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OCR for page 18
Guidebook
13
The Communication Process
Strategy How Is Strategy Used Effectively?
What Is Strategy? Consider these four steps in crafting your
strategy:
Strategies for communicating
value depend upon Identify your decision makers first; the
identifying and understanding the audience audience will follow.
and the purpose of the communication. Who Think about the research problem or
are the decision makers? Who can best move value proposition from your audience's
your decision makers and help you achieve your perspective.
objective? Since the goal of communication is to Consider messages that will resonate with
influence value perceptions, strategy depends on your target audience's core concerns.
developing a clear understanding of who must
be influenced and their values profiles. The more Determine the best messenger.
clearly you define your audience and what it cares
about, the more strategic you can be about your Identify Your Decision Maker First
approach.
It is critical to first identify the decision makers
you are ultimately trying to reach. These are
Why Is Strategy Important? the people who will ultimately say yes or no in
response to your communication. The decision
Strategy is critical to achieving your research
makers may be legislators whose votes you
project or program goals. It must be consistent
want to sway or a transportation director who
with the communication goals you are seeking
can choose to use new technology in a highway
(e.g., announcing, motivating, educating,
construction project, or the media who may carry
informing, and supporting decision making).
your research story.
In the case studies we researched, the main
communication objectives were to inform and
influence transportation decision makers. This Your decision makers are those who ultimately
required attracting their attention, persuading vote for or can change a policy, influence the
them that a research project or program deserved use of new technology, and so on. Knowing who
funding, and convincing them to take action. these people are will guide you in targeting your
audience. You or your organization may not have
For example, in the Virginia Bridge case study direct access to the decision makers; in that case,
involving a fiber-reinforced polymer deck, you must decide whether you are going to target
external communication conducted by Virginia communication directly to the decision makers or
Transportation Research Council public affairs reach them through other influencers. The focus is
staff was as important as the interagency on the audience with the greatest influence over
communication in helping to secure the and access to the decision makers. Third-party
Innovative Bridge Research and Construction champions or intermediary organizations can
grant dollars from the Federal Highway validate your research, and they often work with
Administration to help fund the research. researchers to strengthen the credibility of their
The strategy for external communication research and findings.
focused on bringing the return on investment in
transportation research to the attention of the Sometimes the target audience and decision
public and the government leaders to ensure that makers may be the same people.
federal and state policy makers would continue
to provide department of transportation (DOT)
research divisions and others with the necessary
resources to conduct more innovative research.
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Guidebook
14
Communicating the Value of Transportation Research
Think from Your Audience's Perspective
Craft a Sticky Idea
Once you know who you need to influence,
you can begin to determine how best to reach Incorporate these concepts into crafting your
them. Assess their values or belief systems, and sticky messages:
find common ground. Avoid selecting strategies
that appeal only to you or are the easiest to Simplicity. Messages are memorable if
implement. Rather, think strategically about your they are short and deep. Proverbs, such as
audience and the best ways to reach them. the Golden Rule, are short but also deep
enough to guide the behavior of people
over generations.
In the National Cooperative Freight Research Unexpectedness. Something that sounds
Program (NCFRP) case study, the main strategy for like common sense will not stick. Look
bringing national attention to freight issues was for the parts of your message that are
through the formation of the Freight Stakeholders uncommon sense to generate interest
Coalition (FSC). Aided by the credibility of its and curiosity.
members, support from the freight industry and Concreteness. Abstract language and
state/local governments, the FSC became the ideas do not leave sensory impressions;
major factor in the NCFRP's inclusion in SAFETEA- concrete images do. Compare "Get an
LU. American on the moon in this decade"
with "Seize leadership in the space race
through targeted technology initiatives
Craft Messages That Resonate with Your and enhanced team-based routines."
Audience
Credibility. Will the audience buy the
Your target audience is the most important critic message? Can a case be made for the
of your message. Use information gleaned in your message, or is it a confabulation of
external scan to focus on the context and recall spin? Often, a person trying to convey
a message cites outside experts when
your audience's stance on a certain issue; this way,
the most credible source is the person
your message reflects how it may perceive the listening to the message. Asking "Have
problem or value your research solution. you experienced this?" can be more
credible than referencing outside
Often after spending months and even years experts.
conducting research and producing results, Emotions. Case studies that involve
researchers focus primarily on how to convey people also move them.
their research to other researchers rather than Stories. Use stories. They act as a mental
the prospective users of their research results. stimulator, preparing us to respond more
Perhaps they believe the products of their quickly and effectively.
research will speak for themselves. Successfully
communicating the value of research requires Source: The McKinsey Quarterly, "Crafting a Message
That Sticks."
the ability to craft and deliver key messages
that influence--messages that are remembered
the next day and the day after that. This can
be referred to as creating a "sticky idea," or one
that people understand when they hear it and
remember later on and that changes something
about how they act or think.
