Dŵr Cymru Welsh Water: PestSmart
After seeing increased levels of pesticides in Welsh waters, Dŵr Cymru Welsh Water launched the PestSmart campaign in 2018 to raise awareness of the environmental impact of incorrectly using, storing or disposing of pesticides. Originally targeting professional pesticide users like farmers and growers, in 2020, Dŵr Cymru brought us on board to create an integrated campaign that would help change the behaviour of everyday gardeners and domestic users. The aim was to make them aware of the risks associated with pesticide misuse, such as potential harm to pets, people and wildlife, as well as encourage them to use natural alternatives wherever possible.
Objectives
- Raise awareness of the negative effects of pesticide misuse.
- Increase understanding of best practice for using, storing and disposing of pesticides.
- Reduce overall reliance on pesticides by promoting natural alternatives.
- Encourage people to visit the PestSmart website and position PestSmart as the leading resource for information and advice for pesticide users in Wales.
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Pieces of coverage
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Ad impression
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Website visits
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Combined follower reach from 19x influencer partnerships.
Content from the Campaign
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A multi-channel campaign targeting people across Wales, PestSmart set out to change behaviours around pesticide use in a domestic setting, providing educational information on how to correctly use, store and dispose of pesticides like weedkillers, as well as offering simple natural alternatives to try in their place.
- To provide a central place for the public to find information on pesticides and natural alternatives, we created a bespoke bilingual microsite for PestSmart, populating it with a variety of engaging content – from blogs to videos.
- We drafted over 20 advice and information-led blogs to upload to the microsite, ensuring these were based on evergreen topics, and linked to key campaign messages. These included best practice advice for using pesticides safely in a domestic setting as well as natural solutions to use instead.
- We developed a series of videos that linked to each of the campaign’s main themes and, importantly, were not time sensitive, meaning they could be used throughout the seasons for years to come. These included animated best practice videos, gardening tips from experts, and step by step artistic recipe videos.
- Collaborating with online influencers from across Wales, who produced and shared content around PestSmart for their own channels, was a key element of our strategy. We worked with influencers from a variety of backgrounds and sectors – from gardening and home to pet and parent accounts – to reach a diverse range of audiences.
- We appointed three ambassadors – respected high-profile figures in the gardening world – who featured in social, blog and video content as well as media relations, helping to raise awareness of PestSmart while boosting the campaign’s credibility.
- We ensured PestSmart had a presence at events like the Royal Welsh show, offering PestSmart branded wildflower seed packs and handouts on how to create wild spaces in gardens to help combat pests. Similarly, our ambassadors were on hand to deliver practical workshops.
