A comparative study of printable information, education and communication (IEC) materials and social media as means of receiving information disseminated to electricity consumers in Kampala City

Abstract

The study compared printable IEC materials and social media with intent to determine which of the two was more relevant to the target audience so that companies could pay attention to using it more than the other when sending information to their audiences. The study was motivated by the huge costs that companies tend to incur on sending information their target audiences, but without sufficient empirical research on which of the two means of communication is more relevant from the consumer perspective. Using Kampala electricity consumers as the audience receiving information from Umeme Ltd., the specific objectives of the study were to compare the relevance of these two means in terms of their (1) preference, (2) accessibility and (3) utilisation by these consumers. The study was grounded in the uses and gratification theory complemented by the theory of diffusion of innovations. It was designed as a comparative survey using a mixed methods approach to data collection and analysis. The sample was 360 respondents selected using stratified and convenience sampling. Quantitative data was collected from 340 electricity consumers who were literate enough to fill in the questionnaire. Qualitative data was collected using interviews and focus group discussions held with 20 electricity consumers who were not literate enough to fill in the questionnaire. Qualitative data was analysed using qualitative content analysis. Quantitative data was analysed using descriptive statistical and Chi square methods. Results show that electricity consumers who preferred receiving Umeme information via social media (mainly Facebook, WhatsApp, text messages and email) were significantly more compared to those who preferred using printable IEC materials (85% compared to 25%). Most respondents (62%) were ambivalent about using printable IEC materials. Those who actually used social media to receive information were significantly more than those who actually used IEC materials (77% compared to 23%). There was no significant difference in the accessibility of these two means of communication although social media was slightly more accessible compared to printable IEC materials (84% compared to 82%). Therefore, study concluded that social media and printable IEC materials were both easily accessible, but social media was more relevant compared to printable IEC materials in terms audience preference and utilisation. Recommendations were hence made urging Umeme to use social media more than printable IEC materials when sending information to electricity consumers in Kampala City. More research was recommended into the factors explaining most electricity consumers’ ambivalence towards printable IEC materials.