| Course | D647 Evaluating a Communications Strategy |
|---|---|
| Task | Task 1 |
| Paper type | Communications KPI plan |
| Length | About 1,100 words, 3 pages |
| Format | APA 7 |
| School | Western Governors University (WGU) |
| Program | BS Communications |
| Updated | September 2026 |
Free sample paper for D647 Task 1
Count the Goals Members Set, Not the Posts We Publish: A KPI Plan for a Composite Credit Union's Campaign to Engage Members Under Thirty
Student Name
School of Business, Western Governors University
D647: Evaluating a Communications Strategy, Task 1
Course Instructor
Month Day, Year
Count the Goals Members Set, Not the Posts We Publish: A KPI Plan for a Composite Credit Union's Campaign to Engage Members Under Thirty
The Campaign and Its Goals
Gateway Community Credit Union, a composite credit union in St. Louis with 96,000 members, is launching a quarter-long communications campaign called Grow Your Goals. About 14,000 members are aged 18 to 29. Most joined through a parent or a student account and use Gateway only for a debit card, and the credit union is losing them to app-based banks. The campaign promotes a feature in Gateway's mobile app that lets members set savings goals, such as a car or a trip, and move money toward them automatically.
The communications plan sets four business goals for the quarter: increase use of the savings goals feature among members aged 18 to 29; ensure new goals lead to real saving; attract new members in the same age group; and improve how younger members perceive Gateway's help with saving. The campaign uses short videos on two social platforms, email and in-app messages to existing members, a landing page, and branch posters near two universities.
Principles for Choosing KPIs
Industry measurement principles hold that communication should be measured against goals set in advance, that outcomes matter more than outputs, and that measures should reflect effects on the organization rather than volume of activity alone (International Association for Measurement and Evaluation of Communication [AMEC], 2020). Researchers have noted that communication evaluation has long been stuck at counting outputs, such as messages sent and media coverage, and have called for models that link outputs to outtakes, outcomes and organizational impact (Macnamara, 2015). The plan therefore tracks a small number of outcome KPIs for decisions, supported by output measures that explain them.
KPIs, Baselines and Targets
Goal 1, adoption. KPI: number of members aged 18 to 29 with an active savings goal in the app. Baseline at the end of last quarter: 700, or 5% of the age group. Target: 1,400 by the end of the campaign quarter.
Goal 2, real saving. KPI: share of new savings goals that receive at least one deposit within 30 days. Baseline: 52% for goals created last quarter. Target: 65%. This measure matters because a goal set and never funded does not change a member's relationship with Gateway.
Goal 3, acquisition. KPI: new members aged 18 to 29 who open an account through the campaign landing page. Baseline: 320 new members in that age group last quarter from all sources. Target: 450 from all sources, with at least 150 attributed to the campaign landing page.
Goal 4, perception. KPI: share of members aged 18 to 29 who agree that Gateway helps me save, from the quarterly member survey. Baseline: 41%. Target: 50%.
Supporting Output Measures
Output measures show whether the campaign is reaching people and help explain outcome results: video views and completion rate by platform; email and in-app message open and click rates; landing page visits by source, tracked with tagged links; and poster QR code scans. These will be reported but not used to judge success on their own. For example, a video with many views but few clicks to the app is an interesting finding, not a win.
Data Sources and Attribution
Savings goal counts and deposits come from the app's analytics and the core banking system, matched by member number. New accounts come from the account opening system, with the landing page source recorded. Survey results come from Gateway's existing quarterly member survey, with a question added for the campaign. Tagged links attribute visits and account openings to channels. The plan acknowledges that attribution will be imperfect: a member might see a video, ignore it, then set a goal after an email. A comparison of adoption among members who received campaign emails and a randomly selected group of 1,000 who did not will give a clearer estimate of the campaign's effect.
Reporting and Dashboard
A dashboard will show the four outcome KPIs against their targets as progress bars, a weekly line chart of new savings goals, and a table of output measures by channel. Measurement guides recommend reporting a handful of measures that decision-makers actually use rather than every available number (Paine, 2011). The campaign team will review the dashboard weekly and adjust tactics; the marketing vice president will receive a monthly summary; and the board will see a one-page quarterly result.
Using the KPIs to Improve
KPIs are useful only if they change decisions. The team agrees in advance on thresholds that trigger action. If new goals are below 60% of the weekly pace needed by week four, budget will shift toward the channels producing the most goals per dollar. If fewer than 55% of new goals are funded, the team will add an in-app prompt suggesting a small first deposit. If landing page visits are high but account openings are low, the account opening form will be reviewed for friction. At the end of the quarter, the KPIs themselves will be reviewed: a measure that did not inform any decision will be replaced.
Limits of the Plan
Three limits are stated now so they do not surprise anyone at the end of the quarter. First, the perception KPI relies on a survey that younger members answer at lower rates than older members, so a small shift could be noise; the team will report the number of respondents in the age group beside the percentage. Second, the quarter overlaps with the start of the fall semester, when student account openings rise every year, so the acquisition target has been set against last fall's quarter rather than the quarter just ended. Third, some members may set a goal on a desktop browser, which the app analytics do not capture, so the core banking record is treated as the count of record.
Ethical Considerations
Using member data to measure a campaign carries obligations. All analysis will use member numbers, not names, and only group-level totals will appear in any report. The comparison group will simply not receive campaign emails; no member will be denied access to the savings feature. Campaign messages will not pressure members into financial decisions they cannot afford, and the survey will state how responses are used.
Conclusion
Gateway's KPI plan focuses on what matters to the credit union and its younger members: goals set, goals funded, members gained and a better sense that Gateway helps them save. Clear baselines, targets and data sources, supported by output measures and agreed action thresholds, will let the team judge the campaign honestly and improve it while it runs.
References
International Association for Measurement and Evaluation of Communication. (2020). Barcelona principles 3.0. https://amecorg.com/resources/barcelona-principles-3-0/
Macnamara, J. (2015). Breaking the measurement and evaluation deadlock: A new approach and model. Journal of Communication Management, 19(4), 371-387. https://doi.org/10.1108/JCOM-04-2014-0020
Paine, K. D. (2011). Measure what matters: Online tools for understanding customers, social media, engagement, and key relationships. Wiley.
What the D647 Task 1 instructions ask
The first D647 task asks you to plan evaluation for a communications strategy, usually one you describe or one supplied in the task. Your instructions typically want the strategy's goals, the KPIs that will show progress toward each goal, baselines and targets, data sources and a reporting approach. Many versions also ask how the KPIs will be used to improve the strategy while it runs. The task is about planning measurement, so no results are expected yet. What the evaluator wants to see is a clear line from each business goal to a measure that can prove or disprove progress. Pages of campaign description with a short list of metrics at the end miss the point of the task and tend to be marked approaching competence at best on the KPI aspects.
How this D647 Task 1 example is built
This paper describes the campaign in two paragraphs and then states four goals in plain words. A principles section explains why outcomes outrank outputs, citing the Barcelona Principles and research on the measurement deadlock in public relations. The core section lists each goal with its KPI, baseline and target as short labeled entries, so numbers are easy to find. Output measures follow in their own section with an example of why views alone prove little. Data sources and attribution are handled honestly, including a random holdout group of 1,000 members. The reporting section describes a dashboard and who sees what, and how often. Action thresholds, stated limits of the plan and an ethics paragraph on member data come before a short conclusion.
Where the D647 Task 1 rubric puts the marks
In D647 Task 1 the rubric aspects follow the logic of measurement, and each is marked competent, approaching competence or not evident. Expect aspects on goal alignment, where every KPI must connect to a stated goal; on KPI quality, where measures must be specific and observable; and on baselines and targets, which must be realistic and explained. Data collection is its own aspect, so vague sources such as analytics will not satisfy it; name the system and what it records. Reporting and improvement aspects ask who receives results, how often and what decisions they will drive. Evaluators also look for the difference between outputs and outcomes, because the course teaches it directly. APA formatting and clear professional writing complete the rubric.
D647 Task 1 help: what sends it back
The error that returns more D647 plans than any other is counting activity. Posts published, emails sent and impressions are easy to measure, but none of them shows whether the strategy changed anything that matters to the organization. Put outcomes first and keep outputs as explanations. A second problem is the missing baseline; a target of 50% means little if the reader does not know whether today's figure is 20% or 48%. Third, students often name a data source that cannot actually produce the KPI, such as expecting social media analytics to count account openings. Check that each measure has a system behind it. Finally, plan for use. A KPI that will not change any decision during the campaign is decoration and should be cut or replaced.
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D647 Task 1 questions, answered
What is the difference between an output and an outcome in D647?
An output counts what the communicators produced or delivered, such as posts, emails or views. An outcome measures a change in the audience or the organization, such as members funding a savings goal or rating the credit union more helpful.
How many KPIs should a D647 Task 1 plan include?
Follow your task instructions, but a small set usually works best. This sample uses four outcome KPIs, one for each business goal, supported by output measures that explain results rather than judge the campaign on their own.
Do I need real data for D647 Task 1?
The plan needs realistic baselines and targets, which can come from your workplace or a clearly described composite. What matters is that each figure is plausible, sourced to a named system and consistent with the goals it measures.
Does D647 Task 1 need a dashboard?
Many versions ask how results will be reported. A short description of a dashboard, who sees it and how often is usually enough, and it shows the evaluator that the KPIs will reach decision makers in a usable form.
Where can I find a free D647 Task 1 sample paper?
All of it is above: the KPI plan from the title page to the last reference, annotated section by section. When your campaign is different, the desk will build a no-cost first draft around your strategy and your D647 rubric.