News tagged 'nudge theory'

In March 2012, the House of Lords Select Committee on Communications called for evidence from interested organisations and individuals on the Government’s superfast broadband strategy. Digital Outreach responded to the call for evidence, alongside other public and private sector organisations such as Arqiva, BT, Vodafone and the Department for Culture, Media and Sport. Our submission focused on the need for social as well as technological aspects to be considered when developing and implementing strategies for the roll-out of superfast broadband.

The Select Committee has now published the evidence, which you can download from their website. 

Digital Outreach’s new brand Convey is working with local voluntary and community sector organisations on a campaign to reduce blockages in the water system.

Anglian Water, in collaboration with social marketing experts Corporate Culture, identified the principal areas and neighbourhoods which had repeat blockages, and two priority audience groups. We designed an outreach programme to engage local community groups to help spread the messages to target households. Supported by training, literature, grants and giveaways to make disposing of waste easier, our partners cascaded the message about disposal of waste to other local organisations.

One of the organisations working on the project is Northampton Volunteer Centre.  Dana Hannon, Information, Marketing, Events & BME Engagement Officer, with LINk (an organisation hosted by Northampton Volunteer Centre) has been going out and about to talk to local groups.

Dana says. “We were in a great position to work on the Keep it Clear project. We regularly go to visit local groups across Northamptonshire to find out what their issues and concerns are about health services. The groups already knew us, so nothing had to be set up from scratch, which made it much easier for us to talk to them about water use.”

The target audience is women aged between 18 and 45 in very specific areas, so Dana and her team have targeted the groups that supported women in this age group. Dana said: “It’s not as simple as just going to the geographical areas where the problems are, we needed to find the groups that women living in those areas attend.”

Dana found one very important group was the local Neighbourhood Watch which put them in touch with some very localised, informal groups that they wouldn’t have been able to reach otherwise. “These groups might just support people who live in a few streets, so they rely on word of mouth and don’t advertise,” Dana says. “The Neighbourhood Watch is a really active group and our relationship with them was key to getting in touch with these smaller groups.”

Dana found that talking to people face to face about the subject has been very effective. “People have been very responsive. Being able to give people the information face to face really helped, as lots of people didn’t realise that the things they were doing every day were causing problems.  People don’t always take in a poster but if you’ve handed them information and discussed it with them, it reinforces that the message. They also have the opportunity to ask questions and find out what they can do to dispose of fats in an alternative way.”

Having materials to give away was important too. “People loved the sink strainers, and the bags went down exceptionally well too!” Dana says. “This is all making people aware of how they can safely dispose of fats and grease, which will help make a positive difference to local water systems.”

The outreach programme has benefited Northampton Volunteer Centre and Northamptonshire LINk too.  “Although we have great networks with our communities, working on this project has introduced us to new, more informal, groups that we had never heard of before – particularly the groups we got in touch with through Neighbourhood Watch. They are now in contact with us and we can communicate with them about other issues that might be important to them. It’s helped raise awareness of our organisation amongst these people too, which will help us to achieve our aims of supporting people and groups in the community and voluntary sector.”

Thanks to Northampton LINk and all the other organisations working on the Keep it Clear campaign.

Case studies

Mums & Tots - Methodist Church, Park Avenue North

The Mums & Tots Group meets every week at the local Methodist Church. Around 20 parents come to the group each week, with their children.  Northamptonshire LINk contacted the church to say they were talking to lots of different groups about water use and asked if they could come and talk to the mothers’ and toddlers’ group.

The group hadn’t realised the environmental cost of putting things like baby wipes down the toilet - as many wipes are advertised as ‘flushable’ they hadn’t considered that there could be any problem with getting rid of wipes in this way. The group often visit parks and open areas with their children, so they were concerned about smells and environmental damage in their neighbourhoods and were very keen to help by taking the simple step of putting wipes into the bin.

Northampton Bangladeshi Association

The Northampton Bangladeshi Association supports members of the Bangladeshi community of all ages to access training, education, health services and to give the Bangladeshi community a voice. Dana from Northamptonshire LINk went to visit the group leader, Ms Begum, to have a chat with her and explain the Keep it Clear campaign.  Ms Begum said that she uses lots of oil in her cooking, as this is an important ingredient in many Bangladeshi dishes.  Like many of us, she didn’t realise that oil in its liquid form can actually cause blockages, and that there are other ways of disposing of it safely.  She said she would pass this information on to the various groups she supports, and reported back that the sink strainers had gone down very well and that everyone is now aware of how to dispose of fat, oil and grease appropriately.

An article in The Guardian, How to lift the digital age barrier, investigates how to overcome the barriers to older people getting online. The article says the key to getting this diverse group of people online is to help them see the value by tapping into their individual interests.

Digital Outreach’s pilot project in 2010, ‘Get Connected, Get Online’, tested this approach by working with local interest groups in the North West to help them see the personal benefits of using the internet. The project brought about some encouraging results, with 62% of participants reporting a positive behaviour change towards the internet. You can read more about the outcomes of this project here.

In July 2011, Digital Outreach’s new brand Convey delivered community outreach sessions as part of a pilot campaign in Peterborough to help reduce blockages in wastewater pipes and drains. The campaign – commissioned by Anglian Water and managed by social marketing company Corporate Culture - aimed to change people’s behaviour around the waste they put down sinks and toilets.

Blockages in water pipes cause 15,000 blockages a year in the area and cost over £7m a year to clear and prevent. The campaign was very successful, with blockages reduced by more than 60% over just a few weeks. It had a significant impact on people’s attitudes and actions, with the number of people agreeing that reducing blockages is a shared responsibility rising from 52% to 92%, and the percentage saying they were making an extra effort to get rid of waste rising from 51% to 72%. (Source: Street survey, sample of 200 customers)

Anglian Water is now rolling out the project to other ‘hot spots’ where blockages are an issue for local communities. A spectacular animated light show in Peterborough marked the launch of the campaign and explained to residents why the campaign is happening.

Case study – working with the Islamic community in Peterborough
The pilot campaign included a ward in Peterborough where approximately 60% of the population is Muslim. The messaging of the campaign linked in very well with the Islamic faith, which places a high value on water, its purity and cleanliness. Convey approached Peterborough Islam to see if they could help spread the message. The organisation was only too happy to help, and local Imams spoke to over 3,000 people at Friday prayers about the importance of keeping water clean and how residents could take action to reduce contamination in the water in their own communities. Peterborough Islam’s women’s workers were also able to reach Muslim women’s groups to talk to them about putting waste like cooking fat, baby wipes and other items into the bin rather than down the sink or toilet into the water supply.



Convey will be working with Southend Association of Voluntary Services to deliver outreach in the Southend area, and will soon be engaging more voluntary and community sector organisations to help deliver the programme in Northampton, Bedford, Lincoln and Norwich. Supported by training, literature, small grants and giveaways like ‘fat traps’ to make disposing of waste easier, these organisations will cascade the message to other local groups like community groups, children’s centres, faith groups, mother and toddler groups and pre-schools.

The outreach delivered by Convey will link in with activities provided by Anglian Water such as roadshows, engagement with local businesses street teams (to talk to local businesses) and traditional marketing activities like radio/press adverts and posters.

Encouraging results from the pilot project

The results of the pilot project showed the campaign had a big impact on attitudes and behaviours around the disposal of waste.

The chart below shows the rise in concern amongst domestic customers about blockages in wastewater pipes and drains following the pilot. (Source: Street survey, 200 customers)

The chart below shows very large increases in understanding, importance, responsibility and belief that it is easy to act among domestic customers.

If you would like to be amongst the first to hear about new projects such as these, update your details on our database.

Keep It Clear is part of Anglian Water's groundbreaking Love Every Drop sustainability campaign to bring people together to put water at the heart of a new way of sustainable living.

Independent research carried out by i2 media research, a spin-off of Goldsmiths University of London has found that the community outreach programme, delivered by Digital Outreach in partnership with voluntary and community organisations across the UK, has made a big impact on levels of awareness, confidence and knowledge about the digital TV switchover amongst key target groups.

The research assessed the effectiveness of the outreach programme for engaging communities, communicating specific messages, and achieving real behaviour change.

It identified that the community outreach programme has:

• made a significant contribution in reaching and engaging audiences across the six core target groups (to see the list of target groups, click here)
• made a significant impact on levels of awareness, confidence and knowledge of the switchover programme among the key target groups
• reassured people in our target audience groups and enabled them to feel confident about managing the switchover in their own homes
• improved attitudes towards switchover itself, with a marked increase in positive attitudes, and
• worked effectively alongside the overall switchover campaign, increasing how receptive many individuals were to mainstream marketing materials.

Researchers attended five end user events in the Central and Anglia TV regions between January and February 2011, where 140 individuals completed a questionnaire immediately before and immediately after attending the event.  Six to 12 weeks after the switchover took place, researchers contacted some of these individuals again to assess the longer term effects of the programme.

Changing attitudes

The research found that the community outreach programme made a significant difference to attitudes about the switchover.  Before attending a community outreach programme activity or event, most respondents (81%) reported that they felt negative or apathetic towards the switchover.  This reduced significantly immediately after the event, and those reporting a positive attitude increased from 45% to 67% after an event.

Increasing understanding

After attending an end user event, the percentage of respondents who felt their understanding of the benefits of switchover was “good” or “excellent” increased significantly from 33% to 79%.  

And, 44% more people (78% of the total) rated their understanding of how switchover would affect them as “good” or “excellent” after attending the event.

The results showed that before the outreach event, 18% of respondents thought they were eligible for the Switchover Help Scheme. This grew to 36% immediately after the event.

Increasing confidence 

 The research found that the community outreach programme was reassuring and informative - 72% of respondents found the event informative and 62% felt reassured about the digital switchover.

Respondents were asked to rate how confident they were in managing different aspects of the switchover process. 

The proportion of people feeling confident about choosing the best way to receive digital TV increased by from 55% to 92% after attending an end user event.

The proportion of people feeling confident about getting their home ready for switchover on their own increased from 46% to 82%.

There was a consistent feeling amongst respondents that the end user event had given them peace of mind.  They felt reassured about managing the process and that it would be affordable.  In addition, they reported knowing whether their TV sets were ready for switchover – and those who were not ready for switchover were confident that they knew what needed to be done.

Another positive benefit was that many individuals said they were confident in being able to distinguish potential “scams” where unscrupulous individuals were recommending replacing adequate equipment.

Empowering people to help others

The proportion of people who had a “good” or “excellent” knowledge of how to help other people increased by a massive 59% - from 16% to 75%.  This demonstrates the strength of the community outreach programme model in reaching and motivating individuals to disseminate information and help others within their communities.

When contacting the respondents six to 12 weeks after switchover, the researchers found that the community outreach programme had reached into the wider community through the cascade effect.  Most people who had been involved in the programme passed on information to friends, peers, family or more widely into their communities.

The benefits of reaching people at existing events

The nature of the community outreach programme taking place within existing community events was an important factor in increasing people’s confidence and changing their attitudes. People felt comfortable in their environment and confident to ask questions.

Respondents commented particularly on how friendly and informal the sessions were; and that this fostered general discussion without anyone feeling judged.  Some even said they felt “special” that they had received this type of support.

This context was also seen as important in increasing people’s acceptance of mainstream marketing literature produced by Digital UK and the Switchover Help Scheme, especially amongst those who had previously ignored or rejected the material.   

Jude Palmer, Head of Operations at Digital Outreach, said: “We’re delighted with the results of this research. Since we began delivering the community outreach programme in 2008, we’ve received some really positive feedback through stories and anecdotes about the impact it is having on the ground, and this independent research further demonstrates that the programme is really making a positive impact on our target audience.

“This research really reinforces the importance of the role that staff and volunteers in the community have in building people’s confidence about switchover. As trusted and respected voices, they really make a difference to how positive people feel about this big change which affects everybody. I would like to say a huge thank you to all the staff and volunteers who have worked so hard on the community outreach programme to make sure those they support have a positive experience of switchover.”     

The report will soon be available to download from our website.