Leading questions influence how your listeners interpret facts and what they remember. They help plant specific information in your listeners' minds. For instance, suppose you're conducting a market study in which participants are viewing photos of a new product. You want them to notice and remember a particular feature of the product--for example, a special instant-replay button. If you ask, "How do you like the instant-replay button? rather than "Do you see an instant-replay button?" your participants will be far more likely to remember the button after the study.
Rhetorical questions enable you to give the answer after asking the question. These kinds of questions help push the listener into accepting a clearly defined proposition. Thus it's best to use them as you're summarizing your presentation or argument.
Suppose you're seeking to persuade your subordinates to adopt a new way of processing orders. They've used the existing process for a long time, and some are skeptical about the proposed change. You present your case, and then you say something like "We all know that order-processing errors have increased in the last two quarters. how else will we eliminate them if we don't overhaul the way we process orders?"
ACTION POINT: Use leading and rhetorical questions to activate audience self persuasion triggers.
No comments:
Post a Comment