Top Communication Strategies for Horizon Europe

 

During the last week of July, we hosted a series of free webinars covering different key aspects of Horizon Europe projects, from proposal writing and lump sum grants to setting effective KPIs. In today’s post, we’re excited to share some of the most pressing questions our participants asked during our communication-focused webinar on proven strategies to maximise impact in Horizon Europe projects. 

If you missed any of our webinars, don’t worry—you can access all the recordings on our website. 

Without further ado, let’s dive right into it! 

Section 1: Communication Strategy 

1. Hi, I see that in "Communication" you don't include internal communication; but we usually consider this as part of the communication domain also. Any thoughts on that? 

We did cover the aspect of internal communication in a later part of the webinar, where we shared some tips. To highlight some of the most important topics: 

Involve Your Consortium: 

• Regular Meetings: Set up dedicated meetings focusing strictly on communication and dissemination (C&D) activities. 

• Monthly Emails: Send detailed monthly emails outlining the C&D plan, specifying tasks and responsible parties. 

• Accountability: Don't be afraid to name names and tag team members for accountability. 

• Executive Board Meetings: Bring up C&D topics during executive board meetings. 

• Coordinator Support: Rely on the project coordinator for guidance and support. 

2. Can we change the social media channels we put in the proposal once the project starts? 

Yes, you can change social media channels as needed to adapt to changing circumstances and audience preferences. However, it’s important to document the rationale for any change and ensure that all project partners and your Project Officer are informed and aligned with the new strategy, which should be updated accordingly in your Dissemination, Exploitation, and Communication plan. 

3. What to do about Twitter? Should we carry on having this social media platform moving forward? 

Recently, X (previously Twitter) has seen a strong backlash due to changes in its leadership and policies, with some organisations citing ethical reasons for closing their accounts and choosing to engage with their audiences on other platforms (for example, Threads, Bluesky, or Mastodon). In our opinion, this decision should rest with the project’s consortium after weighing the pros and cons. Despite the controversy, some projects might find their target audience(s) on this platform still.  

4. Any interesting success stories from minor platforms such as BlueSky or Mastodon? 

We haven’t tried out these platforms yet, but we are planning to in the upcoming months (Threads was also on our mind as an alternative to X), so stay tuned as we will share more from our experiences when the time comes. 

5. I have a question regarding the new incarnation of Euraxess platform, the one called ERA-Talent. What do you think about this platform in terms of communication and dissemination? 

The new ERA-Talent platform, which succeeds Euraxess, is structured to foster collaboration, knowledge sharing, and networking across Europe and beyond. 

It provides a valuable channel to reach a broad audience of researchers, institutions, and stakeholders interested in European research and innovation. By using this platform, projects can disseminate their findings, promote events, and share opportunities for collaboration. 

Additionally, the platform's emphasis on researcher mobility and career development aligns well with the dissemination objectives of many Horizon Europe projects, particularly those focused on capacity building, training, and knowledge transfer. Integrating ERA-Talent into your project's dissemination strategy could enhance visibility, engage relevant audiences, and support the long-term impact of your research activities. 

 6. Do you have any tips to reach targets that are hard to reach? 

Think outside the box and identify a strategy that perhaps you haven’t tried in the past but might help you to reach these targets. Form alliances with other projects as together you will be more impactful. Try to find the umbrella organisation or specific interest organisations of that target group that is hard to reach and offer them something they need so they, in return, can help you sending your messages to the target groups. Or, are you having trouble reaching a certain number of social media followers and/or interactions? Paid advertising might boost those numbers. Ask more experienced colleagues for help and look for advice online from key experts in the industry. 

Section 2: KPI Development and Monitoring 

7. The KPIs in the impact section may overlap with the ones in the communication section (number of target groups reached). Should we mention it twice? 

This is not necessary. We would suggest indicating them in one section and then clearly cross-referencing them in the other. 

8. I see mainly quantitative KPIs. What about qualitative ones? Such as reaching the RIGHT people. 

Qualitative KPIs are important for Horizon Europe projects to ensure that they reach the right audiences. These focus on the quality and impact of interactions, rather than just numerical metrics. However, keep in mind that they will require extra effort and might be harder to follow up, so we don't advise abusing these.  

A practical example of a qualitative KPI in Communication and Dissemination could be feedback collected through questionnaires after a course, event, or workshop. These questionnaires can provide insights into participant satisfaction, the relevance of the content, and the effectiveness of the engagement, offering a deeper understanding of the impact beyond just attendance numbers. 

9. How should I structure the proposal to effectively outline my KPI targets? Can you show some examples of how to present them? 

The project’s KPIs are commonly included in section 2.2 of the proposal, that refers to the measures the project commits to taking to maximise its impact. A clear and structured way to do so would be through tables that clearly state the action and the target to be reached. 

e.g 

Table 1 Example  

Specific result or action	Target audience	Tools and Channels	Metrics, Indicators and targets

 

Table 2 Example 

Target Audience	Objectives, Messages	Key results of interest	Metrics, Indicators and targets

 

10. How will you link KPI between objectives and impact strategies? 

In a Horizon Europe project, KPIs are directly linked to objectives and impact strategies to ensure that the project delivers measurable results that align with its goals. Here’s how you can make these connections: 

• Align KPIs with Project Objectives: Each KPI should be designed to measure progress toward your project's objectives. For example, if one of the objectives is to increase stakeholder engagement, a relevant KPI might be the number of stakeholders participating in project events. 

• Integrate KPIs into Impact Strategies: KPIs should be used to track progress on these strategies. For instance, if your impact strategy includes enhancing innovation capacity, KPIs could measure the number of new technologies developed or the extent of knowledge transfer to industry partners. 

11. What happens if you don't reach any of the KPIs? 

If the KPIs you set out to achieve in the beginning are not reached by the end of the project, you will breach the Grant Agreement’s ‘Proper Implementation of the Action’ article. There are consequences of non-compliance.  The most common ones are costs rejected or grant reduced. However, if some of the KPIs are partially reached, or some are not reached but others have exceptionally well results, you can justify the effort invested and outcome reached even if not all KPIs were fully fulfilled. Be careful though as KPIs are strictly monitored by the European Commission. 

12. Can you please provide some examples of KPIs for exploitation? 

• Number of licenses secured.  

• Number of results openly available (copyright protected with open licences). 

• Number of research outputs openly shared on GitHub, OSF or other platforms. 

• Number of new patents or intellectual property filings (design, trademark, trade secret, utility model). 

• Licensing agreements secured. 

• Number of industry partnerships formed. 

• Adoption rates of new technologies or methodologies. 

• Number of research collaborations that will be formed or continue thanks to the project. 

• Number of standards validated. 

• Number of policy groups discussing the project’s policy brief or recommendations.  

• Research data transfer agreements signed (research data further used by other organisations or projects) 

• No of Datasets contributing to EOSC. 

• Investment raised by the project. 

 

13. I do not understand how we link the KPI and the person month 

It’s simple: the more ambitious the KPIs are, the more effort you will have to allocate to reach them – and this translates into a need for more substantial resources, therefore to more person months. 

Thanks for reading this far, that’s everything for today! What did you think about these topics?

Do you have any question unanswered? Let us know in the comments and stay tuned for part II, where we will go over Tools and Resources, Project Proposal and Implementation, and Practical Examples and Resources!