Constituency Building by Berks Conservancy

D E L A W A R E R I V E R W A T E R S H E D F O R U M

O C T O B E R 2 0 1 4

Constituency-Building

Building on Themes from Last Year

Lots of great work and interested partners on this around the watershed

Need for watershed-wide messaging to raise awareness

Identifying overarching needs will help support multiple targets

Using innovative approaches that span traditional and new media will help expand opportunities

Successful communications strategies need a comprehensive plan

Presenters

Jennifer Adkins

Partnership for the Delaware Estuary

Kim Murphy

Berks Conservancy

Sue Currier

Delaware Highlands Conservancy

Delivery

Messaging

Research

Marketing & Communications Research

Objective: Enhance the sophistication of marketing and communications to build PDE’s and the Delaware Estuary’s brand locally, regionally, and nationally

Need strategies that work at three levels: Building awareness of PDE projects/programs

Increasing support for PDE as an organization

Building affinity for the Delaware Estuary

Need ways to measure success


First Realization: We need help

Marketing/Communications expertise

An outside perspective

Second Realization: We need data!

15 million Delaware River Basin water users

6.7 million people in the lower Basin

The “interested public”?

Our 20,000 subscribers


15 million Delaware River Basin water users

6.7 million people in the lower Basin

The “interested public”?

Our 20,000 subscribers

Tools:

Brand Audit

Focus Groups (2)

Non-Users (11)

Users (12)

Online Survey (300)

Interviews with Partners (32)


Confirmed some things we suspected… Positive reputation and awareness of our “brand” among

those who know us – science, collaboration, people, environment

Low awareness of PDE and a negative perception of the Delaware River and Bay among those who don’t know us

Challenging name (unanimous across all groups!)

Opportunities for improving communications, including:

Our website

Our logo

Our publications


Illuminated some new things…

Awareness of environmental groups in the region is very low, but perceptions are generally positive

• Longer life• Good health• Our future as a

country

• Positive• Healthy• Helpful

• Future• Health• Fun

• Better• Hip• Re-use

• Dedication• Incentive• Reward

• Conservancy• Education• Fundraising

• Outdoor• Nature• Green

• Disorganized• Caring• Effective

(somewhat)

• Health• Caring• Motivational

• CivicResponsibility

• Raising Awareness

• Collaborative

• Safety• Understanding• Reality

key words used to describe environmental groups



Perceptions of the Delaware River and Bay among non-users are REALLY negative

Yuk! Disgusting!

You can’t see through it. It

looks like poop!

Unhealthy, I would never

want to drink that water,

that’s for sure

I don’t view it as anything you want

to recreate in or around. I view

more as for industrial use, for

transporting goods

My basis is mostly what I see… you see a lot of industrial use, you don’t see parks… the big tug boats and

barges.

If it’s for industry, that

means pollution

from ships…

I see people jet skiing in

Penn’s Landing –

ew!



One of the main ways people connect to us and environmental action is through their employers


Illuminated some new things… Survey respondents (300 of

PDE’s 7,000 subscribers) are:

Well-educated (90% college degree; 50% graduate degree)

On the older side (60% are over 50) and without children at home (almost 80%)

Very active on social media –79% use at least once per week


Lots of new questions… If we change our communications to reach new audiences, do

we risk losing existing ones?

If people don’t understand “Estuary” is it better to avoid it, or use it as an educational opportunity?

How do we change perceptions of the Delaware River? How do these perceptions change in other areas of the watershed? How can we best use this information?

Can we segment our survey responses to compare different groups of people, gain insights into the messages that resonate most with them?

Can we do targeted additional surveying to reach the groups of people not well-represented in our research?


What’s next? A multi-year communications plan for

PDE with strategies for media relations, website enhancement, social media and publications… and measuring success!

A key message platform for PDE

Focus on building a more positive image of the Delaware River and Bay, including a photo contest in 2015

New/shared research to better understand key audiences in the watershed?

J E N N I F E R A D K I N S

E X E C U T I V E D I R E C T O R

J A D K I N S @ D E L A W A R E E S T U A R Y . O R G

Thanks!

Constituency Building by Berks Conservancy

Environment

Transcript of Constituency Building by Berks Conservancy