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1. Introduction to Science Communication
- 1.1 Learning from past mistakes
- 1.2 Case study: Cumbrian sheep farmers
- 1.3 Where did it go wrong
- 1.4 Moving towards a dialogue model
- 1.5 Science communication scale
- 1.6 The spectrum of public participation
- 1.7 Identify the participation level
- 1.8 Why should we engage the public with science?
- 1.9 Your science communication motivations
- 1.10 Bonus homework
- Introduction to science communication quiz
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2. Dialogue
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3. Audiences
- 3.1 Science? Not my cup of tea!
- 3.2 Rate your ‘capital’
- 3.3 Science capital
- 3.4 Case Study: Mr Okello’s class
- 3.5 Who has science capital?
- 3.6 There is no general public
- 3.7 Audience segmentation
- 3.8 Case Study: A V&A museum exhibition
- 3.9 Tailoring to specific needs and interests
- 3.10 Tailoring activity
- 3.11 Bonus Homework
- Audiences quiz
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4. Presentation Skills
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5. STEAM
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6. Communications and Branding
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7. Media and Journalism
- 7.1 The role of science media
- 7.2 Does the media harm science?
- 7.3 Journalism to ‘churnalism’
- 7.4 Fake news and alternative facts in a post-truth world
- 7.5 How do we tackle fake news and post-truth politics?
- 7.6 Misleading reports
- 7.7 Psychopathic gin drinkers
- 7.8 Bonus homework
- Media and journalism quiz
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8. Online and Social
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9. Writing
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10. Videography
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11. Evaluation and Planning
3.7 Audience segmentation
So how do we narrow down our audiences and identify how best to communicate with them? This depends on the kind of reach you expect from your communication. If you’re aiming for large reach, i.e. through broadcast or digital media, publication, blog and so on then audience segmentation may be useful.
Audience segmentation is a technique marketers and producers of media use to tailor their campaigns or products to specific groups. It involves profiling people in terms of demographics (what they are), psychographics (how they think), habits (how they behave), as well as considering the kinds of media they might access.
A specific segment might then be chosen and communication tailored to that group.
In the UK, a regular survey has taken place called the Public Attitudes to Science Survey. The data collected from these surveys was used to segment the British public into six different groups in 2011 and this has been tracked over time. This provides a good example as to how audience segmentation might be done:
Read the following profiles for each segment. For each one, try to think of someone you know personally who may fall in that group. What kind of communication would they prefer?