I've completed a community assessment of a neighbourhood in Toronto. Some important primary data I have observed is the numerous community and recreational services, as well as a large park that is the centre of the community. I am trying to implement a social marketing ad but I am not sure what I can do without making any assumptions about the community population (i.e. I wanted to hold a health fair that brings all the services to one place so the community can access it and see all the available resources to them, but is that assuming they don't already use these resources?). Please let me know if you have any suggestions.
Thanks!
The best way to avoid making assumptions about the community population is to go to them for input. What you are describing seems like an excellent opportunity to interact with people from the community, share information with them, and learn about what they would like to do or would like to see happen. One way to do this would be by engaging with one or more community organizations (e.g., neighborhood organizations) and talking with them about next steps. It might help to do some focus groups with potential participants/recipients to learn what sorts of things they would like to see happen, whether they would attend, if they would want to help make it happen (or take charge of making it happen). Another idea would be to knock on doors and poll neighbors about their interest in the type of event you have in mind. The more you can involve members of the community, the more likely it is that your initiative will reach them. Hope this helps. Best of luck.