Our Measurement Maven this month is Maria Olmedo-Malagon, Program Manager, 2020 Census Communications Campaign, at the U.S. Census Bureau. I stumbled onto Maria’s presentation at the annual PRSA ICON while waiting for my own session to begin, and I was so glad I found it. Getting the skinny on the inner workings of something as high profile as the 2020 Census is this former reporter’s fantasy. Also, her presentation was full of great metrics.
It turns out, as my fellow taxpayers will be pleased to note, that the communications folks at the Census are required to measure everything and regularly report on their results. (If only all organizations had similar requirements!) The Census tries to reach every human being living in the United States, and they do that with an integrated communications plan that is rolled out over the course of two years. So every piece of digital content, every campaign, and every audience was measured at some point.
And we’re not just talking clicks and impressions. The Census calculated the impact of their efforts on returned census forms and online filing — the whole purpose behind the campaign. Of particular note to comms professionals struggling with diversity metrics: they had to show the impact of their efforts on those demographic populations that historically were least likely to respond.
For her great presentation and fabulous metrics, we therefore name Maria Olmedo-Malagon our Measurement Maven of the Month. Congrats! ∞
Image thanks to @raceandequality on Twitter.
