In a public relations research course at the S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications, the class had the opportunity to work with a real client to compose a research report.
This client was the United Church of Fayetteville, located just outside of Syracuse in Central New York. This church has Presbyterian and Baptist roots and is a large three-story symbol of faith and service within the Fayetteville community.
A group of four women and I dedicated our research to individuals’ community engagement preferences to then apply to the United Church of Fayetteville. The research done throughout this semester-long course is illustrated below.
To view a full version of the research report: click here
Image Source: United Church of Fayetteville
Case Study: The United Church of Fayetteville
To begin, a situation analysis was conducted. This illustrated key publics for the research (local businesses, the residents of Fayetteville-Manlius and city government). Demographics of these individuals were primarily white, upper-class citizens with an advanced education. This information served as the base when conducting primary research.
UCF showed strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats in relation to community engagement.
STRENGTHS:
- Welcoming anyone into its community once they are in the door
- Taking care of those in its community, the people who frequent its church
- Known and complimented for its music — an important part of many churches
- Hold international, national and local mission projects for outreach to reach new people
- Inclusive of all people regardless of sexuality, gender identification, race or ethnicity
WEAKNESSES:
- Lack social media presence
- Small percentage of its population are youth or families
- Struggle to invite people in for the first time
- Concerned that are aging out
- This makes for fewer volunteers, which UCF is heavily dependent on, and will cause fiscal problems
- Transitioned from weekly to monthly education which fails to pull in families with younger children
OPPORTUNITIES:
- Increase in social media presence
- Expand on preschool program to bring in more families
- Partner with other churches and local businesses for engagement events
- Utilize support from the city government to host community events
THREATS:
- Competing churches:
- Redeemer Church has a strong youth group, offers classes more frequently and live streams its services every weekend
- Trinity Episcopal Church offers Sunday school, a youth group, a choice between family-friendly or quiet services and is great for families with small children.
- Lack of resources has proven to be a significant threat to UCF
From the situation analysis and SWOT analysis, key research questions and objectives were then identified.
Next an online survey was created using Qualtrics. An online survey was chosen because of its accessibility and efficiency. Fourteen questions were crafted to identify demographics along with inquiries that answer the key research questions and objectives.
The survey was shared via the Facebook Group “Fayetteville-Manlius Community Connections” along with being shared to researchers’ personal networks. After being open for ten days, 262 responses were recorded.
As a whole, the survey is generalizable to other participants as it is broad and inclusive. The more people reached, the more one can learn about what other communities are doing and how this could be applicable to the Fayetteville-Manlius area. For these reasons, the survey sampling frame was not limited to any one community.
The survey data was analyzed via Qualtrics reports. The demographics of survey participants were primarily white females with an average household income exceeding $150,000. A vast number of different age ranges were represented. The majority of respondents were 39 to 48-year-olds.
To summarize the results, the main preference for receiving communication on community events was Facebook with 138 answers. This was the top answer for every age group with the exception of ages 18 to 28-year-olds who prefer email and Instagram over Facebook. Key unity builders were identified as local schools and businesses. The local businesses frequented the most by the sample were coffee shops and restaurants. Lastly, the largest motivator for individuals to attend community events was spending time with family and friends (78 first choices) followed by giving back to the community (55 first choices).
The research results are also indicated below via charts.
Swipe or arrow through to view.
Based on the results, effective community engagement events are ones that motivate others through spending time with family and friends or giving back to the community. An example of this includes a concert/fundraiser in the park. UCF could utilize its young organist to participate and lead these events. When communicating, respondents prefer to receive information about these events via Facebook and email. However, when targeting a younger audience, Instagram is a better platform to reach this demographic.
When seeking to reach the community, key unity builders must also be noted. These groups include local schools and businesses. Many Fayetteville-Manulius residents stated in the comments section that the community is very family/school/athletics focused. UCF can use this to its advantage by partnering with local schools and businesses. The businesses to reach people the most at include restaurants and coffee shops. By reaching these audiences and coordinating initiatives to gain interest and attendance, UCF will be able to achieve higher levels of outreach while expanding their current efforts to remain engaged with the Fayetteville-Manlius community.