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Session Title: How to Get People to Read Your Research And Take Action on It
Panel Session 769 to be held in Texas C on Saturday, Nov 13, 10:00 AM to 10:45 AM
Sponsored by the
Chair(s):
Susan Parker, Clear Thinking Communications, susan@clearthinkingcommunications.com
Abstract: Evaluation and research reports can provide critical information to the field. But they may instead languish on a bookshelf read by just a few people for just one reason--they are not written or presented in a clear and accessible way. Evaluators have already done the hard work of discovering useful findings. By simply shifting how they think about communicating their work, they can reach a much broader audience of policymakers and others who can use their valuable research. In this session, two communications and research experts will provide practical tips for evaluators to greatly expand the reach of their work. The panelists will provide tools and approaches that evaluators can use so that their reports have more impact on the field. Tools include storytelling, a linguist’s approach to writing clearly, and making the most of social media.
Find the Gold in Your Evaluation
Susan Parker, Clear Thinking Communications, susan@clearthinkingcommunications.com
Sometimes evaluators are too close to their work to find the “gold” that will make important audiences like policy makers and practitioners pay attention and take action. Susan Parker, owner of Clear Thinking Communications, a communications firm specializing in helping nonprofits make a bigger impact, has helped evaluators and foundations revise hundreds of reports so that they will reach a broader audience. Susan will lead the audience through three simple tools they can immediately use to make their reports more accessible and have a bigger impact. She will use case studies from her work to illustrate.
Online Strategies for Sharing Your Evaluations More Broadly
Gabriela Fitz, Issue Lab, gabi@issuelab.org
Gabriela Fitz is co-director of IssueLab, a Chicago-based organization that archives and promotes research produced by the nonprofit sector. Gabi's expertise lies in aggregating and disseminating social policy research and evaluations in ways that matter to diverse audiences. She also has an expertise in determining the key audiences for evaluation—a critical question—and finding those audiences through the use of social media. Gabriela will talk about ways that IssueLab has repackaged collections of evaluations and research reports to make them more broadly accessible and she will provide examples of how evaluators can use social media tools to broaden the reach of their work.

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