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Communication Workshop: Developing a strategy
A communication strategy is a cohesive plan to deliver specific information to a specific audience for a specific reason within a limited timeframe and with finite resources. It involves understanding the target audiences, their information needs, and selecting appropriate communication channels, messages, timing and resources to influence them. Developing an effective strategy requires reviewing objectives, audiences, messages, products, channels, resources, timing, branding and feedback.
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Communication Workshop: Developing a strategy
- 1. Developing a communication strategy Communication Workshop
- 2. Communication strategy • Toget the message right, the target audience right, the channel right, and the timing right frequently, consistently, accurately and distinctively – needs a purpose, a plan, a strategy, and skills Knowledge Translation Toolkit
- 3. Understanding communication • Itis a two-way process • Tools and channels must fit the message and the audience • It is time- and skill-intensive work • There is no ‘one size fits all’ approach
- 4. What is acommunication strategy? • A cohesive plan... • To deliver specific information... • To a specific audience... • For a specific reason... • Within a limited timeframe... • With finite resources
- 5. Essential elements 1. Review 6. Channels 2. Objective 7. Resources 3. Audience 8. Timing 4. Message 9. Brand 5. Products 10.Feedback
- 6. Target audiences • Policy makers • Parliamentarians • Health managers • Health care providers • Training institutions and trainers • Researchers and academia • Media • Civil society and non-government organisations • Families and communities
- 7. What are theirinformation needs? •The way people receive and absorb information is shaped by many factors – Personal preferences and habits – Literacy and education levels – Level of understanding of the issue – Degree of access to information • Need to use a variety of formats – Policy briefs, systematic reviews, newspaper articles – Newsletters, brochures, emails, video clips
- 8. Communication channels Politicians, government Program managers officials • Face-to-face meetings • Dissemination workshops • Policy and discussion forums • Monthly/quarterly updates • Policy briefs • Summary reports • Brochures • Executive summaries • Executive summaries • Audiovisual presentations • Media • Public websites
- 9. Communication channels Civil society, NGOs, General public associations • Fact sheets • Magazines • Brochures and other • Newspapers handouts • Press releases • Audiovisual presentations • Radio • TV • Web-based media
- 10. Communication channels Academics, international Donors and funders agencies and organisations • Peer-reviewed articles • Full research reports • Research databases • Audiovisual presentations • Oral and poster presentations • CD-ROM • Web sites
- 11. Communication strategy • ‘Developa communication strategy that will ensure government adoption of evidence- informed policies in its malaria control strategy by 2011’
- 12. Audience Primary: Ministry of Health Secondary: Local communities Has the most power to make the Most affected by malaria and any changes required national control policies Issue knowledge 7/10 4/10 Strategy Need ‘targets’ that have a decent Bias of design and delivery understanding of malaria and towards individuals most health systems ‘influential’ Need to understand Ministry’s Recognise that some may be policy formulation process illiterate or have no access to media Message Needs to emphasize the Reducing malaria control into importance of health systems smaller ‘bites’ of education aspects of malaria control AND suggest solutions Basket Staged approach: 1:3:5 pagers, Posters, radio spots, meetings policy briefs, meetings, newsletter with community leaders
- 13. Audience Primary: Ministry of Health Secondary: Local communities Has the most power to make the Most affected by malaria and any changes required national control policies Channels Personally hand out documents Marketplace buskers Mail hard and soft copies Town hall meetings Upload to website Waiting rooms at clinics Send to email contacts Churches Health clubs Timing Change in Minister of Health in March Weekly women’s meetings Bimonthly vaccination days Brand Simple Two colours only Include logo Feedback Were the right tools used to reach the right audience? Was the ultimate goal of policy influence achieved? Did the audiences understand the message? Did the communication work to change the national malaria policy?
- 14. Group work 30 minutes Audience Primary Secondary Tertiary Knowledge Strategy Message Basket Channels Resources Timing Brand Feedback
- 15. Further reading The knowledge Translation Toolkit provides a thorough overview of what knowledge translation is and how to use it to bridge the ‘know-do’ gap between research, policy, practice, and people. It presents the theories, tools, and strategies required to encourage and enable evidence-informed decision- making. The Toolkit can be viewed online at http://www.idrc.ca/EN/Resources/Publicatio ns/Pages/IDRCBookDetails.aspx?PublicationI D=851
Editor's Notes
- #3 Message must reach the right audience, capture their attention amid all the other messages invading their space, and persuade them to take specific actionCommunication doesn’t just ‘happen’
- #5 Information must reach the audience and also catch their attentionInspire them to actionEffective communication is essential to achieving core goals (not just helpful)Do you have a communication strategy?...
- #6 Expand based on notesItems 1-5 done in group work previously
- #7 Who are your target audiences?Most important? Least?All audiences have no interest in your aims except in the context of their ownMust understand their needs to be able to tailor the message appropriately to themOne of the first steps – disaggregate and prioritize target audiences Must interact/communicate with: those with power to enable or prevent our objectives (those we are mandated to deal with) Should: can make the process easier or more difficult; other agencies Like: indirectly help or hinder; future spin-offs (general public)
- #8 To communicate effectively we need to consider their needs and their preferencesNOT our abilities and desires
- #9 What from this list do you do?What is missing? What wouldn’t work – why?
- #12 Clear goal – first step
- #13 Example of communication strategyClear SMART objective
- #14 Timing: important eventsBrand: policyFeedback: some short- others long-term
- #15 20 minutes for work – 10 minutes to present backDefine your objectiveDifferent communication strategies for each audience