Handout for the AERC/GDN Policy Briefs workshop - Accra, Ghana, June 2014

1. DEVELOPING EFFECTIVE MESSAGES
Much economic and social research is carried out with the intention of helping policymakers to develop
better policies for better development. Sadly, very little of that research achieves its objective. One reason
why research is not acted upon is that it is poorly communicated and does not reach its intended target
audience.
In order to win, it is critical to define the terms of the battle
Generally speaking, the goal of any research is to have an impact. You might want to communicate your
findings to policymakers to influence their decisions, or to donors to secure funding for your research. To
have impact, it must be tailored and communicated to the right people using the right communication tool.
Research communications can take different forms; you may communicate your research through a policy
brief, a press release, at a press conference, in a TV interview, or even through a social media tool. One
step is common in all of the above: translating your findings and recommendations into key messages
that can travel to reach your target audience.
When communicating your research you need to respond to the following questions
1. Who do you want to reach? –>determine your target audience
2. Why do you want to reach them? –>determine your objective
3. How do you reach them? –>determine your communication channel
4. What are your main messages? ! determine what you want your audience to do
" But what does “key messages” stand for?
Messaging is about…
What do you want to say, How you want to say it and Whom you want to say it to?
To inform and influence your messages:
• Should be designed with audiences in mind and tailored to fit their needs, beliefs, expectations,
actions and behaviours
• Should be memorable, engaging and limited in number
• May need to answer the question ‘why should I
care?’
How to best craft your message
A useful way to frame your core message is to start by listing
your key findings and the actions that you would like your
audience to take. Once you are clear about these, ask yourself
the following 5 questions: What is the objective of your brief?;
Why is this important?; Who are your target audiences?;
What do you want them to do?; When should they do it?
But what does it take to make a message
memorable?
Know that it’s all about messaging! When a piece of
communication is relevant, compelling, appealing, meaningful
and straight to the point, it moves the listener/reader to action.
“The
4Cs
model
is
a
useful
tool
for
objectively
evaluating
the
effectiveness
of
many
forms
of
communication:
what’s
working,
what
isn’t
working,
and
why.”
Source:
Albanese,
I.,
“How
to
make
your
message
memorable”

2. The 4Cs (Comprehension, Connection, Credibility, and Contagiousness) is a simple tool with an ability to
pinpoint whether a message works or not, why and how to improve it in case it doesn’t; in other words it
helps you evaluate whether you are communicating effectively or not.
1. Comprehension: Does the audience get the core message? What does the message instantly
communicate? Can the audience play the message back? This confirms that they “get it” and the
first C is working. Here are three tips for better comprehension:
2. Connection: Connecting with a communicated idea or message means that not only the audience
got the message, but also that it resonates with them and usually triggers an emotional response
(i.e. (frustration, excitement, anger, passion, joy, happiness, sadness, etc…)
3. Credibility: It is the most critical C because if the speaker is not credible, the connection will break
down. The audience needs to believe “who is saying, what is being said and how it is being said”.
4. Contagiousness: Contagiousness is positive in communications. If your message is effective,
your audience will get it, show an emotional response to it, run with it and spread it or simply react to
it, that’s contagiousness.
But how can you make your message effective?
There are different methods to develop effective key messages, one of which is the ‘A.I.D.A rule’.
1
This
suggests that the message should:
A Attract the attention of the audience
I Raise the interest in the message or evidence
D Encourage a desire to act or to know more
A Prompt action and present a solution
The message should therefore be visible, simple, clear,
concise, relevant, credible and actionable. The message
should not only provide the analysis and the cause of the
problem, but also touch upon the importance of the change
before it leads to the solution you are proposing. The
solution is usually presented in the form of actions you
ask others to take to bring about the change (key recommendations).
Message Pyramid
1. Primary message (your sound bite): a
statement of 1 or 2 sentences formulating
what you would like to convey to your
audience ! be clear and concise, you will
become compelling. This statement can be
used in the elevator pitch
2. Main messages : 3-5 direct messages,
each message should no longer be more
than 35 words
3. Supporting points : these can be included
in a press release or explained in a press
conference
Remember!
• Many policymakers believe that research findings are too complicated and too academic to
understand. Your challenge is to find a clear and concise way to convey your findings. Therefore,
before you take your research to target audience, make sure you are able to explain your ideas in a
way that your grandma could understand them –> Your messages should pass the ‘Grandma Test’!
• Never think that your messages are too complicated to be explained to or understood by your
audience –> All great ideas are simple at heart!
2
1
Communicating
Research:
A
beginner’s
guide
for
researchers
in
Vietnam,
Ajoy
Datta
and
Arnaldo
Pellini,
August
2011
2
Communicating
Food
Policy
Research
:
A
Guidebook,
Grebmer,
K.V.,
Babu,
S.,
Rhoe,
V.
&
Rubinstein,
M.,
IFPRI,
March
2005
Communicating
Food
Policy
Research,
IFPRI
(March
2005)
Made
to
Stick,
Chip
and
Dan
Heath
(2006)
" Simple
" Unexpected
" Concrete
" Credible
" Emotional
" Stories