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63.
That’s how residents rate local leaders’ communication effectiveness on a scale of 0-100 in Cobalt’s most recent annual benchmarking study. Retired residents rated leaders at 65, but young people rated them at 61. And for those age 45-64, the rating fell to 58. It’s clear that communities can benefit from more attention on stronger communication habits. While your to-do list is already full, more attention to an intentional communication discipline delivers big rewards. Here are ways to do that. Understand different audiences within the community Younger residents and older residents have different values, priorities, and communication preferences. But there is much more nuance needed to effectively tie your ideas to what they value. To be even more effective, you should use images that draw their attention and resonate. Understanding your largest demographic groups is part of that effort, and you can become more effective using common psychographic segments. Common tools include Mosaic, Tapestry, and Claritas. Understanding the specific values of the group you want to reach, seeing samples of what they look like, understanding their music and their communication preferences will help you level up the effectiveness of your outreach. Programs such as Cobalt’s Visitor360™ can provide these insights for residents, visitors, and even the local labor pool. Understand different modes Communication modes are types of communication channels such as newspapers, TV, websites, podcasts, posters, etc. There are two main categories: push modes and pull modes. Pull modes require people to take initiative to go access, such as your website, social media pages, videos, council meetings, etc. Push modes are those that intercept people as they go about their lives. These include billboards, email, online advertising, posters, etc. A common mistake is to use only one mode to share information, or to use only pull modes. For example, if an issue is discussed in council (pull mode), is shared on the city website (pull mode), and is put in the paper (pull mode), then almost all of the residents will be completely unaware of it. In addition, different groups have different preferences for which modes they use. Older residents like newspapers, newsletters, and TV. Younger residents like YouTube, Instagram, and Snapchat. Be deliberate in using the push and pull modes preferred by your target groups. If you are trying to reach multiple groups, then use multiple modes to reach everyone. And repeat the communications endlessly. If you think you’re obnoxiously overdoing it, then doubling those efforts will begin improving your effectiveness. Stick to one key takeaway, then support with key messages Communication is hard work. Many local leaders like to be efficient. If there is a communication going out, then they like to share a bunch of stuff at the same time. It’s sharing. It’s transparent. It’s really horrible communication. Residents are not interested in everything you talk about. If they are interested in one element, then drowning that one element in a noisy mess of other messages will simply camouflage it. Most residents will not notice it at all because the other stuff had them tune out. So stick with one key message per communication. It’s less efficient, but it has the benefit of actually working. In addition, identify key strategic messages to shape what people think about the community and the local government. An example might be “We listen to residents and take action.” For all communication efforts, make sure to wrap in those key messages. For example, if there is a community Carp Festival coming up, then sharing that information along with “residents enjoy the opportunity to come together and enjoy downtown. We listen, and this festival helps residents have that opportunity.” Create a worksheet to help If you have something to communicate, a simple worksheet for each “mini outreach campaign” is a great tool to ensure segment preferences, mode selection, and key messaging is thought through. It also makes it easy to hand off to staff. See the sample below. Conclusion The opportunity to strengthen communication is an opportunity to level up community engagement and support. While it isn’t the fastest habit to build, it can become one of the most powerful. 
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For more information on how Cobalt can help you adapt and thrive in the changing demographic, economic and social environment, visit the Cobalt website or reach out to us by email. Let us know if you need anything at all for benchmarking or research data; we are here for you.
Cobalt Community Research is a national 501c3 nonprofit, non-partisan coalition that helps local governments, schools and membership organizations measure, benchmark, and affordably engage communities through high-quality metrics, mobile geofencing data, surveys, and dynamic population segmentation. Cobalt combines big data with local insights to help organizations thrive as changes emerge in the economic, demographic and social landscape. Explore how we can help.
Cobalt Community Research is a national 501c3 nonprofit, non-partisan coalition that helps local governments, schools and membership organizations measure, benchmark, and affordably engage communities through high-quality metrics, mobile geofencing data, surveys, and dynamic population segmentation. Cobalt combines big data with local insights to help organizations thrive as changes emerge in the economic, demographic and social landscape. Explore how we can help.