7.7 Create Your Own Media

Here are the steps for creating posters, billboards, flyers, or other displays:

• Discuss and decide on the issue, target audience, and action the audience should take.
• Determine the main message you want to communicate.
• Discuss and decide on a creative concept that you want to execute.
• Draw rough draft stick figure drawing of what you imagine the media piece will look like.
• Determine whether you will be creating the media by yourself, or if you’ll need to contract with a vendor.
  • For example, if you’re not a skilled photographer, and your intention is to have professional posters printed, you can contact a professional photographer to take photos that may capture your concept best.
  • Or if you’re not comfortable with graphic software, hire a graphic artist to construct your concept from your stick drawing and provided text. Skilled graphic artists may also have ideas in terms of layout, font style, and overall design that you had not considered that will improve the quality of your poster.
• Draft your text. Make sure you keep it brief, clear, and to the point. Provide contact information, if appropriate.
• Determine whether to use photos or illustrations.
  • If photos:
    • Recruit models and identify any needed props.
    • Scout out locations for photo shoot. Then determine if any equipment needs are required for that location.
    • Prepare any technical notes, sketches, and directions as needed for photographer.
• Make a schedule. Send emails and make phone calls to remind models and crew to be available for the shoot. Be flexible and have backup options in case of cancellations.
• Notify models of the time they should be on location, any special instructions before they get to the location, and what they can expect on the day of the shoot.
• Be prepared to have a dedicated person to provide support on the day of the shoot as needed.

If you are using illustrations:

• Have a graphic artist create rough sketches of the illustrations with text.
• Share these sketches with a formal focus group of community members or an informal focus group of trusted advisors and people from the target audience.
• Review the media with a focus group or those from the target group.
• Finalize the design and layout.

Colville TTD

Consider locations where you will place your billboard, poster, or other display:

• Scout out locations for your poster or billboard
• Determine how you will evaluate the best locations. Consider areas where your target audience frequently travels.
• Determine whether your billboard will be with a local advertising company that will rent you time-limited space on an existing billboard, or if you will be constructing a permanent and reusable billboard in your community.
• If considering a commercial billboard, find a company by looking for logos on billboards in your area or by searching the internet.  Billboard companies often offer a number of levels of support–from as little as taking your pre-desgined electronic image and placing it onto their billboard–to as much as working with you on determining your objective, defining your target audience, determining how to best reach your target audience,  deciding which type of billboard is most appropriate, designing your billboard for you, and helping you evaluate its reach.
• If you are considering constructing a permanent reusable structure for your billboard image, you likely will need to work with your planning or facilities departments to determine where your billboard can be placed and how it will be maintained over time. You may consider sharing this structure with another program(s) to share the expense and if you decide to do so you  will need to document your agreement upfront as to how billboard space will be reserved and shared amongst programs.  If your coalition does not have the skills to build and erect the billboard structure, you may need to contract someone to build it for you.
• Here is specific information on how to construct a community billboard. See example billboard instructions, here.

Finalize your locations and get your message out there!

It will be easiest to hire a contractor to make the video and radio PSAs. For example, some local TV stations or public radio stations may have staff that can help. But if you can’t, here are some tasks you can expect when creating video and radio PSAs.

• Discuss and decide on the issue, target audience, and action the audience should take.
• Discuss and decide on a creative concept that you want to execute.
• Write a rough draft of the script. You may want your coalition to review and revise your draft.
• Draw storyboards. Roughly sketch the sequence of the script, illustrating major changes in action.
• Recruit cast members and identify any needed props.
• Scout out locations for filming. Then determine if any equipment needs are required for that location.
• Prepare a shooting script for the shooting crew. This includes technical notes, sketches, and directions as needed.
• Make a schedule. Send emails and make phone calls to remind cast and crew to be available for the shoot or recording time. Be flexible and have backup options in case of cancellations.
• Notify cast members of the time they should be on location, any special instructions before they get to the location, and what they can expect on the day of the shoot or the recordings.
• Provide support on the day of the shoot to the videographer and crew as needed.
• Schedule any TV runs and send video copies to the TV stations.
• Plan, advertise, and host viewings of the video PSA to friends, family, and the community.

A radio PSA example: