How To Do It

If your evaluation is seeking information about the development, implementation, effects, costs, and cost benefits of the communication activities, you need to write objectives that stipulate your expectations about the activities to be developed and implemented, the persons to be reached by the activities, and the intended costs/effects of each activity.

Objectives are more specific than the goals. Whereas goals are general statements of intent and state the "grand reason" for engaging in your communication efforts, objectives specify intermediate accomplishments or benchmarks that represent progress toward the goal. Objectives are specific, measurable, achievable, realistic, and time-phased (SMART).

Communication objectives should state what the audience will know, feel, and do and should answer these questions:

• Who specifically will be affected?
• What will happen?
• What do you want people to know?
• What do you want people to do? Not to do?
• How much change will occur?
• Where will the change or event occur? What areas are affected?
• When will the change or event occur?

SMART Objectives

• Objectives should be specific. Explicitly state what you want to happen as a result of your communication.

  Specific Objective: By May 2003, at least 70% of the general population will be able to recite 3 steps they can take to prevent contracting West Nile Virus.

  Non-Specific Objective: The population will be vigilant in their role to help prevent terrorism.

• Objectives should be measurable. You should ensure that you have ways to track progress toward your objective. If you want to change attitudes, can you administer surveys to explore attitudes? Measurable objectives are often used to create evaluation criteria that measure success.

  Measurable Objective: By March 2003, 80% of all primary and emergency health care workers will be vaccinated against smallpox.

  Non-Measurable Objective: To ensure that the public understands how Anthrax can be contracted.

• Objectives should be achievable and realistic. Be realistic about what your program can do. You may increase the number of times nurses wash their hands each day. However, setting the reduction of hospital infections as a communication objective may not be feasible if factors other than communication need to be addressed.

• Objectives should be time specific. Your communication effort is not likely to last indefinitely. Identify your end point and points along the way at which you will measure progress.

Consider the following Communication Objective Worksheet to create effective objectives: