LOCAL – Evidence from our own work on education in this area ¹, as well as the insight from this project , suggests that the use of local stories and locations also helps to make the information seem useful and relevant , and harder to dismiss . The use of local roads in examples increases the likelihood that the audience will have a personal connection to , or at least familiarity with , the location , and will therefore be able to see the relevance of the story to their own lives . This encourages drivers to believe that ‘ it could have been me ’ or even in the future that ‘ it could be me ’. If your intervention is national , or may involve people who could be from anywhere in the country , then make sure the image is ‘ local ’ in the sense that it at least comes from the UK – so avoid using images ( like those above ) of left-hand drive cars , or vehicles in contexts that are obviously international . It ’ s easy to ‘ borrow ’ imagery and advertising from elsewhere , and tempting when they feature appealing or clever messages , but make sure that the laws they refer to are relevant ‘ here ’, and that a shared Tweet from the US ( for example ) doesn ’ t confuse the message you are trying to get across .
EVIDENCED - It is important that every strategy uses approaches that are evidenced , and shown to work for the target group . For example , for young people , fear appeals are not the most successful approach when used without a period of ‘ fear relief ’, but informationand positive emotion-based inputs might work better . As explained before , understanding the group that the strategy is targeted at increases the likelihood that the individuals you wish to interact with will engage with your content in a positive way .
Evidence can also be used to challenge any suggestions that your activities are not legitimate , or not a priority . Statistics can be used creatively to give impact ( so long as they are not over-complicated ), and so long as they are recent and relevant to the point you are making and the audience you are making it to . Similarly , experts ( such as Family Liaison Officers or collision investigators , or members of the fire and rescue service ) can be useful for making a point ( bringing their own kinds of expertise with them ) about real not hypothetical events that have happened not just once , but multiple times .
¹ Savigar , L ( 2018 ). Preventing mobile phone use while driving : appreciating the equivocal nature of identity , safety and legality in an uncertain world ( Unpublished doctoral thesis ). Keele University , Staffordshire .
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