Developing a communications strategy based on what the client thinks - as opposed to starting with reality - is a risky business. There's nothing that beats basing a strategy on information about what your target audiences know and think about you - then building your plan. It helps you target your communications most effectively.

• Opinion Leaders - Who are they? - People who influence others, who set trends. They can lead public opinion and they can lead internal employee opinions. Ask them questions. Get their advice. We do this all the time - for a variety of clients - for media relations, for community relations, for government relations.
• Focus Groups - We use time-tested focus group research to test concepts and the "why's" behind why people feel the way we do. We've tested policy concepts, communications tools, brands, logos, messages.
• Panels - We've also worked with panels of individuals who are on standby to provide impressions, opinions and advice on any number of issues.
• Polls -- Sometimes you just need to poll - and that can be internal or external. When you need statistical analyses and comparative numbers for to measure changes and trends, this is the way to go. You can build them by neighborhood, by geographic area or by traditional geographic boundaries. We build the questions and analyze the data. Then there are the web polls that we're working on.
• Direct Surveys - Then there are times when your issue is so important that you have to survey everyone. This happens a lot in political campaigns with "phone-banking". We've used this technique to supplement our public consultation process.
• Media Content Analysis - Nobody does it better. If you react to media coverage and plan your communications based on it, do you analyze it? Really? Then why do we have one of the few media content analysts in Canada? And we don't mind interviewing journalists too.
• Internal Communications Audits - We've also done internal communications audits. To audit a new management approach, to audit the efficiency of existing internal corporate communications. And more.

We Can Help You:

• We can help identify and set your research parameters.
• We can match the research to your budget and your needs.
• We can do the research.
• We can build plans based on that research.