http://www.recyclecurbside.org All the Curbside Value Partnership Blogs en-us Copyright 2010 Curbside Value Partnership http://backend.userland.com/rss/ Sat, 13 Mar 2010 14:00:00 EST http://www.recyclecurbside.org/assets/img/cvp_logo.png http://www.recyclecurbside.org Diving into the social media universe can be a daunting task for anyone, especially if you’re doing so to promote your community’s recycling program. There are so many ways to interact with social media – through blogs, YouTube, Flickr, etc. – you may be wondering if there is a good starting point. A place to get your feet wet without diving into the deep end. Well, the good news is that there is! To make the social media world a little less intimidating we recommend starting out with Facebook. Facebook is a social networking Web site where people who have personal profiles can interact with friends and acquaintances who also have personal profiles. Facebook allows users to show their support for causes or to become “fans” of companies or organizations. Starting a fan or cause page for your community’s recycling program is extremely easy. And the best part? It’s FREE! Not convinced Facebook is for your program? Here are some quick facts about Facebook that may change your mind: There are more than 400 million active users on the site. 5 billion pieces of content (Web site links, photos, news stories, etc.) are loaded to the site EACH WEEK. More than 1.5 million local businesses have active pages on Facebook. The average user on Facebook has 130 friends. That’s 130 people that will be exposed to your messages for every ONE of your fans. Here are some easy tips for getting started on Facebook: Start by creating a personal profile of your own to get a feel for the site and its many functions. This can take as little as five minutes depending on how detailed you want your profile to be. Get “friended.” When you get your personal profile up and running, start searching for everyone you know and become their friend on Facebook. The more friends you have the more people you can ask to become “fans” of your recycling program's page. Start your program’s fan page (you MUST have your own personal profile to do this). Here’s where to get started: http://www.facebook.com/home.php?#!/pages/create.php Plan your content for the new page first. Know your target demographic. Know what kind of events or news you want to promote on the page. (Hint: you want to keep the page as fun and dynamic as possible) Here is an article that describes all the elements of a successful fan page: http://mashable.com/2009/03/30/successful-facebook-fan-page/ Here are some sample fan pages we like: YouGottaBeKidding.org fan page: http://www.facebook.com/?ref=home#!/pages/YouGottaBeKiddingorg/125027614858 RE3.org fan page: http://www.facebook.com/?ref=home#!/group.php?gid=4722719197&ref=ts Athens-Clarke County fan page: http://www.facebook.com/?ref=home#!/group.php?gid=61691220943&ref=ts Have some Facebook tips of your own or know of an awesome fan or cause page? Comment below or e-mail us at info@recyclecurbside.org! http://www.recyclecurbside.org/blog.cfm?eid=779 info@recyclecurbside.org (Curbside Value Partnership) Wed, 10 Mar 2010 00:00:00 EST The New Year marks the traditional time for making resolutions. That should also include professional resolutions, whether it’s to start a new recycling education program or tweak your existing efforts. That is where CVP can help. If you haven’t made a list of resolutions already, here is a list of some things to think about: Take a fresh look at your Web site. Is it up to date with your program’s current information? Have you added new materials or changed collection dates? Do you have current contact information up? Make sure that information is on your site now. Get your calendar out and make a plan. It’s never a bad idea to have a detailed plan for the year ahead. What community events are coming up? When are the significant environmental holidays (Earth Day, America Recycle’s Day, etc.)? Also, think about including deadlines for grants and significant data reporting deadlines. If you purchase advertising, note when your ads will appear throughout the year which (when paired with your collection data for each month) will help you determine if your activities are working. And, speaking of data. Make a reminder to yourself to calculate data on a regular basis. Having fresh, updated data each month can help you generate factoids to use in brochures, fliers, newsletters and even ads or press materials. And, of course, good data will help you stay on track. Consider social media. Yes, we know we’ve been over this, but social media is becoming more mainstream by the minute, easier to use, and, it’s fun AND cheap! It’s also not going away. Not sure how to approach your community leaders with an idea for social media? Here is a sample “ask” letter (link to Campaign Central ask letter) that might help you start the conversation. Insert your resolution here. Have a resolution or goal for your program in 2010 or beyond you’d like to tell us about? Comment below or e-mail us at info@recyclecurbside.org. http://www.recyclecurbside.org/blog.cfm?eid=732 info@recyclecurbside.org (Curbside Value Partnership) Wed, 13 Jan 2010 00:00:00 EST According to a new study published by the University of California, San Diego, Americans now consume more information than ever before. The study, aptly titled "How Much Information?" revealed that last year Americans consumed more than 3.6 zettabytes (or 3,600 exabytes) of information in their homes. By the way, one exabyte is about equal to all of the hard drives in the state of Minnesota, which has a population of 5.1 million.  Read the article here: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/12/09/americans-consume-100000_n_386062.html Here are some other interesting tidbits from the study:    Americans spend an average of 11.8 hours per day receiving information, which adds up to about 1.3 trillion hours of information consumption in a year.   Forty-one percent of Americans' information consumption time is spent watch TV, although TV accounts for less than 35 percent of the information bytes consumed.   Fifty-five percent of information bytes consumed in the home come from computer and video games. The study explains that this share of our 3.6 zettabytes is so big in part because modern game consoles and PCs create huge streams of graphics.   The researchers calculated that we consumed, on average, 10, 845 trillion words in 2008, or about 100,000 words per American, per day. (As the New York Times points out, Tolstoy's "War and Peace", for comparison, is 460,000 words long).   Are you surprised by the results of this study? Do you feel like YOU consume this much information? What are your residents spending thier time watching or doing? Comment below or e-mail us at info@recyclecurbside.org!     http://www.recyclecurbside.org/blog.cfm?eid=728 info@recyclecurbside.org (Curbside Value Partnership) Fri, 18 Dec 2009 00:00:00 EST Check out RE3.org's latest blog posting and tell us what you think about the new campaign! http://re3org.blogspot.com/2009/12/partnering-with-city-of-greenville-and.html   http://www.recyclecurbside.org/blog.cfm?eid=727 info@recyclecurbside.org (Curbside Value Partnership) Mon, 14 Dec 2009 00:00:00 EST Some communities in Minnesota are now accepting holiday lights at the curb, the Recycling Association of Minnesota just announced. Read the full story here. What holiday materials will your program be accepting this year? Anything unusual? Comment below or e-mail us at info@recyclecurbside.org. Happy Thanksgiving! http://www.recyclecurbside.org/blog.cfm?eid=726 info@recyclecurbside.org (Curbside Value Partnership) Wed, 25 Nov 2009 00:00:00 EST Interested in starting a blog to promote your community’s recycling program but not sure where to begin? Sometimes the best inspiration for a blog comes from reading other blogs, especially the more influential and successful ones. Try to get in the habit of reading other blogs on a regular basis. It can be fun! There are recycling blogs, political blogs, sports blogs and even blogs for people who knit! The   entertainment and learning opportunities are limitless. We've provided a few blogs here for recommended reading, but if you have one you'd like to recommend please comment below or e-mail us at info@recyclecurbside.org! RE3.org - This blog, dedicated to promoting recycling in North Carolina, is written by the folks at the North Carolina Division of Pollution Prevention and Environmental Assistance. It's one of the best blogs promoting recycling we've seen. They update their posts regularly with information important to North Carolina residents. Lifehacker - This blog is dedicated to tips and downloads to help you organize your time and life better. Articles vary from advice on how to make the most of your digital devices (IPhone, MP3 player, etc.) to ways to incorporate money-saving practices into your daily routine (i.e. brewing the best coffee you can at home). You Gotta Be Kidding - Designed to help promote the state of Georgia's statewide recycling education campaign, YouGottaBeKidding.org has taken on a life of its own. The blog's four contributers (who are ficticious, yet hilarious) each talk about their ridiculous reasons for not recycling (i.e. Tommy's constant quest to find a new planet for us all to live on once Earth is filled with trash). Got2BeGreen - Focuses on ways to incorporate being "green" into your everyday life, such as taking advantage of tax credits out there for purchasing certain eco-friendly items. Mashable -  We're always stressing the importance of using social media in your communications with residents. This is the largest and most popular blog dedicated enhancing your use of social media and social networks like Facebook, Youtube and MySpace.   http://www.recyclecurbside.org/blog.cfm?eid=725 info@recyclecurbside.org (Curbside Value Partnership) Tue, 17 Nov 2009 00:00:00 EST Last month we told you about Hillsborough County, FL's new contest to promote recycling using images of famous "Bins" posted on billboards and bus sides throughout town. Tallahassee, FL is holding a contest of their own to promote recycling called "Feed your smart cart," which starts today. Check out the details here. Contests are a fantastic way to generate buzz about your recycling program among residents and the media in your community. Just remember, the simpler the contest the better. Tallahassee, for instance, is simply asking residents to set their recycling carts out on their designated collection day. During the campaign period set-out rates will be counted and the neighborhood with the most carts set out will get a $5 utility bill credit. Simple, yet effective. Check back next month and we'll post the results! Has your community executed a simple and effective contest? Or do you have an idea for a contest you want to share? We're all ears! E-mail us at info@recyclecurbside.org or post it in the comments section below. http://www.recyclecurbside.org/blog.cfm?eid=705 info@recyclecurbside.org (Curbside Value Partnership) Mon, 19 Oct 2009 00:00:00 EST For part two of our blog series focusing on cost-effective outreach strategies, we asked our three recycling professionals about their most successful and least successful strategies for cost-effective outreach. We spoke to: Kathryn Brown, Waste Reduction Specialist, Solid Waste Management Department, Hillsborough County, FL Kelley Dennings, Education and Outreach Project Manager, North Carolina Dept. of Environment and Natural Resources, Division of Pollution Prevention and Environmental Assistance Linda Leighton, Waste Reduction Specialist, City of Raleigh, NC Here's what they said:   KB: The newsletter has always been a very successful outreach tool for Hillsborough County’s recycling program. It generates a lot of bin requests, recycling questions, presentation requests and general interest in our programs from our customers. Presentations to school and community groups have been effective for the County as well. The reach is smaller, but it allows you to tailor your message to the specific group and really educate people about recycling on a more personal level. KD: The basketball tournament has been very successful for RE3.org. We participate in the usual Earth Day events every spring, but we also try to conduct outreach at events that are not thought of as environmentally friendly per se. It provides us an opportunity to speak with citizens that we might not normally see. We then provide technical assistance to the event coordinator on how to set up recycling, if it is not currently being collected. LL: The most successful things we’ve done have been the use of our government access channel; the billboards and truck sides; the direct mail pieces we send out; the magnets; the MRF tours; the events we’ve done with game and prizes; and the e-mail blasts to residents. We love the e-mail blasts because people can keep forwarding them and they get circulated very quickly! The least successful methods we’ve used have probably been the most expensive (radio ads, television ads, door hangers, etc.) We have community bin drives, but it is very hard to get people to come to them. Drop us a line! We want to know what successes and failures you've experienced while trying to educate your audience cost-effectivley. E-mail info@recyclecurbside.org. http://www.recyclecurbside.org/blog.cfm?eid=697 info@recyclecurbside.org (Curbside Value Partnership) Fri, 09 Oct 2009 00:00:00 EST Check out this cool video produced by The Economist for their Media Convergence Forum. Contains some very interesting and eye-opening statistics about our use of cell phones, social networking sites and other social media tools. Yes, ladies and gentlemen, social media is here to stay! Did this video make an impression? Tell us your thoughts! E-mail us at info@recyclecurbside.org or comment below!         http://www.recyclecurbside.org/blog.cfm?eid=698 info@recyclecurbside.org (Curbside Value Partnership) Thu, 08 Oct 2009 00:00:00 EST We recently asked three professionals in the recycling world to share with us their most cost-effective strategies for education. We asked: Kathryn Brown, Waste Reduction Specialist, Solid Waste Management Department, Hillsborough County, FL Kelley Dennings, Education and Outreach Project Manager, North Carolina Dept. of Environment and Natural Resources, Division of Pollution Prevention and Environmental Assistance Linda Leighton, Waste Reduction Specialist, City of Raleigh, NC Here's what they said: Q: Describe some of the recent education/outreach strategies you have used in the past or plan to use in the future? Kathryn Brown: In the past, Hillsborough County’s education and outreach efforts have focused primarily on: distribution of an annual or bi-annual recycling newsletter to all residents by mail; development of an educational tabloid that is distributed in the Sunday edition of the local newspaper on an annual basis; presentations to school and community groups; and attending local community events to distribute program literature and promotional items related to our programs. Over the next few months, we will be launching several new education and outreach methods through our partnership with CVP. The outreach methods include: billboards, transit advertisements, cinema advertisements, radio spots, an online contest and more. All of these will be designed to drive traffic to a new recycling website - www.HIllsboroughRecycles.org. We are very excited about this unique opportunity, and we look forward to evaluating the results we get from this kind of coordinated multi-media strategy. Kelley Dennings: RE3.org used outreach events as an education strategy during the summer. We staffed a booth at a month-long basketball tournament (high school, college and pro players are involved) that was free and open to the public. The college just started recycling this year and wanted to draw attention to its program. We gave out recycling brochures, free temporary tattoos for the kids and bottle openers for the adults. Everyone had to complete a recycling survey before receiving a promotional item. As of Oct. 1, 2009, plastic bottles will be banned from landfill disposal, so we are recruiting a “street team” composed of college students to get the word out through guerilla marketing strategies. The street team will be involved in our BANneD music tour. To get the word out, we are partnering with local music venues throughout N.C. to have a recycling presence, staff a recycling booth and have the bands mention recycling throughout the show.  Linda Leighton: It feels like we’ve tried them all! We’ve used our local government Community Channel to post videos; paid TV commercial spots; we’ve used outdoor ads like billboards, truck sides; door hangers and magnets with useful information for residents; fliers and other direct mail pieces; online avenues through social media, our Web site and e-mail blasts to residents; radio spots; PSA’s; community events, bin drives, MRF tours and incentive programs; and all our ads are now bi-lingual.  We have been awarded a grant to launch an incentive program city-wide in the fall, so we are eager to see how that will affect participation. Stay tuned for part two! We want to hear from you. What cost-effective outreach/education strategies have you used or plan to use in the future? http://www.recyclecurbside.org/blog.cfm?eid=691 info@recyclecurbside.org (Curbside Value Partnership) Thu, 17 Sep 2009 00:00:00 EST Just came across this article in Waste & Recycling News describing a study that the Shelton Group of Knoxville, TN conducted recently. You can read the article here, but basically they found after surveying more than 1,000 people that there is NO typical green consumer. Their findings are interesting yet not altogether surprising. CVP has found time and again through our work with communities that there is no "magic bullet" formula or message that will motivate people to recycle or become environmentalists.   However, there are methods for communicating that will increase the chances that your message will be heard and acted upon. Here are some of our learnings: - Communications must be ongoing and consistent. - Participation must be promoted. - “Get a bin” messaging is the most effective. - Touch on “the basics” such as how, when and where to recycle. - Show the impact of recycling using local factoids. - Visually get away from the expected. - Go outside of your comfort zone. - Jargon is boring. Avoid it. - The status quo is not enough. - Web sites are often the most overlooked, underutilized marketing tool. And a new one to consider: - Use social media outlets like Facebook and a blog to communicate to an increasingly web saavy auduence. Have any advice to share to break through the clutter and reach residents? Comment below or e-mail us at info@recyclecurbside.org! http://www.recyclecurbside.org/blog.cfm?eid=684 info@recyclecurbside.org (Curbside Value Partnership) Fri, 28 Aug 2009 00:00:00 EST Our next issue of Bin Buzz will be coming out in September and will feature a special section dedicated to all things social media (Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, etc.) In preparation for that, we'd like to share this presentation we came across that gives some good insight into social media. Enjoy! Social Media Overload - Making Sense of it All!     http://www.recyclecurbside.org/blog.cfm?eid=679 info@recyclecurbside.org (Curbside Value Partnership) Fri, 14 Aug 2009 00:00:00 EST Just read this article in the New York Times that may be helpful to those just starting their social media journey. The article focuses on helping small business owners manage their online presense through social media, but provides some great tips that I think recycling coordinators can apply. Here's a brief snippet: ...managing your online reputation requires a whole new skill set, including monitoring the online conversation and engaging with customers and the tech-savvy to promote yourself in the best channels. Read more here. http://www.recyclecurbside.org/blog.cfm?eid=678 info@recyclecurbside.org (Curbside Value Partnership) Thu, 06 Aug 2009 00:00:00 EST Last post we discussed the difference between social MEDIA and social MARKETING. We think this an important topic to cover so here’s a teaser to what you’ll be seeing more of in future blogs and in Bin Buzz….. Recommendations for using “social media” 1)      Sign up, log on and get social! It’s probably a good idea for you to begin using social media yourself! If you don’t have a Facebook page, sign up. If you don’t know what Twitter, YouTube or Flickr are you’ve got some research to do – and quick! The best way to start using these tools is to familiarize yourself with them first.   2)      Start somewhere. Facebook is no longer reserved for high school and college students and is where we recommend you start. Go to www.facebook.com to start a profile today, You may want to start with a personal page before creating one for your community. This will help you ease into it and learn some “netiquette” along the way.   3)      Think before you act. Have a clear plan in place before you do anything. Who do you want to reach? Once you reach those people, what do you want them to do? Visit your program’s Web site? Order a bin? The answers to these questions will dictate your social media strategy and what avenues you end up using (Facebook, Flicker, etc.)   4)      Above all, be informative. Most social media users don’t want to be “advertised” to. Stick with information that is timely and beneficial. For instance, if you start a Twitter feed for your program, concentrate on promoting upcoming events, changes in pick-up schedules, etc. and other timely information. The point is not to send people so much irrelevant information that they’ll regret subscribing to your Twitter feed or joining your Facebook cause.   5)      Be conversational not preachy. Social media is all about two-way communications so be sure you are actively commenting and reading other people’s posts, instead of just pushing information about your program. Remember to be professional, succinct, but to also have fun.   We want to hear from you! Have any tips to add to this list or amazing uses of social media that you've come across? Share them here or e-mail us at info@recyclecurbside.org. http://www.recyclecurbside.org/blog.cfm?eid=675 info@recyclecurbside.org (Curbside Value Partnership) Mon, 27 Jul 2009 00:00:00 EST Please take a few minutes to respond to our new survey and tell us what issues or topics you want us to cover either in Bin Buzz, on our Web site or elsewhere. Your answers are important to us and will help CVP provide you with the most useful information possible!   http://www.recyclecurbside.org/blog.cfm?eid=676 info@recyclecurbside.org (Curbside Value Partnership) Wed, 22 Jul 2009 00:00:00 EST For the next issue of Bin Buzz, we are considering a section dedicated to “social media” (aka Facebook, Twitter, etc.). But first, what is the difference between “social media” and “social marketing?” People confuse these two terms a lot. And they really are very different. We’ll boil it down for you: “social media” is a tactic, another medium to use to get your message out. While “social marketing” is an approach to changing behavior. You may use a social media tool like Facebook as part of a social marketing strategy, for example. For our next Bin Buzz, we are conducting some research on various social media applications, best practices, etc. Here are some interesting articles we came across. Check them out:   Cause Marketing and Social Media: http://www.cre8tivegroup.com/blog/cause-marketing-and-social-media The ABC’s of Social Media: http://www.socialdesire.com/2008/06/11/the-abcs-of-social-media/ How to Commit Social Media Suicide: http://socialmediatrader.com/how-to-commit-social-media-suicide/ Stay tuned for more blogs on social media in the next week! We want to hear from you! Have you started using social media in your educational arsenal? If so, what successes (or challenges) have you had? Do you have advice for your fellow professionals who may be thinking about getting involved in social media? http://www.recyclecurbside.org/blog.cfm?eid=674 info@recyclecurbside.org (Curbside Value Partnership) Mon, 20 Jul 2009 00:00:00 EST Think a recycling campaign has to feature the ubiquitous chasing arrows and a laundry list of reasons why recycling is so great? Well, state of Georgia officials didn’t think so. To catch the attention of a very hard to reach demographic, the busy 25-34 year set, officials are using a form of “reverse psychology” and humor to call attention to the ridiculous excuses people give for why they don’t recycle. And by doing so, demonstrate that really there is no good excuse. Here is a link to a press release the state sent out earlier this month announcing their campaign. Cool, huh? (Full discloser: Georgia is a CVP partner so we are a bit biased!) The campaign features four non-recycling characters, Tommy, Maria, Ronald and Justin each with their own outlandish excuse for not recycling. For instance, Tommy proclaims on his Web page and on his billboard, that “we’ll find another planet for our kids to live on” when all the natural resources are used up on this one. The Web site created for the campaign, www.YouGottaBeKidding.org, also features a Flickr gallery where residents and communities can post pictures of a “Flat Tommy” (life-size cut-out of Tommy) that has been a big hit around the state at events, etc. – and a Facebook Cause. The Web site also features a blog where each character comments and says more outlandish things. And of course, the site also has a section dedicated to WHY Georgians should recycle. We know there are a few reverse psychology campaigns out there (the “Don’t Vote” campaign for instance—check it out here: www.ThingsAreFine.org) but have you heard of others? Do you think they work? Have you tried one yourself? Comment below! http://www.recyclecurbside.org/blog.cfm?eid=662 info@recyclecurbside.org (Curbside Value Partnership) Fri, 19 Jun 2009 00:00:00 EST At a recent League of Cities Green Cities conference, city officials from across the country were abuzz with plans to make their cities more sustainable. (Yes, even in this economy.) There were even friendly arguments about whose city was “greener.” My vote is on Portland. They have some very innovative things going on and they even have a sustainability office. Check them out: http://www.portlandonline.com/osd/. During the course of the conference (coincidentally also in Portland), these same officials eagerly shared the plans they were writing (some with 37 action items through 2050!), the committees they are forming, but most importantly, talked about how they were able to “sell” the idea to decision makers and residents. The biggest take-away, not surprisingly: show how sustainability improves the bottom line. If you can quantify how a recycling program or a renewable energy plan will save money, or better yet, make money, you have a ready and willing audience. If not, get in line with every other community program who wants a hand out. For example, in Portland (do you see a theme here?) they were able to show city council how the city saved $3.5 million from the energy measures they made in all government offices and buildings. Now, they have their attention. The same can be said for corporate America. When Wal-Mart began planning their commitment to sustainability, for example, they began by crunching the numbers to see how these efforts could save them money. They took a look at supply-chain and store operations and determined what they could save by using more fuel-efficient transportation, and how much their energy bills would be reduced by using more energy efficient lighting in food cases, among many other changes. Small savings multiplied over hundreds of stores and trucks were shown to make a HUGE impact. Now, we’re talking! We all know that not every sustainability effort will be a money saver, and there are certainly many other reasons why a community or corporation should take these steps (such as climate change of course) but it does help to try to connect the dots between doing what is right and doing what will save money. Lena Davie is a Vice President with the Tampa office of Hill & Knowlton. http://www.recyclecurbside.org/blog.cfm?eid=654 info@recyclecurbside.org (Curbside Value Partnership) Thu, 07 May 2009 00:00:00 EST As a society we’re hit with so many messages that sometimes we don’t even realize we’re being marketed to. Messages and brands are now embedded in YouTube, Facebook and even our favorite TV shows. But at least all of them aren’t trying to push the newest product, some are for the common good. Check out this recent New York Times article.  Back in the 80’s, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control started working with television networks to subtly embed AIDS messages into television programming. At that time, it was as simple as having a PSA poster visible on camera. Now, it’s become more complicated, but in a good way. The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, which spends billions of dollars on a wide array of organizations around the world, has coordinated a first of its kind, pay-for-play type model with Viacom. The agreement will involve various important health messages being woven into plot lines on some of the networks popular television programs include Law and Order SVU and even ER before it ended. This could open the door to a whole new style of public service advertising. Now of course in the world of a recycling coordinator, it is highly unlikely that you have an education budget anywhere close to that of the Gates Foundation. It’s probably more equal to what the Foundation spends in one hour! But the point is, it doesn’t matter. While “all things green” are continuing to become more popular, recycling is benefiting from some free publicity. For example, watch Extreme Makeover Home Edition and you may notice messages about recycling left over materials and packaging.   Remember that while you are doing your part to educate the residents of your community, on a broader level, there are other places where they are also getting messages – albeit subtle ones – to recycle. Simply put, recycling is being positioned as hipper and more “the thing to do” every day. Don’t sit back and think this will be enough but instead feel good that you have reinforcement – and none of it is costing you a dime! http://www.recyclecurbside.org/blog.cfm?eid=653 info@recyclecurbside.org (Curbside Value Partnership) Wed, 29 Apr 2009 00:00:00 EST CVP has just released the findings from an online survey we conducted to gauge how community recycling programs are coping with the economic slowdown. Here is a peek at a few of the key findings: ·         69% of respondents say their recycling program has been impacted by the current economic crisis ·         59% of respondents say that although their programs have been affected by the crisis, participation is about the same ·         60% of respondents say their community’s recycling program has NOT experienced budget cuts ·         44% of respondents are maximizing their program’s budget by postponing program enhancements or recycling infrastructure projects   Click here to read the release in its entirety.   Though surveys distributed through SurveyMonkey cannot produce truly accurate results, we thought the findings were interesting especially since they show that, on the whole, community recycling programs are not suffering as badly as other programs.   We’ve heard from communities that are scaling back on wide-spread education efforts but are trying less expensive outreach strategies instead. What have you done to make the most of your limited budget? We want to hear from you! http://www.recyclecurbside.org/blog.cfm?eid=651 info@recyclecurbside.org (Curbside Value Partnership) Mon, 27 Apr 2009 00:00:00 EST Normal 0 false false false EN-US X-NONE X-NONE /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:'Table Normal'; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-priority:99; mso-style-qformat:yes; mso-style-parent:''; mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-para-margin:0in; mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:11.0pt; font-family:'Calibri','sans-serif'; mso-ascii-font-family:Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family:'Times New Roman'; mso-fareast-theme-font:minor-fareast; mso-hansi-font-family:Calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family:'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-bidi;} Normal 0 false false false EN-US X-NONE X-NONE /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:'Table Normal'; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-priority:99; mso-style-qformat:yes; mso-style-parent:''; mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-para-margin:0in; mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:11.0pt; font-family:'Calibri','sans-serif'; mso-ascii-font-family:Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family:'Times New Roman'; mso-fareast-theme-font:minor-fareast; mso-hansi-font-family:Calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family:'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-bidi;} Normal 0 false false false EN-US X-NONE X-NONE MicrosoftInternetExplorer4 /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:'Table Normal'; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-priority:99; mso-style-qformat:yes; mso-style-parent:''; mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-para-margin:0in; mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:11.0pt; font-family:'Calibri','sans-serif'; mso-ascii-font-family:Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family:'Times New Roman'; mso-fareast-theme-font:minor-fareast; mso-hansi-font-family:Calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family:'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-bidi;} The sixth edition of the Pew Project for Excellence in Journalism’s annual report on the State of the News Media in the United States  reveals (not surprisingly) that journalism and media outlets at large are feeling the pinch, or in this case, vise-grip, of the economic crisis. In the case of the media industry, the economic crisis hit at a time when the industry was already down, largely trying to adjust to the shift in expanding online vehicles and venues. It’s been more than a little troubling to learn of the collapse of some larger print newspapers, most recently the Seattle Post Intelligencer. The number of Americans who now regularly go online for news jumped 19 percent in the last two years but oddly online advertising revenue to news Web sites appears to be flattening and in newspaper is actually declining. Companies have less to spend on advertising and news media outlets are giving them less reason to spend their ad dollars with them. This creates an opportunity for people interested in pushing a public cause, such as recycling.  Local media outlets in particular want to show their relevancy. Demonstrating that they are in touch and linked with the community they serve is more important than ever. This tells us that more and more people are picking and choosing exactly where they want to get their news.  This means it is a great time to approach your local media outlet and ask them to donate space, air time, etc. to promote and encourage residents to participate in your recycling program. Everyone knows that recycling is good but give them a little bit more. Use the Recy-culator on this site or other environmental calculators to provide local statistics that reveal the impact of recycling or the detriment of not.  And in the case of your local newspaper, be sure the ads are running in the online version as well as the hard copy!     http://www.recyclecurbside.org/blog.cfm?eid=650 info@recyclecurbside.org (Curbside Value Partnership) Mon, 06 Apr 2009 00:00:00 EST CVP’s latest issue of Bin Buzz is in the mail and up on our site. The first issue of 2009 features an interview with Matt McKenna, president and CEO of Keep America Beautiful, best practices from Georgia and Minnesota and lots more! Also, we included a special section dedicated to all of the “top tips” CVP has gathered from working with communities over the past six years. The latest special section will highlight successful ways to beef up education efforts by working with the media, using public service announcements, updating your Web site and event-planning. If you aren’t receiving a copy, but would like to receive future mailings, just shoot us an e-mail at info@recyclecurbside.org.  And while you’re on our site, check out the latest CVP news and some recently updated best practices! http://www.recyclecurbside.org/blog.cfm?eid=592 info@recyclecurbside.org (Curbside Value Partnership) Mon, 02 Mar 2009 00:00:00 EST Ninety percent of Georgians claim they would recycle if it “were easier to do” according to a new survey commissioned by the Georgia Department of Community Affairs. Georgians also cited not having access to curbside recycling as one of the biggest barriers to participating in recycling. Other findings: 97% of Georgians feel that recycling should be a high priority for their fellow residents 67% of Georgians strongly agree that they personally can have an impact on the environment by recycling 84 % of Georgia residents have recycled something in the past 12 months 58 % say they recycle always or often 21 % percent recycle only sometimes 22 % rarely or never recycle   The purpose of the survey was to gauge the attitudes of Georgians toward recycling and other green messaging to help in shaping a statewide marketing campaign which is scheduled to launch in the spring.   What barriers to recycling , real or perceived, do your residents have? Comment below! http://www.recyclecurbside.org/blog.cfm?eid=581 info@recyclecurbside.org (Curbside Value Partnership) Wed, 18 Feb 2009 00:00:00 EST As the U.S. Senate debates the finer points of the Economic Stimulus Package this week, CVP and Keep America Beautiful took the opportunity to influence the debate by issuing a plea for support of key provisions that would impact recycling programs nationwide. The particular section of the bill that is of importance, Section 544 - Item 10, says that state funds may be used for “activities to increase participation and efficiency rates for material conservation programs, including source reduction, recycling, and recycled content procurement programs that lead to increases in energy efficiency.” We encourage you to reach out to your Senators and tell them how important recycling is.  Click here to read the letter we sent to U.S. Senate members.  Click here for a list of your Senators and reach out to them directly. http://www.recyclecurbside.org/blog.cfm?eid=566 info@recyclecurbside.org (Curbside Value Partnership) Wed, 04 Feb 2009 00:00:00 EST The recent fall in recycling commodity values is having a widespread impact. If you are a recycling coordinator with a revenue share, you no doubt have felt this decline in your pocket book. Even if you don’t have a revenue share, you are likely still feeling it through your various recycling service providers. Much like housing prices, market prices for recycling commodities had been at a historic and unsustainable high. This market correction was expected but has been exacerbated by the credit crisis and overall global economic state. What’s important to understand is that this is not the end of recycling. This has happened before and things will re-adjust. What’s important to consider now is how we communicate to the public. The public does not necessarily understand the value message in terms of recycling anyway. Additionally, they typically don’t care unless it means money going directly into their wallet. With that said we cannot confuse them or give any indication that they shouldn’t continue to recycle with the same vigor. Recycling is just as important now as ever.    Jerry Powell of Resource Recycling recently put it well in an EPA RCC Web Academy Webinar discussing the declining value in recycling commodities. He said that in terms of communicating the decline to the public we should (hypothetically) move the discussion to the Business Page of the newspaper and off the Metro or Local Page. In other words, much like the housing industry, automotive industry and countless others, recycling is currently being affected by the global credit crisis. That’s it. The economic slowdown is resulting in a recycling slowdown. It will rebound but in the meantime, we should not AND CANNOT let the general public feel like their recycling is no longer beneficial or needed.     Steve Thompson is the Program Director for CVP and can be reached via e-mail at sthompson@recyclecurbside.org.   http://www.recyclecurbside.org/blog.cfm?eid=547 info@recyclecurbside.org (Curbside Value Partnership) Thu, 20 Nov 2008 00:00:00 EST Have you taken a look at your Web site lately?   Well, we have. At the recent NRC Congress in Pittsburgh CVP sat down with recycling professionals from more than 20 communities to review their program Web sites and provide feedback on ways to kick it up a notch. It was eye opening.   The Web sites we reviewed were all over the board from relatively sophisticated to, for lack of a better word, awful. (Don’t worry; we won’t disclose your names!) And we realize there are reasons why sites vary so much, from lack of know-how to lack of funding. But overall we noticed some common blunders that we thought we’d share with you in the hope that you can apply our learnings into making your own site more user-friendly, welcoming and professional looking.     Here’s what we saw: A Web site address (or URL) that is too long and too complicated. Keep it simple and short if you can.   Not using your home page effectively. The home page of your recycling program’s Web site is prime real estate, put the most important information there and make it clear.   Boring “Government-looking” design. We realize many of you are required to use a certain template for your Web site, but there are ways to spice up your site through the content and photos you post.   No two-way communication. It’s not enough just to post contact information on your site. Many of the sites we evaluated did not have a “user-feedback” form or any forms of two-way communication for that matter.   Not enough contact information. The Web is quickly becoming the first place people look for information, so make sure an email address and/or phone number for your program is easy to find. No way for residents to request a bin/cart - At the very least your Web site should have a clear point of contact for requesting a new recycling bin or cart. Many Web sites are now offering an online request form, which saves you AND the resident time and frustration. Here are some additional tips to upgrade your Web site: 1.     Make sure there is a link directly from your community’s main government page to your recycling Web site. 2.     Sign up for Google Analytics to gauge who is visiting your Web site and how often. 3.     Promote the local impact of recycling in your community by creating interested local factoids. Check out our Recy-culator to help you do this. 4.     Tap a local design student to help re-design or make upgrades to your site. For a full listing of our Web site tips, click here.  Now I want to hear from you. What have you done to get your Web site noticed? How have you used your Web site to communicate to your residents? Kristen Biance is public relations counsel for CVP. She can be reached via e-mail at kristen.biance@hillandknowlton.com  http://www.recyclecurbside.org/blog.cfm?eid=534 info@recyclecurbside.org (Curbside Value Partnership) Thu, 09 Oct 2008 00:00:00 EST Does it seem like you’re always scrounging for money to promote your program or fighting to keep the money you have now? If so, you’re not alone.  Lack of education funding is a huge problem for recycling programs across the country. It’s a vicious cycle, but one that we have to deal with. Successful programs get promoted, but programs have to be promoted to become successful in the first place! It’s frustrating, but don’t throw in the towel just yet. Successful programs are made with a little hard work and a lot of creativity.  I use the terms promotion and education interchangeably. They are actually distinctly different but both require funding. I’ll leave it to someone else in a future blog to describe just how they differ, and how they fit together to market your program. So, the question remains - How are you going to get the funds you need to educate the public and build your program? The first step I would recommend is a trip to city hall. It is vitally important to befriend your community’s mayor or city administrator or at least be on friendly terms. I say this because they are probably the most valuable champions for your program and it is of the utmost importance that they understand the value that marketing brings to the program. Don’t forget to show some love to the city council too. They hold the purse strings in your community and have the ability to make or break your marketing budget. For those of you who read Charlotte Pitt’s July 2008 blog (if you haven’t, I encourage you to do so!), I hope you caught her message about measurement and it’s importance. Charlotte stated that having the ability to measure your program’s effectiveness will help you defend the worthiness of your program - including the precious dollars that fund education. Having measurable results is the most effective way to prove that your recycling program, and the marketing you’re doing to promote it, are worth while. Also, remember to keep the mayor and city council’s support staff in mind when communicating the success of your program and areas for improvement. Often times support staff can be very influential and easier to touch base with! Feed them with information all year long and don’t overwhelm them right before the budget is due. Remember that they are likely political appointees that want their boss to look good.  Another aspect to keep in mind is whether your community’s mayor is a self-promoter. If he or she is – great! Let the mayor take center stage. As long as you are providing the mayor with key messages about your program he or she has the potential to be a very effective spokesperson. A word of caution—watch out for council member members that may try to upstage the mayor. Don’t get caught in the crossfire! What about money that is free of political influence? It’s always important to have a funding source that doesn’t disappear when the city or county budget gets too tight. This excellent source of funding can actually be written into your collection or processing contract! There are many ways to ensure this money is written into the contract but the simplest way is to include a clause that requires funding of education initiatives in some way. The educational funding that you include in the contract can come from different places. For example, the company hired to empty the downtown litter cans could be required to print advertising inserts for the litter cans that promote recycling. Another great example is to require the garbage company you hire to install advertising frames on the sides of their trucks. Combined with really creative artwork, these truck banners act as a mobile billboard and can be a great way to promote your program throughout the community. On a big contract, you may just want to ask for cold hard cash. For Omaha, our collection and recycling processing contracts have terms with reverse payments that pay for our entire education program excluding personnel. Annually that gives us $1.35 per household for education. The best part? Because it’s part of our contract, its money we can count on every year.  Now everyone, I want you to practice the following phrase “Good morning Mayor, I have something fantastic to tell you about our recycling program...” Paul Dunn is the Recycling Coordinator for the city of Omaha. He can be reached at pdunn@ci.omaha.ne.us. http://www.recyclecurbside.org/blog.cfm?eid=499 info@recyclecurbside.org (Curbside Value Partnership) Wed, 27 Aug 2008 00:00:00 EST Whether you are determining how many miles to your destination, if a possible new sofa will fit in your living room or how much of an ingredient to add to a recipe, measurement plays an important role in our daily life.  But while those uses are obvious, incorporating measurement into your recycling program doesn’t always seem as simple.  We’ve all been there: knowing that we should be using measurement and that it can help our program, but having no idea where to start.  For me, it was really knowing the power that hard data would give me in selling the value of the Denver recycling program, especially among city officials.  I know from personal experience though that many of us don’t pay much attention to data until we’re facing a potential crisis.  However, as I’ve learned, regularly gathering and evaluating data to determine what is and is not working can easily become a habit. And it makes you better prepared to face potential threats as well as new opportunities.   As you probably realized there are many components of your recycling program that can be measured.  You can get measurements on tons recycled, material weights, education costs or financial information.  You can also measure the numbers of bin or cart orders, Web site traffic, phone calls to your recycling center or the demographic information of your customers.  One of the first steps is determining which variables are readily available to you.  For example, some communities do not track or have access to set out rates but most communities track some sort of tonnage report, ideally on a monthly basis.   Start really looking at it and comparing it to the years prior to get a sense of trends.  Is it typical that your collections go down during the summer months or right after the holidays?  Is there a time of year when your recycling tends to be higher?  This can help you in planning future education efforts.  For example, maybe you should really push residents to continue recycling once the holidays are over.  Looking at this data closely can also help evaluate the impact of a particular education effort.  Did you see a jump the months following a new PSA campaign? I’ve also found that reviewing other factors can be helpful, such as visitors to our Web site and phone calls received.  If a new education effort is successful, we immediately see a jump on both. However, occasionally we’ll do something that doesn’t reach residents as much as we anticipated and this is obvious first by showing no lift in either communications.  Before you conduct new education aimed at your residents, look at the existing data and use it to help set some goals.  Think about what you are trying to accomplish.  It’s likely that your end goal is to increase recycling but what will be other indicators?  For example, if you want to increase participation in your program through an education campaign, you could set a goal of increasing bin or cart orders first.  Once you know what you are measuring, where you are starting from and what goals you have set for success, you can start taking measurements by working with your MRF or hauler, collecting your own statistics and utilizing CVP resources at your disposal.  But once you start having measurements to work with, what do you do with them?  The simple answer: you put them to use!  Having concrete data can tell you what education efforts are most effective and those that aren’t worth the resources you are putting into them.   It can help you prioritize messages and timing, determine your returns on investments based on operating costs and plan for the future.  Measurements can also back you up that your program provides value to your community and should be supported. So grab your tape measures, and get started! Charlotte Pitt is the Recycling Program Manager for Denver Recycles/City of Denver. http://www.recyclecurbside.org/blog.cfm?eid=464 info@recyclecurbside.org (Curbside Value Partnership) Tue, 08 Jul 2008 00:00:00 EST Welcome to the inaugural posting on the new CVP blog. And welcome to our new and improved Web site. I’ll admit… I’m new to the world of blogging, as I suspect, are some of you. We can learn together about what works and what you, as a reader, are interested in. I can make you one early promise and that is that we will not blog for the sake of blogging, but rather will aim to share useful information and opinions when it is warranted. After all, you already have enough to read! Each month or so, we’ll have guest authors posting their observations about the industry, recycling, education and measurement – CVP’s areas of focus. We encourage you to comment and to join in on the conversation. So, for our first posting, I’ll throw out a question: How many of you use the Web as a vital education tool for your recycling program? We asked recycling coordinators around the country about their Web sites and found that while only a small percentage (7%) of you revealed not having a Web site at all, there is still a disproportionate number of you who don’t use it as effectively as you could. So, why is this? Is it not a priority? Do you not have the resources? Is the Web not an effective tool for you?  The Pew Research Institute says that 74% of American adults are Internet users. This amounts to 147 million Americans who are routinely using the Internet to shop, to search for information, to read news and to socialize. What does this mean for your program? Well, simply put, it means that you cannot ignore the Web or your Web site. Only 46% of you report measuring traffic to your site. And 58% of you say it takes a few minutes for visitors to your site to find key information about your recycling program. Would you keep coming back to the CVP Web site if you could not quickly find what you are looking for? Would you stop reading your favorite newspaper online if they didn’t have relevant content that it was easy-to-find? So, why not hold your program’s Web site to this same standard? After all, folks coming to your site are Internet users and they don’t give many free passes. If they can’t sign up for recycling online, they most likely will not take the extra step of calling your office, in some cases to speak to a pre-recorded voice. If they can’t find out what can and cannot be recycled on your Web site, they most likely will get it wrong and either throw away more than they should or give up. If they can’t find out the benefits of recycling from your site, they will look elsewhere or possibly write it off. So, take off your recycling coordinator hat and put on your Internet user hat. What would you want to see and where? Then do it. We know things don’t happen overnight… particularly in city or county government… but even baby steps will make a world of a difference. At CVP we work with communities of all sizes. We understand that regardless of size, you are all under budget pressure as well as pressure to grow participation but not costs. One easy way to do this is to utilize the Web more, and rely on more traditional endeavors like direct mail less. (These typically cost more anyway.) You could actually save money and be more effective at the same time. Food for thought. Steve Thompson is the Program Director for CVP and can be reached via e-mail at sthompson@recyclecurbside.org. http://www.recyclecurbside.org/blog.cfm?eid=225 info@recyclecurbside.org (Curbside Value Partnership) Wed, 30 Apr 2008 00:00:00 EST