Emotional Appeal

To persuade one must activate emotions or feelings. Logic alone does not persuade. Emotion is a tremendous driver that alters our current understanding and is linked to the formation of memory. When you make important choices on a car, a home or a partner, it is usually not a logical decision. In fact, less than 10% of the population makes choices based on information alone. When we understand what the audience’s emotions are, we can examine alternatives that can challenge their thinking. It is important to note that your persuasion must have a value shift. We are hardly encouraged to accept new knowledge, skills or attitudes if we are not encouraged to do so. If your audience is afraid for example, you can acknowledge that in your reporting and then offer them some comfort or hope, providing a shift in emotion.

To have more impact in reporting we have to:

• use ‘people like us’ & ‘celebrities’ for factual, responsible & ethical reporting;
• speak the language of our audiences, understand their logic and use it as a starting point;
• understand the emotion of our audiences and use it as a starting point.