How to choose my support
communication ?
Once the target of the science popularization project has been identified, it is important to choose the medium carefully.
At Agricomics, we mainly produce comic books. But sometimes this is not the most appropriate solution. Depending on the target audience and the information to be transmitted, the preferred tool will not be the same. In popular science, we can use a video, a short illustrated text, a podcast, a comic strip, a board game, a poster, etc.
A persona
To correctly identify the popular science support, we will create a persona, that is to say “an imaginary character representing a target group or segment”, according to Professor Bertrand Barthelot*. We will assign an age, gender identity, hobby, profession, etc. It is partly thanks to these characteristics that the support will be chosen.
For a young audience, a comic strip rich in visual details and little text will be optimal, which is not necessarily the case for an older audience. Despite the creation and use of this “average person”, the cliché must be avoided. For this, documentary research is carried out with the aim of finding the best way to speak to a certain generation through the popularization medium.
The persona: an assembly specific to each project
@ctrphotos
The situation
The activity of the target audience is also determining. A grain farmer spends the majority of his time on his tractor. So the podcast format is interesting. The popularization project can be listened to within the cabin itself.
Conversely, for a market gardener, listening to podcasts while working seems complicated. It seems preferable to consider popular science support, which will be consulted after the working day. In this case, a fun format, such as a poster or a comic strip, seems to be adequate.
Different working conditions
@Iakov Filimonov
The contents
Content is also a decisive parameter. For example, a project dealing with the identification of insects, such as the evil bug, requires visual support: a realistic-style comic strip, a technical sheet or a video.
On the other hand, a project rich in information will require a format which allows all the concepts to be transmitted without overloading the target. The podcast is a good solution.
There are therefore many popular science supports that are more or less interesting depending on the target and the message. Many avenues can be explored: stories, songs, poems, painting, video games, escape games...
