How to bridge research to practice: A playbook for emerging communications leaders

UP NEXT spotlights the perspectives of IPR NEXT members as they drive the future of communications with purpose and impact. Learn more about IPR NEXT, the Institute for Public Relations’ membership community for emerging leaders.

Brandon Eigenman is founder & chief storyteller at HealthMosaic PR and programming and experience co-chair for IPR NEXT. 

As a young health communication professional and entrepreneur, I operate in an environment where trust is hard-won and easily lost. Bridging that gap requires more than instinct. It requires research-informed strategy that can give organizations credibility and help guide decisions so they can be defended against scrutiny.

In my practice, industry research serves three interconnected functions: Context, credibility and creation. These aren’t sequential steps, they work together. Context informs credibility, credibility enables creation, all three are always present. To help more clearly understand how these components come together, let’s use a real-life example from a client of mine.

The situation: Telehealth flexibilities implemented during the pandemic kept receiving extensions rather than being permanently implemented. As the communications support for a Health Resources and Services Administration-funded telehealth resource center, my client and I had to navigate this uncertain policy landscape carefully.

Context: Understanding the trust environment was essential. Research featured by IPR found that consumers seek authoritative sources for well-defined health issues but turn to crowdsourcing and social media for less-understood topics where they want authentic dialogue. Telehealth policy was both defined enough to require accurate information, and uncertain enough to demand ongoing engagement. That insight framed how I understood what our audiences were experiencing.

Credibility: As HRSA-funded organizations, we were positioned as neutral authorities — but that positioning came with constraints. We couldn’t speculate or advocate. Research on organizational credibility and audience trust helped justify a measured, consistent approach.

Creation: The research informed a specific tactical decision: we prioritized platforming a subject matter expert who tracked regulatory changes closely and could offer practical insights for providers and billing professionals. Rather than producing more generalized content, we increased frequency on this topic and centered a credible voice who could meet the audience’s need for reliable, actionable information.

Three lessons emerged from this situation that can be applied by any communication professional:

First, diagnose the landscape before building strategy. Use trust and audience research to understand the environment your client operates in. IPR’s Disinformation in Society Report and organizational communication research are useful starting points.

Second, anchor recommendations in evidence and research relevant to your audience and industry. When justifying strategy to clients, leadership or funders, research provides defensible grounding. The Barcelona Principles framework offers industry-endorsed standards to use in conjunction with research and measure the impact of your campaigns.

Third, let research inform tactical decisions. Creation isn’t abstract brainstorming. It’s applying insights within real industry constraints to effectively reach your audience. IPR’s Behavioral Insights Research Center offers practical levers to adapt to specific situations.

Context, credibility and creation work as an integrated system, with research informing each part of the system. Emerging leaders can demonstrate strategic value from day one by using this framework and being intentional about finding research to support their work.