A communications strategy is only worth the effort if it changes what you do on Monday. ELIXIR-UK’s strategy is a good example of one built to be used, not filed away – and because it’s published openly in the ELIXIR-UK handbook and maintained on GitHub, you can read the whole thing, reuse it, or suggest changes.
What makes it work
A clear vision and a few real objectives
It opens with a one-sentence vision, then four objectives – Belong, Grow, Amplify, Raise – each one checkable against the ELIXIR Hub’s five consortium objectives. The rule is clear: “Every implementation activity should serve at least one of these four. If it doesn’t, ask why we’re doing it.”
Principles that actually make choices
Instead of hedging, it commits:
- “Automate the routine, hand-craft the story.”
- “Expert voices over corporate voices” – amplify a named member rather than issuing a Node statement.
- “Names go on things” – contribution is always attributed.
A strategy that makes decisions is far more useful than one that lists considerations.
Channels grouped by how they’re used
Rather than a flat list, channels are split into what they run (website, newsletters, Slack, LinkedIn, Bluesky…), forums they show up at (the Programme TC, ELIXIR Europe Slack, the Hub Weekly Brief), and one-to-one strategic outreach to named contacts. That grouping tells you not just where they communicate, but how.
An implementation table
This is the operational heart: every activity mapped to its status, audiences, the objectives it serves, and how it’s evaluated. A few illustrative rows:
| Activity | Status | Objectives | Evaluation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Weekly Brief newsletter | Implemented | Belong · Amplify | Unique opens, clicks, new subscribers |
| Impact stories | In progress | Raise | Quarterly social + web analytics |
| Ambassador programme | In progress | Belong · Grow · Amplify | Applications year-on-year |
The discipline is in the rules around it: add an activity only if it serves an objective and reaches a defined audience; retire it if it’s been flat for two consecutive quarterly reviews.
Honest evaluation
It lists what it measures (reach, engagement, action, outputs) and – more unusually – what it deliberately doesn’t: raw follower counts, impressions on boosted content, and “engagement rate” with no action signal underneath. That’s the difference between measuring impact and collecting vanity metrics (see Section 10: Storytelling and impact measurement).
What any Node can borrow
You don’t need the same framework or channels to use the same thinking:
- Tie every activity to an objective – and be willing to retire the ones that aren’t working.
- Group your channels by how you use them, not just by name.
- Decide what you won’t measure, so reporting stays meaningful.
- Keep the strategy open and living – version it, date it, and revisit it when things change.
- Pick a planning structure that fits your context. The point is to have one, not to adopt any particular national framework.