Portland-Vancouver Metro Area Smokefree Housing Project Thank you to our funders: American Legacy Foundation Kaiser Permanente Community Fund at Northwest Health Foundation Oregon Tobacco Prevention and Education Program Washington Tobacco Prevention and Control Program Steps to a Healthier Clark County/ Community Choices 2010
Media Strategy Earned media & media advocacy Target Audiences: 1.Property owners & managers 2.And those who influence them: - Professional associations - Government bureaus (housing & community development, fire dept’s) - Nonprofit agencies serving renters 3.Renters 4.Policy Makers 5.General Public
Reaching Primary & Secondary Audiences Local & National landlord magazines and newspapers Landlord Trade Association newsletters & websites Non-profit & Government newsletters & websites (i.e., Fair Housing, Fire) Local business journals & TV
Reaching Renters, General Public & Policy Makers Traditional Outlets (newspapers & TV) –Local & state: The Oregonian (front page) –National: USA Today; MSNBC Nontraditional Outlets –Multnomah County Commissioner BlogBlog –Blogging: –Article on Apartments.com websiteApartments.com
Getting Coverage: Process Press release via media contractor Collected smokefree landlord quotes Developed press packets: –press release –national articles –samples of project materials –smokefree landlords as media contacts Personal visits to media outlets
Highlights of Coverage Achieved 13 front-page articles in landlord newspaper, The Apartment Manager (20,000) 3 landlord trade association articles ( 7,700+) 3 articles in Fair Housing Council’s newsletter & e-newsletter ( 14,400 ) Portland & Vancouver business journals (12,000+) TV news segment “Your Money, Your Business” The Oregonian front page Article in USA Today (5 million) MSNBC interview with Jim Wiard
Lessons Learned Have key talking points ready to go Ask smokefree landlords to serve as media contacts—get quotes ahead of time Work closely with property managers’ PR firm Keep track of circulation numbers of media outlets for reports Sometimes you get lucky with timing! (Portland Business Journal story)
Colleen Hermann-Franzen American Lung Association of Oregon Diane Laughter, MPH American Lung Association of Oregon Kylie Meiner, MPH Multnomah County Health Department Theresa Cross, MS, RD, CD Clark County Public Health