Audience/Listener/Viewer/Sales Figures
Consider who will carry out the tasks of designing feedback mechanisms, distributing these to audiences, analysing and reporting on feedback
Generating evidence
Method / Strengths / Things to consider
Response cards
Comments cards
Comments books / A flexible way of engaging with users
Can be used as part of a display and can be made "fun" and interactive
Need minimal administration
Can encourage users to record their comments in their own way and so takes different levels of ability into account
Can target people engaged in particular activities or in different parts of a site depending upon where the response cards or comment books are placed / Ensuring you have the capacity to analyse comments and reflect on both critical and positive feedback items
Questionnaires and surveys / Good for large-scale collection of evidence
Flexible and can be used in a variety of formats - on-site, by email or post or online, for instance or See an example at
Can include closed or multiple-choice questions to collect broad evidence of learning for computer analysis
Can also include open-ended questions to collect more general comments from users
Can be used flexibly - they can be self-completion or administered by a staff member who can help explain questions that may not be straightforward for some users
Collect demographic information comparison across age / gender
Have the potential to collect information from participants over time about their learning experiences / Consider the project aims and ensure that the questions you ask will help you to evaluate whether these aims have been met (see the ‘Public Engagement Plan’)
Questions need careful phrasing to reflect age, language and ability levels of the target group
Ensure you have the capacity to analyse quantitative survey responses as well as analysing qualitative data provided in response to open-ended questions
Testimony / Can target specific key users, e.g. ask teacher for testimony, give students questionnaire
Can redefine and strengthen relationships with key users
Good for gathering feedback from intermediary users (curators, directors, managers, TV and radio producers etc.) / Ensure that users understand the project aims so that their testimony can address the extent to which these aims have been met
Consider attribution. Ask permission for quotes to be used (e.g. in the next REF), or at least gather contact details so that permission can be sought later. In REF 2014 impact cases position and organisation were given, rather than name
Other methods include:
Interviews, graffiti walls, observations, focus groups, video, images and photographs and artworks
Gathering evidence
- Audience/listener/viewer/sales figures
- Public response to engagement activity: telephone calls, letters and emails
- Reviews
- Prizes and accolades
- Editorials, posts by ‘opinion leaders’
- Website views: page hits, website viewers, average time spent on a site, average number of pages viewed, downloads, geographic location of users
- Social media: online comments, hits, tweets, mention in blogs
- Follow-on activities: rebroadcasts, translations, podcasts, invitations to subsequent public or professional events, media coverage, consultancy work
- Invitations to give advice (e.g. to governments, professional bodies, community groups etc.)
- Evidence of debate among practitioners, leading to developments in attitudes or behaviours
- Evidence of citation in policy, regulatory, strategy, practice or other documents
- Citation in a public discussion, consultation document or judgement
- Economic impact: book sales, tickets sales, programmes sales, increase in tourism
- Contributions (financial or in-kind) by third parties to enhance services or support for the public, or evidence of funds from third parties to enhance or extend the engagement activity
- Any other evidence of impact: e.g. most borrowed book from the library, included on teacher training curricula, 5 star rating on Amazon etc.
Storing evidence
Evidence can be stored in the impact repository
Request access from your Head of Department and email with name, position, department and CRSID.
Links
National co-ordinating centre for public engagement:
RCUK public engagement:
Contacts
Stephanie Swain, University Impact Officer:
Nicola Buckley: Head of Public Engagement: