Evaluate complex campaigns

Evaluate campaigns and other complex communication interventions

The seven-step process described Here facilitates the assessment of individual products and practices against the principles of effective communication. Multi-dimensional communication campaigns to support specific health WHO impacts require more complex approaches to evaluation. Individual products and practices in a multi-step communication project can still be measured on the principles. In parallel, they must also be judged on how well each supports sequential and integrated steps leading to comprehensive health impact (decreasing infections, saving lives, containing infectious diseases, etc.).

It is important to recognise that WHO communication must be timely, understandable, accessible, relevant, actionable, and credible to support efforts to achieve health impact. These are the goals of complex campaigns and interventions (raising awareness, increasing knowledge, influencing attitudes, and building confidence in WHO recommended changes).

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Measure communication on what it can achieve

Communication efforts should be measured on how well they contribute to health impact, as communications can alter levels of knowledge, influence attitudes, and increase knowledge. However, communication is not sufficient by itself to achieve health outcomes.

For example, if the health impact goal is to decrease measles by increasing the immunization of children, communication can play an important role by increasing knowledge of the location of vaccine clinics and increasing positive attitudes towards immunization. Communication cannot, however, ensure the vaccine is delivered, available at the appointed time, or that families have transportation to reach the appropriate clinics. To achieve its role, communication must be integrated with the larger planning efforts.

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Use a logic model

Use a logic model to outline the steps and resources needed to achieve communication goals that support health outcomes and impact. When planning complex, multi-step and multi-dimensional communications projects, communicators could use logic models (also called logic frames).

These help identify the appropriate communication resources and steps that can be strategically integrated with other WHO activities to achieve health impacts (Fig. 2). They can be used by communicators as tools to identify points of evaluation, and help technical experts understand the role that communication efforts play to support WHO impacts.

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Inputs include communication resources put into the project to support its implementation. These include assets such as personnel, finances, and equipment, as well as experience and expertise.

Activities include actions WHO communicators perform to achieve the project’s goals. Activities could include adapting messages to key audiences or creating messages, materials, and their dissemination.

Outputs are first-level results including quantification of activities. Outputs could include the number of posters disseminated, number of staff trained, or numbers of websites linking to WHO content.

Outcomes include second-level results that occur from communication outputs. These are usually changes in audience knowledge, attitudes, or behaviours taken by target audiences based on exposure to WHO communication messages or materials. These changes are necessary to achieve health impact.

Impact refers to longer term health goals such as reduced maternal mortality. These impacts require, but routinely transcend, communication inputs, activities, outputs or outcomes. Many public health functions are required to achieve impacts. Health impacts are also usually the result of multiple interventions by different groups and institution. It is difficult to attribute impact to a single agency’s intervention or campaign.

Questions to consider

Evaluation of communication can be conducted at any point along the logic model and can include finding answers to the following questions.

Were communication activities completed? (Activities).
Were the required numbers and types of products developed? (Outputs).
Did audiences take recommended actions or demonstrate new awareness/skills? (Outcomes).
Were health goals achieved? (Impact).

Types and points of evaluation related to the logic model

Evaluation at different points in the process of a campaign or multi-step communication intervention can inform next steps and future outreach. Ideally, monitoring and evaluation should be embedded from the very start of planning as a core element of a campaign.

Formative or baseline evaluation is carried out before a project is implemented

This type of assessment is conducted to establish the existing status of the target audience and informs the focus of the campaign or intervention.

The methods used at this stage are usually the same as those used in other stages at the mid-term and end of the project. If WHO is trying to increase the number of people who practice healthy behaviours, a baseline assessment is needed to find out what proportion of the target group is already practicing the behaviour and where others are placed along the continuum of action laid out in the Actionable section of the Framework.

Mid-point evaluations are conducted as the project progresses

They establish if a project is advancing towards its goals.

Mid-point evaluation can help build confidence in the project among organizational leadership and partners, increase support for its continued implementation or expansion to other sites. Mid-point evaluation can also identify problems or barriers in the project, pointing to needed corrections or modifications.