Tailoring your messaging

As littering is a context-specific issue, it’s crucial to tailor messaging for the particular environment.

 This is why we’ve created a range of assets adaptable for the different environments:

·      Tidy Roadsides – targeted at drivers and roadside litter

·      Love Your Forest – targeted towards visitors to forests and other areas of natural beauty

·      Neat Streets – targeted at tourists to the beach

Each of these campaigns’ focuses has tailored messaging, adapted for the environment and behaviour.

For example, Tidy Roadsides asked drivers to ‘Keep it ‘til you bin it’, rather than chucking their rubbish out of the window, whilst Neat Streets BCP messaging focuses on the issue of tidy littering next to a full bin.

Alongside these, we also have #InTheLoop which is targeted at recycling on-the-go. Which whilst closely related to

Once you’ve settled on your messages for a campaign, then you need to decide where to communicate your message.

Make it easy and fun 

• Use everyday language that’s easy to understand and avoid jargon.

• Use positive, encouraging messages and give simple instructions. Focus on the correct behaviours you want to see, rather than the incorrect behaviours that you’re trying to change.

• Add in some humour, puns and local slang where it feels appropriate to lighten the mood and grab attention with something a bit different.

Make it visual 

• Use real-life pictures and videos of your bins being used to demonstrate and reinforce the behaviours you want to see. We’ve found that when testing images, these have consistently been the most effective form of imagery by far.

• Make it colourful! Match the brightness of your bins with the brightness of your comms to create a cohesive look and feel for the campaign.

• When talking about numbers and figures, use comparisons and infographics to help people visualise the topic with something everyday they can relate to.

Reach a wide audience by experimenting with different channels of communication

 Consider:

• Printed assets

• Organic social media.

• Targeted ads on social media to boost the reach of your comms.

• News and press to gain attention and spread the word further.

• Newsletters to reach local audiences.

• Events to engage your audience in person and encourage conversation, like a school presentation.

When it comes to printed assets, there are lots of things to try out. The key principle is to place the message in a relevant and timely position.

In our Tidy Roadsides campaign, we found that signage, combined with bins, positioned at hotspots, helped them work 25% better than either in isolation.

In addition to this consider: 

Some options include:

• Bin vinyls

• Posters

• Point-of-sale signs

• Floor stencils

• Billboards

• Lamppost banners

• Window stickers

• Car bumper stickers

• Stickers to hand out at events

• Bus shelters

• Park banners