Marketing and Public Relations

The good news is that it is "never too late to start."

I encourage you, if you have not done so already, to form a club Public Relations and Marketing committee. Let's get the Kiwanis word "out there" about all we do for our communities and to drive membership!

Getting "out there" is easier to do then you think. In fact, there are many free ways of doing so. One of the best and most powerful are Public Service Announcements or PSAs. These are short messages which you can produce with a digital camera (even just using your cell phone) or recorded on a computer. Once complete, they can be sent to radio and television stations, where they will be played for free! The stations use PSAs to fill up their airwaves by donating air time. Most stations will allow you to include a contact telephone number and website address to get more information.

Here's a brief example of a PSA. The topic: the importance of getting infants immunized. Length: only 30 seconds. Scene opens with Woman #1 and Man #1 sitting by a playground. Children shown playing, camera moves over to the two adults sitting together on a park bench watching them; children's laughter in the background.

Man #1: Yeah -- I can't believe we're going to be parents! It's great, but there's so much to worry about. I think about Rachel and Danny's little girl and how sick she's been...
Woman #1: I know, it's been so sad seeing how much trouble they've had -- it's too bad they never had her immunized.
Man #1: But she's only a year old! I never even thought about immunization - when are you supposed to get that done?
Woman #1: Well, the first shots are done when the baby is about 2 months old -- then you have to go back 4 or 5 more times before the kid starts school. If they had only done that, their baby might not have had so many health problems.
Man #1: Oh, man, I had no idea. I really need to find out more about all this stuff!
Woman #1: It's okay. Your doctor or nurse will tell you when you need to come back
A little girl comes running from the playground and climbs into the man's lap.
Woman #1: You and Tasha are already a great aunt and uncle, you know. Don't worry. You'll be wonderful parents.
Man #1: Thanks, Sis. Tasha has a checkup tomorrow, so we'll talk to the doctor then and find out more.

<Fade to black, leaving only the sound of children playing under the voiceover, with the logo, phone number and website address of a child immunization service shown onscreen. Voiceover: Immunization for your kids; talk to your doctor about it today.>

It is really just that simple. With a little bit of creativity you can adapt this example for a PSA of you own, supporting an important club message to your community.

And, don't forget about the Kiwanis Oscars. A PSA would make a great entry (submissions due July 30 and will be shown at the August 2014 District Convention)!

*Information in this article adapted from The Community Tool Box - a public service of the University of Kansas. Learn more at http://ctb.ku.edu.

 

Column Posted on Web Site April 20, 2014