2. Audience Analysis
This section will help you:
- Define the demographic, behavioural and lifestyle profiles of
your audiences. The analysis will also help differentiate between
individuals or groups who have and who have not already adopted
the desired behaviour or action.
- Identify the type of media and events, as well as the most influential
individuals for effective interpersonal communication activities.
2.1 Information-Gathering
Market research may be required to complete this section. However,
some community-based organizations may not have the resources
or skills to conduct research. Regardless of whether or not
you can
afford market research, it would be worthwhile to conduct
a thorough review of available materials (see other components of the Social
Marketing Network) as well as existing market research sponsored
by other organizations. Potential sources include:
- Demographic data.
- In-house membership databases (postal codes, current habits and
behaviours, etc.).
- Surveys (knowledge, attitudes, behaviours, perceptions, opinions,
needs, satisfaction levels, media habits, etc.).
- Focus groups or interviews.
- Audience and readership profiles for various media. Consider
calling the sales departments of media outlets to identify
which media
is most suitable for your audience based on demographics.
- Profiles of members who belong to specific organizations/groups,
or participants at events.
- It is always advisable to consult market research experts
for certain types of research activities, especially
surveys. Even
if you have
insufficient funds, be sure to consult an expert
to help you prepare your questionnaire and interpret responses.
This will
validate
your research tools and ensure that results are
objective. Determine the strategic information you need and the
method you intend
to use beforehand to avoid incurring unnecessary
research costs.3
2.2 Developing Audience Profiles
Refer back to Section 1.4. Fill in the demographic,
behavioural and lifestyle profiles for each of
your target audiences,
along with the related behaviours and actions you
seek.
Divide information between the two key segments in each audience:
- Those who have already adopted the behaviours or actions.
- Those who have not. Some of these individuals may be against
the idea. However, most of them are probably receptive,
but face
real or perceived barriers. Others people may not see the
relevance of what you are suggesting. Understanding this
population/audience
segment (those who have not adopted the behaviour or action)
is essential to the rest of your plan. Social marketers
do not assume that what worked with some people will work
with
everyone.
Audience:
Behaviour(s)/action(s):
Demographic profile
| |
Those who have already adopted the behaviours or actions |
Those who have not |
| Number of people in audience |
|
|
| Age (specify age group) |
|
|
| Sex (M/ F) |
|
|
| Level of education |
|
|
| Family composition / marital status |
|
|
| Household income |
|
|
| Type of occupation(s) |
|
|
| Urban/rural population |
|
|
| Mother tongue, languages spoken and other cultural characteristics |
|
|
|
Other defining characteristics |
|
|
Behavioural profile
| |
Those who have already adopted the behaviours
or actions |
Those who have not |
| Current behaviours |
|
|
| Current attitudes |
|
|
| Perceived benefits and consequences |
|
|
| Factors which (would) predispose the audience to adopt specific
behaviours |
|
|
| Factors which are (or would be) barriers for individuals
to adopt specific behaviours (time, access, as well as costs
in monetary, psychological, and social terms, etc.) |
|
|
|
Belief in their personal ability to adopt the behaviours |
|
|
| Others |
|
|
Lifestyle profile
| |
Those who have already adopted the behaviours
or actions |
Those who have not |
| Fundamental values and beliefs |
|
|
| Influence and credibility of their networks (friends, family,
colleagues, professionals, etc.) and your organization |
|
|
| Types of organizations/groups to which they belong |
|
|
| Lifestyle and interests |
|
|
Media habits4
- TV
- Cable
- Radio
- Dailies
- Weeklies
- Magazines
- Newsletters
- Outdoor advertising
- Transit advertising
- Telephone
- Mail
- E-mail/Internet
- Others
|
|
|
Locations where the audience can be reached (specify)
- Schools (specify)
- Work (e.g., corporations, government offices, possible
networks, full-time versus part-time employees)
- Malls
- Supermarkets
- When consulting professionals
- Events they attend
- Other
|
|
|
2.3 Summary and Implications
Summarize which components in the audience profiles distinguish
the two segments.
Another approach would be to summarize the differences between
the two segments in terms of:
- Benefits
- Perceived or real (negative) consequences
- Perceived or real barriers
- Positive and negative influencers
For individuals who have adopted the behaviour/action, your greatest
challenge will most likely be to ensure that they maintain
the behaviour/action. For those who have not, your analysis
should help you focus on barriers and/or relevance for the
audience. You need to link the desired behaviour or action
to what
is
important
to your audience.
You should already be planning what you could do to modify perceptions,
eliminate barriers and/or optimize positive influences, while neutralizing
or minimizing negative ones. This may also mean altering some aspects
of your program, and identifying 'the first step' people should
take to adopt the behaviour or "take the first step".
3 Recommended reading: D.B. Herron, Marketing Nonprofit Programs
and Services (San Francisco: Jossey-Bass, 1997) 53-79.
4 For more information, consult: The Health
Communication Unit, Centre for Health promotion. Overview of Health
Communication Campaigns
(Toronto: University of Toronto, 1998).
|
