Who is my audience (and how do I connect with them)?
Architects have a tendency to talk amongst themselves. They do it in Awards, they do it at conferences, and they do it through publications.
Did you ever wonder why there are so many husband-and-wife architecture practices? Architects just love talking to other Architects (luckily, so do I, so even though I’m not an Architect, I can talk easily enough to this crowd!). They have a secret language and a different way of viewing the world, that they learned at university, and it’s comfortable and easy to stay in that bubble.
But right now, with the threat of #ClimateEmergency, and the need to rethink how and where we rebuild as communities try to recover from devastating bushfires, the world needs the input of Architects more than ever. And they have come forward, forming Architects Assist and Architects Donate in response to the bushfires, and Architects Declare in response to climate emergency.
But are these groups (and the profession more broadly) talking the language of the people they wish to engage with?
Pitching your message - which involves choosing the right words, phrases and expressions, and even your tone of voice - is an important part of delivering great communications.
And, in order to pitch your message so that it connects with the right people, you need to know your audience.
Last week I spotted a great article about the six different ways that Americans respond to climate change. Based on research, the Six Americas study divided the public into six groups as follows (and I’m quoting directly from this article by Dr Rebecca Huntley on the ABC):
The Alarmed: This group is fully convinced of the reality and seriousness of climate change and already taking individual, consumer, and political action to address it.
The Concerned: This group is also convinced that the globe is warming and that it's a serious problem, but have not yet engaged with the issue personally, including not always voting for political parties with strong climate policies.
The Cautious, the Disengaged and the Doubtful: These groups represent different stages of understanding and acceptance of the problem. None are actively involved.
The Dismissive: This group is very sure that climate change is not happening, and often actively involved as opponents of a national effort to reduce emissions. Some of them are in significant positions of power in government, industry and the media.
The Six Americas Study by Yale Program for Climate Change Communication
As a comms person, I found these research findings and its analysis by Dr Rebecca Huntley, from the University of Melbourne, incredibly helpful. Now, I’ll break down my future messaging into four main categories:
Messages about HOW to tackle climate emergency - to reduce emissions, prepare for its effects and become resilient. This is for the Alarmed - we don’t have to convince them climate change is real, nor of the need to take action;
Messages about the NEED to tackle climate emergency - which is similar to No. 1 but includes messaging about WHY we need to reduce emissions, for the Concerned, who need more knowledge and information to join the fight..
Messages to CONVINCE the sceptics, the fence-sitters, the disconnected - we need to provide evidence and data, and speak to the hearts and minds of the Cautious, Disengaged and Doubtful; and
Messages - and funds - to dismantle the structures that keep the Dismissive in power. To me, that includes funding GetUp’s Taking on Murdochs Lies campaign (I donated last week); emailing the CEO of Siemens about Adani (which I did earlier in January via Stop Adani); moving my banking and super out of companies that invest in fossil fuels (using data from Market Forces). I’ve also signed and donated to the petition for a class action against the Morrison Government for its lack of preparedness for this bushfire season.
This research underscores the point that understanding your audience - what they think, what they worry about, what actions they are taking (or not taking); where they congregate on social media, which other media channels they use to obtain information - is a key part of building a successful communications campaign.
As an architecture practice, or an architect involved in any of the advocacy groups: do you know who you are speaking to?