Public Relations is a vital aspect of any organization’s communication strategy. PR helps to build and maintain relationships with key stakeholders, including customers, employees, investors, and the general public. However, developing effective PR strategies can be a challenging task, especially in today’s rapidly changing communication industry. This is where applied research comes in handy!
Applied research is the systematic and scientific investigation of a specific communication problem or issue to provide insights and guidance to PR practitioners. This type of research focuses on practical applications of PR theories, models, and strategies to solve real-world problems faced by organizations, businesses, and government agencies.
Applied research in PR can help in several ways:
Understand the Target Audience
One of the key challenges in developing effective PR strategies is understanding the target audience. Applied research helps to identify the interests, attitudes, and behaviors of the target audience, which in turn helps develop communication strategies that resonate with them. This type of research can help to identify key demographics, such as age, gender, and income, as well as psychographic factors. Simple Tiger provides a great guide and how to gather information to obtain your target audience.
Develop Effective Communication Strategies
Applied research helps to identify the most effective communication channels and messaging to reach the target audience. This type of research can help to identify the most effective social media platforms, traditional media outlets, and other communication channels to reach the target audience. Additionally, applied research can help to develop messaging that is aligned with the organization’s values and resonates with the target audience. Insperity provides good examples on how to effectively communicate including:
- Keeping it real
- Being Timely
- Focusing on consistency
- Tailoring your message
- Reinforcing it
- Encouraging feedback
- Empowering your managers
Measure the Impact of Communication
Applied research helps in evaluating the effectiveness of PR efforts and in measuring the impact of communication campaigns. This type of research can help to identify the most effective metrics for measuring the impact of communication, such as reach, engagement, and sentiment analysis. Additionally, applied research can help to identify areas where PR efforts can be improved or optimized. Expedition PR explains how important it is to use hash tracking to review the effectiveness on different platforms which would help measure the impact we are looking for!
Staying Up-to-Date
As the communication landscape is constantly evolving, applied research helps PR practitioners to stay informed about the latest trends and best practices in the field. This type of research can help to identify emerging communication channels, such as new social media platforms or emerging technologies, and help PR practitioners to stay ahead of the curve. Although it can be difficult staying up-to-date in a constantly evolving world, EM Media suggests getting on social media and following different sources of media to get all information possible from every view point.
In conclusion, applied research is important in PR because it helps practitioners make informed decisions and develop effective communication strategies that can achieve their organizational goals. By understanding the target audience, developing effective communication strategies, measuring the impact of communication, and staying up-to-date with the latest trends, PR practitioners can ensure that their efforts are aligned with the organization’s objectives and are optimized for success.
3 easy ways to measure the impact of your communications campaign. Expedition PR. (2014, June 16). Retrieved February 22, 2023, from https://www.expeditionpr.com/3-easy-ways-to-measure-the-impact-of-your-communications-campaign/
Em-Media. EmMedia. (2019, November 1). Retrieved February 22, 2023, from https://weareem.com/4-tips-to-stay-up-to-date-in-a-changing-world/
Smith, S. (n.d.). How to identify your target audience in 2023: A 5-step guide. Simple Tiger. Retrieved February 22, 2023, from https://www.simpletiger.com/blog/how-to-identify-your-target-audience
Sprimont, J. (2022, October 18). Effective communication strategies: 7 ways to improve. Insperity. Retrieved February 22, 2023, from https://www.insperity.com/blog/effective-communication-strategies/
TIM CAIN Professor in education, Cain, T., & education, P. in. (2022, September 23). How teachers are really using research. Schools Week. Retrieved February 22, 2023, from https://schoolsweek.co.uk/how-teachers-are-really-using-research/