What’s the best way of getting the message across?

Talking to the press or advertising through the mediums of television, radio or newspapers is certainly one option and the following section working with the media provides some help and advice on the best way of doing this.

There are other ways that a partnership can influence public opinion before even speaking to a journalist.

The key is to understand the local perception of a problem. Is it confined to a particular street, age group or other group? The mass media is useful for getting messages across to a large and varied audience within the community, but what happens when it is a small segment of the community? Use of media needs to be carefully assessed to ensure that it is appropriate for the target audience.

The section of this toolkit titled “Some Practical Ideas” contains hints and tips about different ways partnerships can get their messages across to the public. There is no right way to communicate with the public, but success is dependent on the message being credible and the message being believed.