Semester Research/Application Project: Throughout the semester, we have been exploring the ways in which the internet has impacted human communication. We have seen its impacts on basic communication behaviors such as showing empathy, managing private information and self-disclosure. We have also see how the internet has changed/is changing the way we communicate in organizational, healthcare, and educational settings. Finally, we have seen the power of the internet as a tool for mass communication. Clearly the internet has the capability to disseminate information widely and quickly, making it a potentially powerful tool for bringing about social change. For this final assignment, the “Semester Research/Application Project,” we will explore what it takes to create a successful integrated communication campaign. Let’s begin by looking at some successful social issue campaigns. Each year, Shorty Social Good Awards honor programs and initiatives that “address and dismantle systemic structural and interpersonal inequities based on race, class, gender, sexual orientation, age, ability status and any intersection(s) thereof.” Spend some time looking at the amazing projects that were nominated for the 2018 Shorty Awards (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site.. One can’t help but be impressed by some of these initiatives! They are powerful tools for raising awareness about important social issues. However, there is another side to consider. There are some who argue that social media campaigns lead to “slacktivism” instead of activism. Watch this Brian Solis interview with David Batstone (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site., the founder of a movement to end human trafficking and modern slavery for an interesting discussion of this concept. There is no doubt that digital and face-to-face communication channels can be integrated in ways that bring about positive social change, but that outcome is not inherent in their use. This assignment asks you to analyze a multiple-channel, blended internet campaign to try to identify specific elements that account for success. Here are the details about this assignment. Goal: Write a descriptive and evaluative assessment of a multiple-channel, blended internet campaign What to do: Choose a national-level internet campaign that communicates through multiple face-to-face and digital channels (such as internet, YouTube, Facebook, Twitter). Here are some good examples to choose from. If youd like to choose something else, please email me for approval. https://su2c.standup2cancer.org/ (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site. https://www.everymothercounts.org/ (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site. https://www.charitywater.org/ (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site. https://feedingamerica.org/ (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site. https://www.goredforwomen.org/ (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site. https://www.girleffect.org/ (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site. https://www.kiva.org/ (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site. https://www.one.org/us/ (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site. Spend some time learning as much as you can about this campaign. Explore the campaign’s website and research the campaign to find out what has been written about it in academic and non-academic sources. Once you are familiar with the campaign (i.e., know its history, goals, and activities), spend some time investigating and reading about the communication and media used by this campaign. Identify the various channels of communication the campaign utilizes, and then analyze in depth the ways in which the various channels are used. Analyze the campaign’s website, follow its Twitter feeds, check out its Facebook page, etc. As youre analyzing the campaigns communication, look at it through the lenses provided by our readings throughout this class. Write a descriptive and evaluative assessment of your chosen campaigns communication strategy. Your paper should be 11-15 pages in length and should include the following elements (please use these labels as section headers for your paper): Overview of the Campaign (1-2 pages) — In this section, you will provide a summary of the campaign, including a brief history of the campaign, a clear description of the goals of the campaign, and a summary of the activities that are part of the campaign. Description of the Campaign’s Communication Strategy (2-4 pages) — In this section, you will provide a descriptive summary of the campaign’s blended communication strategy. Identify all of the channels (face-to-face and online) the campaign uses to communicate, and summarize the intended audience, purpose, and typical content of each channel. Present your summary as a table, using the template provided below. In addition, provide an explanation of the table in paragraph form. Note that this section should be descriptive — not evaluative. You will get a chance to evaluate the communication strategy in the next section. Here’s a template you can use to complete this part of the assignment: Channel Intended Audience Purpose Content Website (url) [in this column, [in this column, [In this column, Facebook identify the audience summarize the give a brief summary Twitter the channel seeks purpose this channel of the content typical etc. to reach] seems to serve] in this channel] Analysis of the Effectiveness of the Campaign’s Communication Strategy (5-6 pages) — In this section, you will analyze the effectiveness of the modes and channels of communication utilized in the campaign. Note that the primary focus of this section should be critical assessment of the communication strategy, not description — the previous section provided the description. This section should include: Analyze the campaign’s website. The internet is filled with sites providing information about the characteristics of an effective website. This one from M5 Design Studio (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site. identifies 10 characteristics you can use to organize your analysis of the website. Provide an in-depth analysis of TWO of the other communication platforms used by the campaign (Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Twitter, etc.). For both of your chosen platforms, provide a more in-depth analysis of the audience it seeks to reach (more in-depth than the information provided in the chart completed in the previous section), a more detailed overview of the content (i.e., persuasive strategies) and design elements that are used, and the effectiveness of the campaign’s use of this particular platform. Provide screen shots of specific examples to illustrate your claims. Analyze the effectiveness of the campaign’s use of convergent communication technologies. How effectively does the campaign blend various virtual channels of communication? How successfully does it integrate virtual and face-to-face modes of communication? Analysis of the Campaigns Overall Success (3-4 pages)– In this section, you will analyze the overall success of the campaign and the relationship between its overall success and its communication strategy. Begin by providing a brief analysis of the overall success of the campaign. Is the campaign meeting its goals? Is the campaign thriving and growing? What are other academic and non-academic sources saying about the success of the campaign? Then, develop a well-supported argument about the relationship between the campaign’s overall success and its blended communication strategy. As in the previous sections, use relevant concepts from our readings to support your claim. If you would like some additional information about the characteristics of successful campaigns, read “Using Social Media as a Tool to Complement Advocacy Efforts”Preview the document or this list of 21 Social Media Tips for Nonprofits (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site.. End this section by making recommendations for changes the campaign could make in its communication strategy that might make the campaign even more successful.
Hide
