Research communication is one of the very first skills that academicians need to cultivate when they embark upon their respective journeys. Whether it is for technical purposes such as presenting at conferences and writing grant proposals, or to share work informally through academic social networks with friends and family members, it’s imperative for researchers to understand how to use the different modes of scientific communication wisely. However, while most researchers are well aware of the need and importance of research communication, it can be hard to practice, especially if you are only used to communicating in a certain way. This article provides some pointers that you should keep in mind in order to improve your skills at science communication.
3 key steps to strengthen your research communication
- Know your audience and speak accordingly
This is the first essential step to follow to make sure that your content is relatable and effective. If you are catering to an audience that comprises mainly of members of the scientific community, you can use technical terminologies liberally; ensure you don’t dive too much into specifics if they’re not from your field. On the other hand, if a majority of your audience does not belong to the scientific community, you may need to stay away from technical terms and jargon and use clear, simple language. Also consider your audience when communicating your science through social media platforms, such as Twitter and LinkedIn, which will need you to employ different strategies altogether. Here, your audience may be a mix of scientific and non-scientific communities and you can distinguish between them by using relevant hashtags. Hence, it is essential to perform an in-depth study of the different types of audiences you are catering to so you know how to speak to them in order to strengthen your research communication skills.
- Explore different formats for scientific communication
If you want to connect with your audience effectively, you need to convey your work by using a mixture of different formats for research communication – written, verbal and visual. If you are sharing your data on social media platforms, it may be a good idea to create content that is as crisp and attractive as possible to make sure that it quickly catches your audience’s attention, motivating them to go through your data before scrolling further. Here, you can try to experiment with a visual format of scientific communication, creating illustrations that are both impressive and precise. Similarly, when presenting your data through posters and presentations at scientific conferences, it is advised to work on your verbal and visual skills. On the other hand, you will need to focus more on the written aspect of research communication for technical purposes, such as writing a grant proposal. Once you have understood the relevance and importance of different types of formats, and know which to use where based on the purpose and the audience you are catering to, it becomes easier to improve your research communication skills.
- Get in touch with your creative side
Working on this science communication skill is essential if you are catering to an audience that comprises mainly of non-scientific members, including your friends and family members. In order to make sure that they can connect with your work, you may need to tune in to your creative side and think of everyday analogies that you can compare your data with. The most effective way is to weave a ‘story’ out of your data, which can not only be relatable to the audience, but can also keep them engaged.
Red flags to watch for when communicating research
The above pointers give you a brief idea of what to keep in mind while working on improving your research communication skills, however it is also wise to know what you must absolutely avoid to create the maximum impact on your audience:
- Using too much technical data
In order to make sure that your content is precise, refrain from subjecting your audience to a data/information overload as that will dilute the impact of the point that you wish to convey.
- Using too many analogies
While it is essential to be creative with analogies in order to make your content relatable to your audience, make sure that you don’t include too many different types of analogies as that would surely confuse your audience. Choose one kind of analogy that can be applicable to most of your data and stick to it throughout.
- Using the ‘wrong’ language
As part of knowing your audience, make sure that you also take into consideration the language of communication that they are most comfortable with (technical, simple, creative, etc.) and curate your content accordingly.
We hope that the above pointers will help you get started on improving your science communication skills and enhance your academic journey even more.
