Part I. Developing an Outreach Campaign Plan
Step 5: Distribute the message

Other distribution considerations

Timing. If your distribution mechanism involves community events, be sure to give the community plenty of time to add it to their calendars. Don't forget that any distribution mechanism that involves the media must be carefully timed.

• Staffing and resources. Think about forming partnerships with local and regional organizations that work on related issues. Also look to business and schools that would be interested in providing funding or staff time. To save time, money, and effort, think about tying your message into a business or organization activity that is already in place.



• Piggyback your message. Piggybacking, or attaching your message onto someone else's message, is often the easiest and most effective way to distribute the message. If the target audience receives a certain periodical or service (e.g., town newsletter or utility bill), it will be more effective to include your message in that publication. For example, if you're trying to reach pet owners, you might want to advertise your message in the local vet's newsletter. It will also increase the likelihood that members of the target audience will actually read your message because they're already familiar with the publication. Piggybacking helps you to reach the audience, and it helps the editor of the host publication generate content for the next issue—a win/win situation for everyone. Some common methods of piggybacking include the following:
  
  
  • Use conferences, workshops or other events to distribute your message and materials
  
  
  
  • Ask local businesses to help you distribute your message. Show them how their help in the effort will benefit their company.

The American Samoan Coastal Program staff piggybacked their message onto the sermons and lessons taught by local ministers through the Religious Consciousness Project. The effort helped spread the word about the islands' environmental problems. Coastal program staff and religious leaders held a common value for the environment. This partnership helped to expand the coastal program's outreach into small villages that were otherwise hard to reach. Because the message was brought to the community through a trusted and respected source, it was more readily accepted.