PRIA GOLDEN TARGET AWARDS 2013Category 10: Health Organisations

Entrant: Louise Richardson, Soapbox PRCampaign: ‘The Great Bike Hike’

THE ISSUE

The client:

Fairholme Disability Support Group (FDSG)

The goal:

To support local communities to become welcoming and affirming places for people with disability, mental illness, their families and carers, promoting the Western Australian State Government’s message of ‘Count Me In – Disability Future Directions’

The project:

The Great Bike Hike (TGBH) – group of 10 disabled and able-bodied cyclists riding with a support crew 2,500km from Perth to Broome, stopping at 11 regional communities to give talks to schools and community groups, and host community events in partnership with local groups from the disability/mental health sectors

The challenges:

Working with a committee of volunteers with different skills setsBudget constraints.Ensuring effective communication of a range of messages Diverse range of audiencesMeeting the varying requirements of partners, sponsors and funding bodiesRemote coordination of PR activitiesRapid turnaround during the ride to ensure the website and social media were updated dailyConforming with accessibility requirements for people with disabilities

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THE STRATEGY

PR objectives:

Secure coverage of the project in Perth-based and regional mediaEngage the public via social media, including Facebook and TwitterAttract financial donations to the projectPromote inclusionGenerate attendance at community events

Target audiences:

11 regional communities between Perth and BroomePeople with a disability or mental health issues and their families and carersFunding sources and sponsors (local businesses in each regional community, LotteryWest, Disability Services Commission)Potential donorsCommunity organisations FDSG Management Committee and MembersState Government of WALocal Authorities between Perth and BroomeSchools in each of the communitiesDisability Services Commission (DSC) Local Coordinators

Key messages:

The Great Bike Hike is a ride from Perth to Broome to celebrate and raise awareness of projects and organisations championing the inclusive principles of the WA State Government’s ‘Count Me In’ strategy.The ‘Count Me In’ vision is to create welcoming and affirming communities for people with disability, mental illness, their families and carers.

The range of audiences, their location and the varying levels of possible engagement with TGBH meant that the PR Strategy needed to offer a range of opportunities to get involved.

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EXECUTION

Project conceptualisation:

Soapbox PR prepared a feasibility study, brand identity, PR strategy, and grant and sponsorship applications in late 2011 for The Great Bike Hike.

Website development:

Soapbox managed the production of a highly functional website in collaboration with Zetatech (greatbikehike.org.au).

The website was a hub for all news, information, maps, social media, community and stakeholder engagement, donations and images/video.

Promotional items:

Brochures, wristbands, temporary tattoos, pens, flags, banners, postcards, storyboards, balloons and posters.

A 56 page, full colour A4 book and accompanying DVD was produced documenting The Great Bike Hike.

3Community Booklet 1

Celebrating the Count Me In message in Regional WA

THEGREAT BIKEHIKE

In the spirit of Count Me In

Perth to Broome

19th August to 15th September 2012

Fairholme DISABILITY SUPPORT GROUP INC.

ENRICHING LIVES

AN INITIATIVE OF

MIDLANDMOORA THREE SPRINGS

GERALDTONCARNARVON

PORT HEDLAND

NEW NORCIA COOROW DONGARANORTHAMPTON

KARRATHABROOMEPERTH

HEDLA

ND

BROOME

BASSENDEAN

Publicity:

Media releases, regular blogposts and e-newsletters, and social media including Facebook, Twitter, a YouTube channel and a Flickr photostream were all used in the PR campaign.

Soapbox also assisted with the conceptualisation and production of WIN TV ads and 6PR radio ads.

Account management:

During the hike Soapbox communicated closely with the riders, photographer and videographer, communities being visited and media so that we could deliver daily blogposts detailing exactly what the team was experiencing on the ride.

Budget:

$57,000 over 13 months. 55% of total (est) invested in media relations (traditional and online) Account management largely pro bono

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INNOVATION:

On line and social media provided a way to enable people who were not directly involved with The Great Bike Hike to feel part of the adventure.

This was achieved by:

An online tracking device that enabled people to track the riders’ progress on an interactive map embedded into the website.Regular tweets from cyclistsDaily updates and blog posts posted by the Soapbox team

A photographer accompanied the cyclists and support crew, and every day new images and video were uploaded via Flickr and TGBH’s YouTube channel.

It was also important that The Great Bike Hike returned a benefit to the communities visited. To achieve this, donations to TGBH could be allocated via the website to the project itself, or to specific community group projects that had nominated to come under The Great Bike Hike banner.

The cyclists also carried a Baton-Parchment throughout the trip, with the name of each community added during the ride. The Baton-Parchment was presented to the Minister for Disability Services and Mental Health on the cyclists’ return to Perth.

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RESULTS AND EVALUATION

2,435,000 reach (estimated, based on viewer, listener and readership figures)Average cost per opportunity to view: $0.013

Specific outcomes:

$135,265 funding from LotteryWest$50,000 funding from DSC$78,000 in donations20+ print media articles pre-hike (including The West, Sunday Times, Scoop, Community News, regional newspapers, online, and stakeholder newsletters)18+ radio interviews (metropolitan and regional) before and during the hike20+ print media articles during the hikeGWN TV newsWebsite visits spiked and liker base doubled on Facebook and Twitter10,000 pamphlets, 5,000 postcards and hundreds of posters distributed in each town10,000 wristbands, 5,000 temporary tattoos and 5,000 pens handed out at eventsBroadcasts by Police and Main Roads of daily ride movements and constant two-way contact with truck drivers, tourists and drivers16 school visitsCommunity radio announcementsDirect involvement of WALGA, Department of Sport and Recreation, BikeWest, Disability Services Commission, and City and Shire Councils27 major sponsors securedExhibitions, civic receptions, community events and school visits resulted in tens of thousands of people being exposed to The Great Bike Hike message56 page, A4 full colour book and DVD produced to commemorate the event presented to each community, sponsors, major donors, and the Minister for Disability Services and Mental Health, (also available as a download from website)

The success of The Great Bike Hike has enabled Fairholme Disability Support Group to secure funding for additional projects. It has also reinvigorated community projects in regional Western Australia, with a minimum of 25 significant projects participating in The Great Bike Hike community events in support of Count Me In.

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APPENDICES

1. Reach during the event

Medium Subscrip-ons  or  coverage Engagement  or  bounce  rate

Es-mated  Reach

Website  over  the  month  of  the  hike 1,489  unique  pageviews 39%  (a  li?le  below  average)

3,461  visits;  12,310  pageviews

E-­‐news 375  subscribers 40%  open  rate  (average  not-­‐for-­‐profit  industry  is  20.43%)

N/K

Facebook 123  likers Weekly  total  reach:  1,037

Flickr Total  views  23,898

Twi?er  (182  tweets) 127  followers

Stakeholder  newsle?ers:  sponsor  and  stakeholder  newsle?er  pieces  in  Act  Belong  Commit  news;  DisAbility  Update,  Connect  Groups,  Rotary,  etc.

N/K

State  Print  media  coverage  (The  West  and  Sunday  Times)

8  ar]cles  in  2  state  publica]ons

1,700,000

Community  newspaper  coverage  (metro) 6  ar]cles  in  6  free  community  newspapers

300,000

Regional  newspaper  coverage 22  ar]cles  in  9  regional  papers  in  over  100  WA  towns

85,000  

Magazines  (Scoop) 1  ar]cle 300,000

Online  coverage  (known)(search  term:  “Great  Bike  Hike”)

25  items  across  10  pages  on  Google

N/K

TV  campaign  (WIN)Paid  series  of  30  second  and  15  second  ads

257  airings,  plus  268  bonus/filler  spots  (525  total)

290,952  

Radio  adver]sing  on  6PR  –  30-­‐second  ads 22  spots  over  4  days 20,000  per  airing

Radio  interviews  and  news  announcements Approx.  17  across  6  radio  sta]ons

N/K

GWN  news  coverage 1  news  story  29/8/12 50,000

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2: Facebook engagement summary

3: Flickr user engagement report

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4. Website traffic summary

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