Communicating Science and Policy Research

What is a communication plan?

A communication plan outlines the steps involved in planning, creating, and distributing scientific research results. A good plan also includes measuring the effectiveness of communication efforts.

Why is a communication plan important?

Communicating research is a challenging task with many decisions and activities. A communication plan manages this complex process, and it is the first step in an effective communication effort. A well-crafted plan captures communication goals, strategies, benchmarks for measuring success, who will be responsible for certain tasks, and budget restrictions.

Who is responsible for the communication plan?

Communication planning and implementation is a time-consuming task, and it can be difficult for researchers to add communication as a daily activity. We advise that you appoint a person (or multiple persons, depending on how large the communication effort is) to coordinate communication planning and implementation.

Who does the communicating?

Research institutions may have a designated Public Information Officer who distributes information to journalists and the general public. In other circumstances, scientists are the persons who communicate their research. The information in this toolkit is useful for both Public Information Officers and individual scientists.

Virtually all communications plans contain the following components:

• Aim: The Aim is the broad purpose for which you are undertaking the communications project.
• Objectives: Objectives are the specific and measurable things you are aiming to achieve.
• Key messages: Key messages are the most important messages you want the audience to understand.
• Target audiences: The target audience(s) are specific persons who you want to receive the key messages.
• Strategies: Communication strategies determine the tools or methods used to communicate key messages.
• Tasks and timelines: This step captures the tasks to be completed, who is responsible for them, and the timeline for completion.
• Evaluation: Evaluation ensures accountability and measures the success of the communication effort.
• Budget: The budget details the total amount of money needed for the communication effort and how it will be spent.

Development of a Communication Plan

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