Promoting my new group

How to start publicising your group

• Starting a group is exciting and challenging. Why not share the journey and the load by finding others to take on some of the work? A team that includes promotion volunteers is worth considering.
• Contact any Freegle group that may have members from your area, and ask them to post an Admin saying you've opened a new group. Find your nearest groups on the Freegle website: [1]
• Email local papers and let them know. See Sample Press Release.
• Contacting Councils is a good idea - email your council (its Recycling Officer, if it has one) and ask if they'd be willing to help too. Some councils publish booklets of recycling agencies and will include us.
• Inform local community groups - their websites often have a contact link.

Next steps in raising your group's profile

• Print some A4 posters - see Posters, fliers, cards - and ask local libraries, schools and community centres if they'll put them up.
• Print some bookmarks (use thicker paper, 160gsm or card) if your library will let you leave them for people to collect.
• Business Cards are useful. Vistaprint can be cheap if you're canny and use the free offers - 250 cards and so on. You'll pay postage, and maybe a small fee (around £2) to upload your logo.
• Handouts work better in places like doctors' surgeries and takeaways, where people only pick them up if interested, or just keep some in your pocket to hand out. Estate agents are a good idea too - they're often asked how to get rid of unwanted items in properties. Mail drops are costly and not very effective.
• Some schools may let you go in and talk about Freegle and recycling.
• If you know any teachers, they may put up posters on the school noticeboard.
• If you live on a busy road, consider a banner of some sort.

Find a source of items

People will use your group if they see it's being used, so try to find items to freegle:

• Your own - it's a start, though obviously there's a limit to what you can do.
• People you know personally - freegle stuff on their behalf, and use that to encourage them to join.
• Your workplace - freegle stuff from it rather than let it go in a skip.
• See if local shops (charity or otherwise) will give you leftover items you can freegle.
  • For example, B&Q has a scheme for community groups to receive 'waste' (stuff they'd otherwise discard). Register at your local B&Q with their 'waste to donate' scheme (a simple form); once approved (they'll check you're a genuine community group or charity), you get access to a range of goods and materials. Arrangements vary by store, so it's worth building a relationship with whoever you deal with, so they contact you when something good is available, or let you have a look through the skips when you visit. See here.

Ongoing publicity work for your group

Have a look at the Promotion section of this wiki - it has lots of ideas and resources on PR materials, contacting your council, getting press coverage and more.

And don't forget online social media - promoting your group online is the fastest, cheapest and often most effective promotion. See Social Media Accounts for a list of national social media.

Back to Publicity