Case Study - Rethink Rubbish in Manchester

Client: GMWDA
Period: Unknown
Locations: Greater Manchester
Product Solutions: PromoBikes
Communications campaign across Greater Manchester for the Greater Manchester Waste Disposal Authority (GMWDA).


This intensive two-month campaign, funded by Defra's Waste Minimisation and Recycling Fund, was developed to increase awareness of and participation in recycling services amongst householders in Greater Manchester and to prime the public to participate in the forthcoming municipal waste management strategy consultation.

The campaign promoted kerbside paper collections, using the Coronation Street image ("Right up your street"), and use of supermarket bring sites ("Drop before you shop"). The BBC's Bargain Hunt star, David Dickinson, launched the campaign at a high profile event in Manchester city centre.

Partnerships were established with the regional press and broadcast media to maximise quantity and quality of coverage. PR activities included competitions with media partners, photocalls and roadshows with celebrity patrons across the region. A number of local supermarkets supported the retail campaign with point of sale material.

The advertising campaign underpinned used primarily outdoor media: 48-sheet billboards, Metrolink tram stickers and promobikes. A website with links to each district's waste pages provided complementary information about the campaign and recycling services. Each district's collection vehicles were branded with campaign livery.Measurement of recycling tonnages and reported participation indicated increases in both, with significantly greater use of kerbside (+20%) and supermarket bring sites (+9%), the methods promoted by the campaign. Forty three press articles were placed and over 20 million opportunities to see achieved, with £8 worth of media coverage being generated for every £1 spent on PR. The waste strategy consultation received a high number of responses, approximately 10,000.

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