How can you effectively disseminate evaluation findings and recommendations to your target audience?

1 Know your purpose

Before you start disseminating your evaluation results, you need to have a clear idea of what you want to achieve with your communication. Do you want to inform, persuade, inspire, or mobilize your audience? Do you want to showcase your achievements, demonstrate your accountability, advocate for change, or generate feedback? Your purpose will guide your choice of dissemination methods, formats, messages, and tone.

2 Know your audience

Different audiences have different needs, interests, preferences, and expectations when it comes to evaluation information. You need to tailor your dissemination to suit your audience's characteristics, such as their level of knowledge, involvement, influence, or decision-making power. You also need to consider their communication channels, such as their preferred media, platforms, or networks. You can use tools such as stakeholder analysis, audience segmentation, or persona creation to help you identify and understand your audience.

3 Know your message

Once you know your purpose and your audience, you can craft your message to convey your evaluation findings and recommendations in a clear, concise, and compelling way. You need to highlight the main points, the key takeaways, and the call to action that you want your audience to remember and act on. You also need to use appropriate language, tone, and style that resonate with your audience and reflect your values and vision. You can use tools such as storytelling, framing, or messaging guides to help you create your message.

4 Know your format

Depending on your purpose, audience, and message, you can choose from a variety of formats to present your evaluation findings and recommendations. You can use written formats, such as reports, briefs, newsletters, or blog posts; visual formats, such as infographics, charts, graphs, or photos; audio formats, such as podcasts, interviews, or testimonials; or video formats, such as documentaries, animations, or webinars. You can also use interactive formats, such as workshops, presentations, or dialogues. You need to select the format that best suits your content, context, and resources.

5 Know your method

After you decide on your format, you need to plan how you will distribute your evaluation findings and recommendations to your target audience. You can use passive methods, such as posting on your website, sending by email, or publishing in a journal; or active methods, such as hosting an event, organizing a campaign, or engaging in a conversation. You need to choose the method that best reaches your audience, captures their attention, and encourages their participation.

6 Know your impact

Finally, you need to monitor and evaluate the impact of your dissemination strategy on your target audience. You need to collect and analyze data on the reach, reaction, and response of your audience to your evaluation findings and recommendations. You can use indicators, such as views, downloads, shares, comments, ratings, or feedback forms; or methods, such as surveys, interviews, or focus groups. You need to use the data to assess the effectiveness of your dissemination strategy and identify areas for improvement.

7 Here’s what else to consider

This is a space to share examples, stories, or insights that don’t fit into any of the previous sections. What else would you like to add?