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Working with the local media

Working with the local media - an example of best practise from Stoke-on-Trent, 2001

In Stoke the local authority worked closely with the media from the early stages of planning, and the originally modest scheme developed into an altogether more ambitious In Town, Without My Car! project, as local media involvement and promotion of the day gradually levered in higher levels of support and sponsorship from the local business community.

The following tips are based on the co-operation between the local authority and local radio station, thanks are due to Lisa Hughes from Sign al Radio [http://www.signalone.co.uk/] of Stoke-on-Trent.

  • Pre-promoted roadshow/outside broadcast from the event with a prize of a bike for the member of the public who turns up having used the most bizarre form of transport - pram/go-kart etc.
  • Kids competition to tie up with a shopping centre to design new style of bike/helmet, the shopping centre to display entries etc.
  • Walk to Work day, print t-shirts anyone spotted wearing t-shirt walking to work wins a prize such as a pair of trainers or a bike.
  • Join forces with local bus or train company to create a pass for discounted bus travel, tied in with a radio station will give a trendier/sexier image.
  • Radio airtime advertising
  • Infomercials to broadcast on air about the benefits of walking and cycling both on the environment and health.
  • Radio interviews with key participants or organisers
  • Good links to business can be made through Town/City/Shopping Centre managers.