In March 2024, we launched A Wee Walk Works Wonders, a media campaign to encourage people to walk for short journeys instead of taking the car.
We are delighted to announce that the campaign has been shortlisted for three national awards:
- The Scottish Charity Awards for Campaign of the Year
- The Marketing Society’s Star Awards for Marketing in Society
- The Scottish Transport Awards for Excellence in Travel Information and Marketing
Read more about the campaign below.
What did we want to achieve?
We wanted to catch people’s attention, to make them stop and consider if they really needed to drive for short journeys. Ultimately, we wanted people to leave their car at home and make short journeys on foot instead.
What did we do?
The campaign ran for a month in Renfrewshire, Moray and Aberdeenshire.
We used a mix of media: from online videos to radio ads, to ads on buses and bus stops to A3 posters throughout the community.
We created cute, colourful and charming characters for the campaign – a heart, brain, piggy bank and planet – each one highlighting one of the benefits of walking more instead of driving.
What resonated with people:
- Reminders that you don’t need to be super-fit – even short walks make a difference
- Positive messaging about walking
- Being reminded of the wide-ranging benefits of walking
- Being given several examples of the types of journey that they could walk
What did the campaign achieve?
Independent consultants assessed the impact of the campaign by carrying out 761 on-street surveys. They found that:
The campaign got more Scots walking.
- 37,000 people had started walking more for short journeys instead of driving as a result of seeing the campaign – that’s 30% of those who had seen the campaign!
- 91% had a better understanding of the benefits of walking for short routine journeys instead of driving.
- 86% felt more motivated to walk instead of driving for short journeys.
The campaign was memorable.
- 73% of people recognised the campaign.
- 91% said the advertising caught their attention.
- People who had seen the campaign on multiple types of media were significantly more likely to have changed their behaviour.
The campaign sparked people’s interest.
- 22% of those who had seen the campaign had talked to friends and family about it.
Campaign impacts:
- On average, those who were walking more had walked an additional 9.5 journeys since seeing the campaign. (This is over an average period of three weeks.)
- Each journey was of an average of 15 minutes each way.
- If this behaviour change has been maintained, this will achieve savings of:
- £1.5m/year
- 2,500 tonnes CO2/yr
This campaign has been hugely successful in encouraging people to walk more instead of driving – and we’re delighted to have our achievements recognised through these awards.
