The hurricane season is heating up, and Louisiana has taken a hit from the season’s first named storm. This Observer can’t offer too much comment to Mother Nature; rather we’ll send a shout-out to the National Hurricane Center (NHC), which has upped its game when communicating important messages.
Unless you are a weather nerd or Meteorologist, understanding the NHC tropical forecast advisories and discussions may be challenging. Terms such as: symmetric convective structure, pressure gradient, and SFMR surface winds are sprinkled throughout their reports. However, the NHC writers know they have multiple audiences and now end each public report with a “Key Message Section” with three or four simple and direct points that emphasize potential life threatening events such as storm surge and flood potential.
The news media takes full advantage of the citizen-friendly information and sound bites and often cuts and pastes it into their storm coverage. The result: more accurate reporting which might save lives.
The NHC is practicing what CommCore has been suggesting to our clients for 35 years:
- Follow the Rule of 3: Deliver a maximum of 3 messages during an interview or discussion to help with audience retention
- Know Your Audience: Language and complexity should be targeted to what your audience will understand. It’s not “dumbing it down,” it’s using terms your audience will easily comprehend and act on.
- Tell the Story Behind the Numbers: The National Weather Service tells us that just two feet of moving water is enough to move most vehicles. This is much easier to understand than: “Each foot of rising water creates 500 pounds of lateral force.” Offering meaningful analogies or examples creates a visual picture of the facts and data.