A Guide to Ensuring Wide Dissemination and Lasting Impact for Your Research

This guide lays out a series of simple steps that nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) can take to make sure their research products effectively reach the audiences that can most benefit from them, such as funders, researchers, practitioners, policymakers and journalists. It also describes the different types of information that specific audiences want to help NGOs and others tailor their research products to groups they are targeting.

Other topics covered include: how to identify the right journals to publish research, determine which social media groups to join and compile an effective mailing list. The guide also explains why it is important to post research to Wikipedia and the importance (and legal requirements) of depositing copies of books and reports in specified libraries called legal deposit libraries. It also explains the importance of lodging articles about research in open-access repositories.

Primarily designed for organizations in Ireland, the guide’s advice is applicable to NGOs anywhere seeking a wide audience for their research.

Read the report (PDF)