Empowering Digital Content Creators: A Design Thinking Framework for Engagement and Participation

Abstract

This research explores the development of digital media tools and design thinking to foster audience engagement. The study employs a mixed-methods approach, incorporating design thinking and audience experience design methodologies. Data collection methods include workshops, behavioral observations, in-depth interviews, and skill assessments. The target participants comprise 97 media producers, public communicators, social activists, and media education scholars. The findings reveal design thinking as the most effective tool for cultivating social innovation thinking among media producers and those who aim to communicate social issues communication. The study demonstrates that media producers can leverage design thinking to develop digital media content that fosters audience engagement through a four-step process: 1) In-depth analysis of audience and target issues 2) Design of experiences for content consumption on digital media that align with the target audience's behaviors 3) Design of interaction and engagement processes and 4) Planning media utilization: Develop a content dissemination strategy and select suitable digital media channels to achieve the desired behavioral outcomes from the communication process. Media producers participating in the study expressed their belief that designing engagement processes with audience understanding and digital experience creation enhances the likelihood of achieving communication goals and generating social value.