Tremors run down your back when you think about working with a new group – either they might give you the dreaded “no!” or you’re not going to be able to answer a question. The fear of rejection and not having enough knowledge to talk about a cause consistently rank as the greatest concerns of attendees in my “Building Bridges in Your Community” workshop.

A simple way you can address both of these fears is to think in terms of the target audience interests. Dale Carnegie has said that the most magical thing to another person is their name; my philosophy is finding and hitting their “hot button” runs a close second. A hot button is a need or interest area, something a person feels passionate about. In other words, what can you discuss that will really push the buttons of your target audience? This may be as simple as giving a child milk and cookies or as complicated as addressing animal welfare issues with an animal rights activist.

A hot button is a priority to your target audience; a need to be addressed if you want to connect your cause. What are the hot buttons for the groups you’re likely to talk to? Think about the target audience you identified in your personal action plan at the conference. Do these food industry examples bring up any ideas for hot buttons you can address?

How do you identify a hot button for your target audience? Preliminary research will give you some indication, but the best way to find a hot button is to simply ASK them and then LISTEN! Asking questions is critical to successfully connecting your cause to a target audience, plus it will help you feel more knowledgeable and be less likely to be rejected. Asking questions doesn’t have to be complicated or even intrusive; it’s merely an opportunity to learn more about the person or group you’re talking to. If you’re stumped about what to ask, think about the six questions addressed in “Building Bridges in Your Community” – who, what, why, where, when, and how.

Once you start asking questions, you’ll quickly make the other person feel at ease because you’re showing interest in them and it will become easy for you to understand their hot buttons. This will also help address your concern about not having enough knowledge because as you learn more about the target audience, you’ll be able to connect facts and points of interest about your cause. Further, you’re less likely to experience rejection because successfully identifying hot buttons and then connecting your cause will become a natural solution.

Hot buttons — a straightforward approach to turning a daunting task into simplyrelating to people. Why don’t you go out to your target audience today, ask questions, and find their hot buttons?