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Research

Research. Chapter 5. PR’s RACE Process. Chapter 5, Research, begins four chapter sequence on the PR RACE process—Research, Action, Communication, Evaluation Before any PR program or campaign can be undertaken, information must be gathered and data must be collected and interpreted.

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Research

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  1. Research Chapter 5

  2. PR’s RACE Process • Chapter 5, Research, begins four chapter sequence on the PR RACE process—Research, Action, Communication, Evaluation • Before any PR program or campaign can be undertaken, information must be gathered and data must be collected and interpreted. • There are different types and methods of research—depends on the particular subject and situation. • Chapter examines various research techniques—from using secondary sources such as libraries, books, newspapers and magazines, the Internet and online data bases and their respective strengths and weakness—to primary research such as questionnaires, interviews, sampling, and focus groups.

  3. How PR Pros Use Research • To achieve credibility with management • Define audiences and to segment publics • Formulate strategy • Test messages • Help management keep in touch • Prevent crises • Monitor the competition • Sway public opinion • Generate publicity • Measure success

  4. “Casual and Informal” Research • In public relations, research is used to gather data and information • Unlike scientific and other technical research, PR research is more “casual and informal” than scientific and precise, according to a survey of PR practitioners

  5. Primary and Secondary Research • Primary Research methods gather new and original information firsthand • Methods include in-depth interviews, focus groups, surveys and polls • Secondary Research uses existing information in books, magazines, newspapers, the Internet • Also can involve “archival” research– taking an inventory of organizational materials that can shed light on such things as • The success of the product/service in the past • Analysis of what geographical areas provide the most sales • A profile of the typical customer who buys product/uses service

  6. Rosetta Stone Example • Rosetta Stone is a CD-Rom and online language learning software program • PR campaign to increase brand awareness and sales • Customer research showed: • More than 70-percent of purchasers were men, average age 38, highly educated and affluent ($60,000+ annual income) • Sales were highest in the fourth quarter- just before Christmas with many customers receiving product as gifts • Given this baseline data, the PR firm of Carmichael Lynch Spong was able to figure news strategies to reach out to new customers and core customers in other months of the year

  7. Qualitative Good For: Probing attitudes/perceptions Assessing message penetration Testing messages Qualitative Methods Content Analysis- gather clips Interviews- intercept/mall interviews Focus Groups-8-12 people Copy Testing- is this clear? Ethnographic Techniques- observing patterns/behavior; roll playing Quantitative Characteristics: More “hard” than “soft” data More scientific Highly structured Needs random sampling and large number of respondents Quantitative Methods: Telephone polls Mail surveys Shared cost studies Other Research Categories

  8. To get a highly accurate idea of what the U.S. adult population is thinking, national polling firms usually sample 1,000 to 1,500 people Effective polls and surveys require a “random sample” (aka “probability sample”) This means that everyone in the targeted audience has an equal or known chance for being selected for the survey The average national poll samples 1,500 people and the margin for error is within 3 percentage points 95 percent of the time This means 19 out of 20 times the same questionnaire is administered, the results should be within the same 3 percentage points and accurately reflect the whole population Telephone directories are often used to randomly select respondents Hawaii example- p.140 PR sample sizes are usually smaller—can accurately get a sense of public attitudes and opinions from 250-500 responses– gives plus/minus 5-6 percent accuracy (see p.140) National Survey Surprises?

  9. Questionnaire Guidelines • Much care must be taken in the wording of all questions to ensure maximum clarity • Questions often go through many drafts before achieving the desired tone, clearness • Avoid biased, slanted wording and questions– Example (from an ACLU survey):“Do you agree with this statement: ‘I believe that the President does not need to use unauthorized and illegal powers to keep us safe, that warrantless spying on Americans is unnecessary, and illegal and that, in America, no one– including the President—is above the law.’”

  10. Answer Categories • It is important that answer choices are provided that cover a range of opinions • Avoid “yes” or “no” responses– they don’t really provide much insight into perceptions and attitudes • Seek instead to have answers that probe the depth of feeling among respondents and may serve as guidelines for management in making major changes or just fine-tuning existing policy

  11. What type of info needed and in what detail State survey objectives in writing Decide who/which groups will receive survey Decide the sample size State the purpose of the survey Guarantee anonymity Use closed-end (multiple choice) answers as often as possible Design in way that answers can easily be coded for analysis No more than 25 questions Use ranges for age, education, income—people more comfortable Use simple, familiar words Avoid ambiguous words and phrases that may confuse Context and placement of questions are important Provide space for comments at end Pretest the questions with reps. of your target audience for understanding and possible bias Specific Questionnaire Guidelines

  12. Reaching Respondents • The Pros and Cons of: • Mail Questionnaires- Easy to distribute; Low response rate • Telephone Surveys- Feedback immediate, personal, skilled phone interviews can get high response rate; Hard to get hold of phone numbers; skeptical public– “Trying to sell me something?” • Personal Interviews- Can generate a wealth of detailed information; Expensive, smaller response pool, much advance work • Omnibus or “Piggyback” Surveys- can buy a few questions that will be part of a national survey. Plus is cost. Minus is may only get a small snapshot of public opinion with one/two questions • Web and E-mail Surveys- Benefits are that large samples can be generated in a short amount of time, economical, data can be analyzed continually. Negatives are: No control over sample size or the selection of respondents. Attract respondents with: banner ads, e-mail, phone, postcard invitations, and offering gift coupons and other incentives to respondents

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