Literacy Basics - Community Literacy of Ontario

Outreach Resources and Tools

Using the Media

The local media is a wonderful resource for community awareness. Use of the media greatly improves the visibility of your agency to the public. It also builds credibility and informs people about your programs and services. According to CLO’s 2003 program survey, Ontario’s community literacy agencies use the media extensively. For example, 84% wrote articles in their local newspaper and submitted press releases.

Examples of using the media include writing a monthly column, preparing special-interest stories, submitting public service announcements to the local radio station and submitting learner testimonials. The media will often promote fundraising and promotional events such as spelling bees, scrabble tournaments and open houses. Toronto’s “Word on the Street” (www.thewordonthestreet.ca/wots/toronto) and Barrie’s “Road to Reading Festival” (www.roadtoreadingfestival.com) are two examples of effective promotional events that tend to get good media coverage.

Effective use of the media is a complex discussion that is far beyond the parameters of this training module. Luckily, there are many excellent resources available online, including Community Literacy of Ontario’s “A Happy Media: Using Public Relations to Meet Your
Outreach Needs.” This resource covers the following topics: understanding and approaching the media; developing a good press release; and strategies for ensuring the media’s involvement. You can access this resource at:
www.nald.ca/clo/resource/Happy_M/1.htm

Slogans

Creating a catchy slogan that will help people in your community to remember your organization in a positive way can be a very useful promotional tool. And once you’ve got a good slogan, use it! Put it on everything … on your brochure, on your signage, on your letterhead, on promotional materials and in your annual report. It could greatly help with community recognition of your literacy agency.

Consider these organizational slogans and think about their positive motivational appeal:

• "Little Moments; Big Magic " (Big Brothers, Big Sisters)
• "A Single Dream. A World of Hope " (Terry Fox Foundation)
• "Change a Life. Change Your Own" (World Vision Canada)
• "Bring on the Adventure!" (Scouts Canada)

Or, closer to home, consider these literacy slogans:

• "A Place to Grow!" (Organization for Literacy Sarnia-Lambton)
• "Hamilton Reads!" (Hamilton Literacy Council)
• "Building a literate community one person at a time” (Peel Literacy Guild)
• “Literacy. Learning for Life” (Frontier College)
• “Putting the pieces together” (Literacy Council of South Temiskaming)
• “Learning for a better future” (Literacy Plus-Renfrew County)

Promotional material

Creating diverse promotional material with compelling messages is very important. Promotional material can include pamphlets, brochures, newsletters, press releases, bookmarks, posters, business cards and calendars. This material should provide basic, clear, eye-catching information that speaks to potential participants.

The Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs has written an excellent fact sheet called “Newsletters – Design and Production”. This fact sheet covers building content, principles of good writing, newsletter design, graphics, page layout and copyright. You can access this resource at:
www.omafra.gov.on.ca/english/rural/facts/88-026.htm.

Promotional efforts work! In ABC Life Literacy’s “Who Wants to Learn?” report, almost three-quarters of callers remember having seen promotional information about adults going back to school and more than half of these say the information influenced them to call a literacy agency. Literacy agencies should take heart. The time, money and effort they spend on promotions does pay off.

Usually, you do have to invest a bit of money in your promotional material, although it’s getting easier to produce effective material in-house with today’s software. To ensure you have some resources available, a distinct line for promotions should be in your budget. You should try to track the benefit of your promotional efforts by asking people where they heard of you … if no one noticed the ad you took out in the local paper, don’t take one out next year, try something else instead. Also consider local services. For example, does your college have a graphics design program? Perhaps college students could develop some promotional material for you free of charge as part of their studies. And be sure to ask your volunteers; often they have multiple skills, talents and access to resources and connections that you may not be aware of.

For all promotional tools, it is important to use the principles of clear language and design. Be sure to produce clear, well-written materials that are effectively desktop published. More graphics, fonts and features aren’t necessarily better; simple is usually the best.

If you would like more information on clear writing, East End Literacy has created an excellent Clear Language and Design website at: www.eastendliteracy.on.ca/clearlanguageanddesign. As well, St. Christopher House Adult Literacy Program has produced a very useful "Clear Language and Design Guide" that you can access online at:
www.stchrishouse.org/adults/AdultLiteracy/CLAD/index.php.

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