Curbside Value Partnership

Green Guilt

It seems that, at least for the past five years or so,  the recycling industry has been riding high on a wave of renewed environmental consciousness. The "go green" message could be seen everywhere, from the cleaning products we buy to our favorite TV shows. Suddenly, people, governments and corporations not only believed that It was hip to be green, but that it was the responsible thing to do.

Well, fast forward to the present situation we find ourselves in. With a down economy, unemployment at near-record highs and an estimated 1 in 7 Americans living below the poverty line, it is no surprise that going green has taken somewhat of a back seat.

A recent MSW Management article by Carl Smith with Call2Recycle explains that Americans are no longer motivated by "green guilt" but that they can be motivated in other ways. The article goes on to give the findings of a survey they commissioned in 2009 to gauge America's attitude toward the environment. Definitley worth a read.

Are you seeing the loss of "green guilt" in your community? What are you doing to increase your residents' motivation to recycle? E-mail us or comment below!

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We Want It! Great example of social marketing

We recently came across this video for the City of Toronto's electronics recycling program, which gave us a good chuckle. This video is a classic example of something that we're always trying to convince recycling professionals to try - humor.

Has your recycling program experimented with humor, either in an entire ad campaign, or a piece of a campaign, such as a radio ad or billboard? Comment below or e-mail us.

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How we get our news

In light of our upcoming issue of Bin Buzz focused on better advertising practices (look for it in the mail and on our site this month), we thought we’d share some information about where people are getting their news. The results of a recent Pew Internet and American Life survey are surprising and insightful:

Some get their news from six different sources a day! The overwhelming majority of Americans (92%) use multiple platforms to get news on a typical day, including national TV, local TV, the internet, local newspapers, radio and national newspapers.

The internet is now the third most popular news source, behind local television news and national television news. (Take note: the internet and TV news beat out newspapers AND radio).

Americans like to access news on their own terms. They seek out the news when they have time in their busy schedules. The days of getting news only during 5 and 11 o’clock are OVER.

People’s experience of the news has become a shared social experience. With social networking sites, users can discuss and dissect the news with their social networks like never before. To put it another way: Instead of discussing news at the water cooler or hair salon, people are taking their news debates online.

So, what does this mean for you?

Diversify! Don’t lump all your dollars into one form of advertising as people are turning to multiple mediums.

Take it to the Web. If you haven’t considered advertising online, think again.

Think “mobile.” People like to get their news when they WANT to get the news. That’s why it’s important to spread your advertising dollars over different mediums. Chances are, you’re message will be there when the mood to read the news strikes them.

Give social networking a chance! We hear a lot of excuses from people about why using social networks “won’t work with our residents.” That may be true, but what have you got to lose? Social networking is cheap, it’s fun and it IS increasingly where your residents can be found.

We want to hear your thoughts! Comment below or e-mail us at info@recyclecurbside.org.

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