When setting up a Commonplace site, it is important to think not only about the site content but also about the marketing strategy and how to reach as wide an audience as possible.
Your public consultation should be representative of the local population, which requires thinking about how to reach groups of people who might be less likely to engage.
1. Combine offline and online engagement, with our Survey Mode
Survey Mode is a great way to reach different communities in the area through face-to-face events. For this to be successful, the surveyor/volunteer must be a member of the community who understands the local issues and also speaks the same language as local residents.
You can then upload these paper surveys and combine it with the digital survey responses received. Learn how to add a Surveyor here:
Managing user roles & permissions
How to set up your project team with the correct roles and permission levels
Produce workshops and webinars which will help build attraction to the project. This can be done before or after launch. This gives the group an opportunity to comment on the site and share it.
In addition to this, produce workshops and webinars that will build on the subject of conversation. Social media platforms such as Facebook and Twitter have closed off discussion forums which can be a gateway to identifying specific demographic to a certain topic of conversation. Learn how to set up a webinar here:
How to set up Webinars
Facilitating online town hall meetings to encourage in-depth conversations and interactions
Reach out to local groups that might be interested in the consultation, as well as BME groups (Black and Minority Ethnic) and offer a paid partnership to promote the site.
Have a marketing pack ready for them to easily share information about your project: photos and videos, a QR code, and social media sharing samples for different channels (e.g. via e-mail or WhatsApp). This will help you reach more of the community and maintain diversity in results.
For some residents, English is not accessible. They can download an extension on their browser to translate the text on the page they are viewing. We recommend you add the following instructions to your site in the languages spoken by the specific community you are trying to engage with:
"Please use Google Chrome as your browser and install the Google Translate extension found here. Once installed, please visit the page and select your desired language using the extension or by right-clicking on the page."
Commonplace also has a range of multi-language translation packages. To find out more discuss with your Customer Success Manager.
In a world that has become more digital, using posters with QR codes helps to engage younger audiences (that are more technically-minded) and also groups that frequent specific locations, such as a school, a shopping centre, a GP surgery. Generate a QR code, create a poster with the QR code and analyse what groups you were able to reach.
Learn how to generate a QR code here:
How to create and use QR codes
Using QR codes and tracking links to engage a wider audience
Still unsure about anything? There's lots more information here on the Commonplace Help Centre - alternatively, contact the support team and we'll be happy to help 👋
