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Steps for Involving Intermediaries in Your Program
- Choose organizations, agencies or individuals
(e.g., physicians) who can reach and influence your target audience.
- Involve representatives of the organizations you
want to work with as early as possible in program planning.
- Give them advance notice so that they can build
their part of the program into their schedule, and negotiate what will
be expected of them.
- Allow them to personalize and adapt program
materials to fit their situations and give them a feeling of
"ownership" (but don’t let them stray "off
strategy").
- Ask them what they need to implement their part of
the program. Beyond the question of funding, consider other assistance,
training, information or tools that would enable them to function
successfully.
- Gently remind them that they have responsibility
for their activities; help them do it, but don’t do it for them.
- Provide them with new local/regional/national
contacts or linkages that they will perceive as valuable for their
ongoing activities.
- Provide them with your program rationale,
strategies and messages (in ready-to-use form). Remember that strategic
planning, creative messages, and quality production are the most
difficult aspects of a communication program to develop, and may be the
most valuable product you can offer to a community organization.
- Don’t give them too much to do at once. Provide
them with a series of smaller, more tangible, short-term actions, and a
feedback/tracking mechanism.
- Assess progress through the feedback/tracking
mechanism and help make adjustments to respond to the organization’s
needs and to keep the program on track.
- Remember to provide moral support, frequent
"thank you’s" and other rewards (e.g., letters or
certificates of appreciation).
- Provide them with a final report of what was
accomplished, and meet to discuss follow-up activities and resources
they might find useful. Make sure that they feel they are a part of the
program’s success.
- Don’t forget one final, tremendous "Thank
you for a job well done."
Adapted from: Making Health Communication Programs Work: A Planner’s
Guide. NIH Publication No. 92-1493, April 1992: 57.
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