HOT Tour - Hands On Training: Street Marketing for Earned Media

Audience: Tobacco Prevention specialists working with youth and / or adult advocates, especially those in low budget situations. Key Points: Although prevention programs recognize the importance of counter-marketing campaigns, often times the costs or other limitations prohibit them from adequately de-normalizing tobacco industry influences. Decreasing budgets have made it difficult to purchase adequate traditional tobacco prevention media. In addition, the time to train new advocates in key tobacco issues and media advocacy can be lengthy. Florida's HOT (Hands On Training) Tour, conducted at Teen Tobacco Summit 8, addressed these challenges by designing a training where participants learned critical skills as they engaged in street marketing activities. Over 200 youth on 7 buses embarked on a one day, nine city bus tour of Central Florida where they learned essential skills in anti-tobacco messaging, recruitment, industry manipulation and media advocacy. Youth then immediately put these skills into action as they engaged in guerrilla style street marketing activities to spread their message. Training sessions were conducted on the buses and then practiced at each tour stop. Educational Experience: Through lecture, video and provided materials, participants will learn how to replicate a hands on training event which teaches advocates how to effectively conduct street marketing activities and gain earned media exposure. Gaining earned media through low cost street marketing activities creates an avenue to deliver your message to a wider audience. Benefits: This session will provide participants with a case study and a tool kit for training advocates in street marketing activities and earning media exposure for policy change efforts.