Which step is common to both the processes of instructing and persuading?

Attracting information to the communication is a crucial step common to both instructing and persuading. In both processes, ensuring that relevant information captures the audience's attention is key to effective communication. When instructing, it involves presenting facts, techniques, or concepts in a way that engages learners. This helps them absorb and understand the material being taught. In persuasive communication, attracting information is about presenting arguments, evidence, or emotional appeals that draw the audience in, making them more likely to be influenced by the message.

This alignment highlights the importance of engaging the audience’s interest first—whether the goal is to teach or to persuade. In the case of instruction, it's about enabling them to learn actively and retain knowledge. For persuasion, it's about presenting information that resonates emotionally or logically, prompting the audience to reconsider their views or take action.

The other options relate to different aspects of communication strategies that are not universally applicable across both instructing and persuading. The shared goal of engaging with the audience through relevant information is what makes attracting information a foundational step in both processes.