to-day challenges? 
  • What would you most like to learn from them? 

Why is this topic important to them? 

  • How does your research connect to their interests? 
  • What problems does it solve for them? 
  • What opportunities does it create? 
  • How does it affect their daily lives or work? 

Who are you (in relation to this audience)? 

  • What role do you want to play? (collaborator, storyteller, advocate, guide, challenger) 
  • What relationship do you want to build? 
  • What credibility do you need to establish?  
  • What would you like to know about them?

Why do you care about this topic (for this particular audience)? 

  • What personal connection can you share? 
  • What passion or drive can you convey? 
  • How does your motivation align with their interests? 



This resource is available as a supplemental printable handout. The webpage contains the identical content in a fully accessible version. Click here to download.
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This material is based upon work supported by the National Science Foundation under Award No. 2412389. Any opinions, findings and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation.