There is no doubt about it: research is an essential step in any public relations process. Thorough research allows public relation professionals to make informed decisions and can be used to justify why they pitch specific media outlets or explain the reasoning behind an unusual campaign idea, One can't launch a successful PR campaign unless well-informed about the issues, trends and competition within the clients' market or industry. For Thrive, our research for Youth Oasis Children's Shelter began on day one.
We began with secondary research, which PRAccredidation.org defines as "the examination of research previously conducted by others." We examined Youth Oasis's Facebook and Twitter presence to get a baseline of where it stood in the community and to better understand its online brand identity. Our in-depth secondary research also involved analyzing aspects of Youth Oasis such as its structure, its competition, its internal and external impediments, its customers, its limiters, its key publics and other important factors. Based on our secondary research, we determined that Youth Oasis's key public includes Baton Rouge residents, ages 25-45, who have an annual income of $40,000 or higher. A study conducted by Viacom Brand Solutions International noted that 25-34 year-olds are "happier, more confident, secure, and gravitate toward premium, understated and often {purchase} luxurious brands and experiences to affirm their identity. " Erik Erikson's research into humans' Psychosocial Stages of Development showed that 35-45 is the age when people start feeling charitable and feel the need to give back to society. From these studies, we decided that 25-45-year-olds are the most likely to not only donate to Youth Oasis, but to be loyal customers and advocates for its cause.
Once we knew Youth Oasis backward and forward, we were ready to design a survey. This specific type of research is called applied research. It goes beyond just acquiring knowledge for the sake of learning and requires using your findings to get a specified result. In our case, we wanted to gauge the Baton Rouge community's attitudes and perceptions of Youth Oasis in order to raise long-term funds and awareness for the shelter.
Our survey consisted of both close-ended and open-ended questions that gauged respondents' attitudes and perceptions of Youth Oasis. Some questions were specific to Youth Oasis and others gauged respondents' perceptions of youth homelessness and their charitable behaviors. We had 217 people begin the survey and 107 complete it, More than 55 percent of respondents were in our target audience.
Our survey results were eye-opening: More than 65 percent of respondents were unaware of what Youth Oasis is, and 68 percent of respondents didn’t know what services Youth Oasis offers. Within our key public, 80 percent of respondents were unaware of what Youth Oasis is despite 82 percent of them thinking that youth homelessness is a problem. One open ended question showed that thoughts such as “spa” or “resort” came to mind when people heard the name Youth Oasis.
Our primary research results were eye-opening for not only Thrive but for the Youth Oasis staff, who would like to change the name of the shelter to more accurately reflect its services. We look forward to seeing what other changes our research inspires in the shelter.
Written by Madison Scullin, account executive for Thrive Public Relations.
Sources:
http://www.marketing-execs.com/news/11-08/2.asp
http://www.praccreditation.org/resources/documents/APRSG-Research.pdf
http://www.simplypsychology.org/Erik-Erikson.html
http://www.wisegeek.org/what-is-applied-research.htm
Sources:
http://www.marketing-execs.com/news/11-08/2.asp
http://www.praccreditation.org/resources/documents/APRSG-Research.pdf
http://www.simplypsychology.org/Erik-Erikson.html
http://www.wisegeek.org/what-is-applied-research.htm