Section 2: Getting started Take the strategic planning from section one and turn it into action

Create messages for your audiences

Understanding your audiences enables you to communicate in a way that speaks directly to their interests. This helps your communications to stand out amongst the mass of information these busy people face every day.

The practical actions to work through here are conducting simple, cost-effective audience research and creating key messages - the information that, above all else, you want your audiences to remember and respond to.

Download the resources:

• Simple audience research – a guide
   
• How to create messages – a template
   
• How to create messages for different audiences – a guide

Choose the right communications channels

Communications channels are all the different ways that it is possible to transmit a message or story to its intended audience. Websites, posters, reports, events, email and social media such as Twitter and Facebook – there are many different channels and the number is constantly growing.  

Being able to identify the ones that are right for your audiences, your project and the resources you have available is important.  

The decisions you make here will dictate how you allocate your time and budget, and will also give a strong indication of the communications skills you will need as your project progresses.

Download the resources:

• Communications channels – a guide
   
• Social media in health care improvement – a guide

Create a simple communications plan

At this point, a significant amount of work and thinking has gone into shaping your communications approach. This needs to be distilled into a communications plan.

A communications plan sets out the how and when you will communicate to your audiences. It will enable you to plan your time, budget for your communications and ensure your activities are on track.

The communications plan template in this section provides a format to use. The intention is to summarise the key actions so that it is easy to follow. If necessary, additional documents can be attached to the main communications plan as appendices.

Download the resources: 

• A simple communications plan – a template