Town of Cochrane Strategic Plan – Final Report October 2014
usefulness.126 Many organizations are choosing to migrate their websites to a content management
system such as Joomla or Wordpress.127 This approach facilitates frequent updates with minimal
training, so the task can be spread among several individuals if desired. For example, the Clerk’s
office may be responsible for updating Council documents and RFPs. The Economic Development
Officer may update the site’s community development pages and additional individuals may be
assigned responsibility for other sections.
The Town may wish to invest in updating and improving its website to make better use of its
capabilities. This could be part of a greater communications strategy that would include increasing
community engagement, as outlined in the following tactic.
7.4.3.2 Establish 2-Way Communications Channels
Communication with residents, partners and other stakeholders is critical for building trust,
engagement and commitment.128 Research suggests that when residents perceive government
communications to be meaningful and effective, they are more likely to feel they have benefited
from their association with the Town and are more likely to support its initiatives, e.g. a special tax
levy.129 Frequent and ongoing communication is also more likely to increase individuals’ sense of
community identification – a sense of “one-ness” with the community based on shared
understanding and values. This in turn can lead to pro-social behaviours such as volunteerism.130
During the consultation phase, residents indicated that:
• Many people in the community are unaware of what services are available.
• Residents want more frequent and varied communications from the Town.
• Residents want to know what the Town is planning for the future.
Many participants in the consultation process expressed sincere appreciation towards the Town for
engaging them and listening to their ideas.
An effective two-way communications process will:
126
Youngblood, N.E., & Mackiewicz, J.,(2012) A usability analysis of municipal government website home pages in
Alabama, Government Information Quarterly, doi:10.1016/j.giq.2011.12.010.
127
NEOnet (2014). Personal correspondence, February 2014. www.neonet.on.ca.
128
Duncan, Tom, and Moriarty, Sandra E. (1998). “A Communication-Based Marketing Model for Managing
Relationships,” Journal of Marketing, 62: 1-13.
129
Bruning, Steven, Melissa Dials and Amanda Shirka. (2008). Using dialogue to build organization–public
relationships, engage publics, and positively affect organizational outcomes. Public Relations Review, 34(1), 25-31.
130
Van Vugt, Mark. (2001). Community Identification Moderating the Impact of Financial Incentives in a Natural Social
Dilemma: Water Conservation. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 27: 1440-1450.
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