Transcript Best Practices in Public Relations Research

Best Practices in
Public Relations
Research
Don W. Stacks, Ph.D.
School of Communication
University of Miami
Coral Gables, FL 33145
What is Research?
• Controlled, objective, and systematic
gathering of data
• Strives to describe, understand, predict, and
control social and business phenomena
• Seeks to answer questions
• Reliable and valid way to access data
• Systematic collection and interpretation of
data
Theory vs. Applied Research
• Theory
 Abstract, conceptual
 Builds a “body of
knowledge” for PR
 Academic or Basic
Research
 Serves as a framework
for understanding and
predicting why people
act the way they do.
• Applied Research
 Concrete, practical
 Strategic Research
develops programs,
messages, and
benchmarks
 Evaluation Research
determines whether
communication
campaigns works
Main Uses of
Public Relations Research
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Monitoring developments and trends
Examining public relations position
Assessing messages and campaigns
Measuring communication effectiveness
Tracking studies
Gap studies
Evaluation research
General Research Assumptions
• Decision-making process is uniformly the
same in all companies and organizations
• All communication research should:
Set objectives
Determine strategy to establish objectives
Implement tactics which bring strategies to life
Assumptions (Cont’d.)
• Research can be divided into three general
phases:
– Program or campaign development
– Program refinement
– Program evaluation
• Communication research is behavior-driven
and knowledge-based
Public Relations
Research Assumptions
• Research must be behavior-driven and yield
data that help design campaigns that lead to
desired behavior
• PR campaign research must parallel
decisions communication pros make;
otherwise, they are not knowledge-driven or
information based
• Effective research is integral to campaign
creation, implementation, and evaluation
Best Practice Public Relations
Research Programs…
1. Conduct background/secondary research to
establish benchmarks
2. Establish achievable goals
3. Ask appropriate research questions
4. State measurable objectives
5. Employ the appropriate methodologies
6. Understand the need for programmatic research
7. Have the budgets/resources necessary
1. Does Homework: Secondary
Research/Benchmarking
• Establishes both an understanding of what has
been done and how it was done
 Adds to an understanding of theory
 Provides a window into past practice
 Not a new concept; espoused by John Hill in the 50s
• Reduces the costs associated with needless
replication
• Provides possible benchmarks against which to
gauge progress
2. Establishes Achievable Goals
• Goal: General outcome expected by
campaign end
• Objective: Very specific projected output
• Outputs: individual communication
elements
Impact of specific tactics
Written, visual, verbal
3. Asks The Appropriate
Research Question(s)
• All research addresses four research
questions
Questions of Definition
Questions of Fact
Questions of Value
Questions of Policy
• Best practice research asks and answers
them in order: definition, fact, value, policy
Questions Cont’d.
• Definition
 What is it?
 How do I
operationalize it?
• Fact
 Does it exist?
 In what quantity?
 Do groups differ or did
change occur over
time?
• Value
 How good or bad is it?
 How well was it done?
 Addresses aesthetics
• Policy
 What should be done
 Answered through
research on definition,
fact, and value
4. States Measurable Objectives
• Management must concur about objectives
Do they meet the business objective(s)?
• Precise, results-oriented objectives
Stated in measurable ways?
• Realistic, credible, measurable, and
compatible objectives
Are they realistic or are they simply goals?
Objectives (cont’d.)
• Informational objectives fairly clear cut
 What information does the public need?
 When do they need it (before, during, after)?
• Motivational objectives require
 Research
 Means to isolate effect provided by public relations
• Behavioral objectives state
 What you expect the public to do
Programmatic Approach
Secondary/
Benchmark
Informational/
Evaluation
Behavioral/
Evaluation
Motivational/
Evaluation
Planned benchmarked evaluations
Time
Development
(Evaluation)
Refinement
(Evaluation)
Final Evaluation
Objectives, cont’d.
Informational Objective(s)
Motivational Objective(s)
Behavioral Objectives
Business objective(s)
5. Employs Appropriate
Methodologies
• A public relations campaign hardly ever
employs only one method
• Best practices “triangulate” methods to
ensure that all research questions are
addressed
• Methods are often classified as “qualitative”
and “quantitative” or “informal” and “formal”
Public Relations Methods
• Surveys and Polls
 Descriptive
 Explanatory
 Attitude
 Opinion Polls
• Content Analyses
 Descriptive
 Readability
 Readership
• Communication
Audits
• Delphi Studies
• Focus Groups
• Field Observations
 Participant-Observation
 In-depth Interview
• Case Studies
• Experiments
Qualitative or Quantitative Methods?
• Qualitative: Questions of definition and
value
Intense, but small sample
In-depth knowledge vs. Generalizability
Examples
Focus Groups
Participant-Observation
Informal Observations
In-depth Interviewing
Case Studies
Qualitative or Quantitative Methods? (Cont’d.)
• Quantitative: Questions of definition and
fact
Scientific
Large samples
Generalizability vs. In-depth understanding
Reliable, representative sampling
Examples
 Surveys (descriptive, explanatory, attitude)
 Opinion polls
 Delphi studies
 Experiments
Secondary
Qualitative
Triangulation
Quantitative
Qualitative or Quantitative Methods? (Cont’d.)
• Triangulation
Uses secondary, qualitative, and quantitative
methods to better describe, understand, predict,
and control public relations campaigns
Provides both representative sampling and indepth knowledge of the publics or audiences
under study
Takes the case study into the “real” world
Quantifying via Measurement
• Assigning numbers to categories
• Four Levels
Nominal (distinguishes only; counts, percent)
Ordinal (distinguishes and orders; counts,
percent)
Interval (assumes an equal distancing between
categories; counts, means, dispersion)
Ratio (assumes absolute distancing between
categories; counts, means, dispersion)
Measurement Examples
• Nominal
 England, France, Germany, Austria
• Ordinal
 GNP: Austria ($1B), England ($2B), France ($3B), Germany ($4B)
• Interval
 Strongly Agree, Agree, Disagree, Strongly Disagree
• Assumes that the distance between SA = A = D = SD (problem is that SA=A, and D=SD,
but DA)
• Data are interval, but not “scalar” in that there is no arbitrary zero point
• Ratio
 Actual date and time of birth; Bank account balance
Attitude Measurement
• Most Often Likert-Type Measurement
 Assumes interval data
 Respondents “react” to statements, typically by degree of
agreement
 MUST have a “zero” point — a midpoint
 MUST have an ODD number of responses (3, 5, 7)
 MUST consist of two or more statements
statement1.
Strongly
Agree
statement2.
Strongly
Agree
Agree
Agree
Uncertain
Uncertain
Disagree
Strongly
Disagree
Disagree
Strongly
Disagree
Attitude Measurement (Cont’d.)
• Creates a “scale” of statements that
 Range from Positive through Neutral to Negative
Public Relations is an excellent career.
Strongly
Agree
Agree
Strongly
Uncertain
Disagree
Strongly
Disagree
Strongly
Public Relations is a career.
Agree
Agree
Strongly
Uncertain
Disagree
Disagree
Strongly
Public Relations is no career at all.
Agree
Agree
Uncertain
Disagree
Disagree
+2
5
+1
4
0
3
-1
2
-2
1
Actual reaction to statements is
Coded as
Scale Range = 3 (negative) to 15 (positive)
Surveys vs. Polls
• Polls
– Short and quick
– fact-based
• Surveys
– Longer
– Definition- and fact-based
– Allow for limited questions of value
Poll & Survey Sampling
• Sampling
Scientific Sampling = Probability Sampling
Group sampled represents the entire population
from which it is drawn (cross-sectional; trend;
panel; cohort trend)
Non-Scientific Sampling = Convenience
Sampling
Group sampled is not representative of entire
population, but only one limited segment (volunteer,
snowball, quota, “man-on-the-street”
6. Programmatic PR Research
• Best practice research is programmatic
• Divided into three phases
– Program development research
– Program refinement research
– Program evaluation research
Program Development Research
• Program Development stage requires:
 Communications goals
 Research goals
• Communication Goals
 Establish actionable and measurable objectives
 Design overall strategy to achieve these objectives
• Research Goals
 Understand the situation
 Relate this understanding to the communications opportunities
Program Development Research Should Tell You
• The circumstances creating the opportunity or
challenge
• Target audience(s) characteristics
• What needs to be communicated to realize the
objective
• How ideas can best be communicated
• Go beyond just turning out information…
development stage helps to change, modify, or
reinforce behavior
Program Refinement Research
• Communication Goals
Make correct decisions implementing the PR
or communication program
• Research Goals
Validate that decisions made are correct
Supply the information necessary to choose
between alternatives
Why Program Refinement Research?
• Pre-testing of messages
Informative, Persuasive, Attitude Change,
Attitude Reinforcement
• Pre-testing of public/audience stance on
objectives
• Pre-testing communication strategies
• Pre-testing for gatekeeper selection
• Pre-testing for publics (Active, Aware,
Passive, Latent)
Program Refinement Research Examples
• Types:
Concept/Message testing studies (definition)
Spokesperson selection research (fact)
Format testing (fact/value)
• Methods
Focus Groups
Polls (telephone/Internet)
Informal Field Research
Program Evaluation Research
• Communication Goal
 Determine program/campaign’s
effectiveness
• Research Goals
 Performance measurements in terms of
• Outputs: Air time, clippings, Internet “hits,” etc.
• Impacts: What program/campaign did to
audience(s)
• Behavior: Were desired behaviors realized?
7. Research and the Budget
• Research is a necessary, not sufficient
condition for public relations
• Research is a part of EVERY program/
campaign budget
• Research permeates the program/campaign,
plan research across the process
• Integrated research is essential to effective
public relations and should be built in to each
budget
Budgetary Factors
• Circumstances
• Availability of in-house personnel to
conduct research
• Commercial research firm availability
• Whether the research has been budgeted
across or simply as a budget “item”
• The research question(s) asked
Research Costs
• Focus Groups: $1,000 – $4,500 per group
• One-on-One Interviews: $250 – $2,000 per
interview
• Telephone Surveys:
 Small: $ 3,500 – $35,000
 Large: $20,000 – $95,000
• Mail/Internet Surveys
 Small scale: $ 5,000 – $30,000
 Large scale: $12,500 – $85,000
Stretching the Research Budget
• Never sacrifice quality for price
• Seek competitive bids
 Never take the low bid without examining the individual or firm’s
credentials
• Learn about research questions and budget
appropriately
 Don’t conduct a survey when a focus group is more efficient
 When looking only for facts, consider a poll over a survey
 Never stop “participating” in the research experience
 All good researchers are Participant-Observers
 Continually seek informal data in the field
Conclusions
• Best Practice Public Relations Research
Is programmatic
Has clearly defined and achievable goals
Has its objectives stated in measurable terms
Addresses the appropriate research question(s)
Employs a “triangulated” methodologies
Has the necessary resources allocated to the
research program