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Breaking Through The Clutter
2008 Colorado State Fire Chiefs Leadership Challenge
Mike Hazell, NFPA Web Publisher
What we’ll cover
• What are the issues?
• The state of fire and life safety education
• Meeting our challenges
• New ways to communicate
What are the issues?The fire problem1,557,500 fires reported in 2007
• 3,430 civilian deaths• 17,675 civilian injuries• $14.6 billion in property damage
Fire department responds to a fire every 20 seconds. 1 structure fire every 59 seconds. 1 home structure fire every 79 seconds 1 civilian fire injury every 30 minutes. 1 civilian fire death every 2.5 hours. 1 outside fire every 41 seconds. 1 vehicle fire every 122 seconds.
What are the issues?
The injury problem*173,753 injury deaths (2005)30,000,000 non-fatal injuries (2007)
Injuries cost the U.S. $406 billion annually.
* Source: CDC
Our mission
Arm fire departments with information and resources to develop and implement public education campaigns aimed at increasing knowledge about fire and life safety.
Change public opinion that residential fires and injuries are "accidents" that can't be prevented and to teach the public what they can do to prevent fires and injuries.
The State of Fire and Life Safety EducationHome Safety Council & Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health
•Who is doing FLSE? •What is being done? •How is it perceived in the department? •What are barriers and facilitators? •What are training needs?
www.HomeSafetyCouncil.org> HSC Research
1. Who is doing FLSE?
• 82% of volunteer departments• 99% of career/combination departments• Large departments more likely to provide FLSE. • 12% of departments have staff exclusively
assigned to FLSE. Typically provided by uniformed personnel who have multiple responsibilities.
2. What is being done? • 80% elementary schools
69% fire safety week/month activities40% older adults and health safety fairs22% juvenile fire-setter presentations19% neighborhood sweeps
• 70% focus on fire prevention, escape planning, smoke alarms
• 51% distribute and/or install smoke alarms
• 46% are involved with advocacy efforts
3. How is it perceived in the department? • 40% say FLSE is an important or critical part of
department activity. • When asked to rate their satisfaction with FLSE in
their department, average rating was 52. Career departments, those serving large populations, and those in the Southeast scored higher on both of these measures.
4. What are barriers and facilitators?• Barriers
- Lack of funding- Lack of time - Lack of focus (too many competing priorities)- Lack of personnel, programs, training, and expertise- Lack of knowledge about resources
• Facilitators- free community education materials- free safety products to distribute- information about funding
5. What are training needs?• 93% interested in training; 17% say they can pay
for it.• Printed materials, videos, DVDs or CDs, and in-
person training were recommended formats. • Topics:
- programs for children- smoke alarm/CO detector programs- skill-building in advocacy, evaluation, and grant-writing
Survey comments “Public education is as important in the fire service
as fighting the fires.”
Survey comments “Public education is as important in the fire service
as fighting the fires.” “Prevention should be at the top of our goals but
always falls down the list due to funding.”
Survey comments “Public education is as important in the fire service
as fighting the fires.” “Prevention should be at the top of our goals but
always falls down the list due to funding.” “I’m not real sure what FLSE is. I am sure we don’t
have the money to spend on it.”
Survey comments “Public education is as important in the fire service
as fighting the fires.” “Prevention should be at the top of our goals but
always falls down the list due to funding.” “I’m not real sure what FLSE is. I am sure we don’t
have the money to spend on it.” “Please don’t send anymore surveys! How about
money?”
What does it all mean?
• FLSE among all fire departments is valued.
• Volunteer and small departments less likely to have personnel assigned exclusively to FLSE, and to conduct a wide range of activities.
• Limited resources -- personnel and funding -- are substantial impediments to progress.
Fewer people, less money, high value, high expectations
Facing our challenges
Challenge: Access
What’s changed? Schools have less time; are focused on standardized testing requirements.
Facing our challenges
Challenge: Access
Facing our challenges
Challenge: Funding is scarce or unavailable
What’s changed? As fire departments face dramatic budget cuts, purchasing FLSE materials is tough or impossible.
Facing our challenges
Challenge: Funding is scarce or unavailable
FEMA’s Fire Prevention and Safety Grants$27 million in 2007 for fire prevention & safety programs, and firefighter safety research and developmentwww.firegrantsupport.com/fps
Funding Alternatives for Fire and Emergency ServicesA free 161-page guide to options and implications http://www.usfa.dhs.gov/downloads/pdf/publications/fa-141.pdf
Facing our challenges
Challenge: Funding is scarce or unavailable
Local coalitionsShare expenses and expertise. Consider expanding beyond “the usual suspects”
Grassroots fundraisingNFPA offers free tips and fill-in-the-blank funding letter
Beverly A. Browning
Facing our challenges
Challenge: Funding is scarce or unavailable
Free educational materials from NFPA Web sites
http://www.riskwatch.org/teach_lessonplan.html
http://www.sparky.org
Facing our challenges
Challenge: Funding is scarce or unavailable
Free educational materials from NFPA Web sites
http://www.firepreventionweek.org
http://www.sparky.orghttp://www.nfpa.org/factsheets
Facing our challenges
Challenge: Funding is scarce or unavailable
Free educational materials from NFPA Web sites
• Home escape grids• Smoke alarm installation guide• Annual research reports• For older adults• For people with disabilities• Easy-to-read materials• Monthly newsletter (“Safety Source”)
Facing our challenges
Challenge: Funding is scarce or unavailable
Free educational materials from NFPA Web sitesFive tool kits mailed to all fire departments and available online.
Nov. 2008 Sept. 2008 Mar. 2008 Nov. 2007 Apr. 2007
www.nfpa.org/toolkits
Facing our challenges
Challenge: Changing ways primary audiences are accessing information
Facing our challenges
Challenge: Changing ways primary audiences are accessing information
Get on board the electronic information freight train or get run over by it!
Facing our challenges
Rule #1: Have a purpose
A horrible truth: Nobody cares about you or your Web site!
•They want/need informationThey want/need information•They want to make a purchaseThey want to make a purchase•They want to be entertainedThey want to be entertained•They want to be part of a They want to be part of a communitycommunity- Vincent Flanders- Vincent Flanders((www.webpagesthatsuck.com))
Rule #2: Make it easy
Who are you? What do you offer?
Rule #2: Make it easy
Make it easy to get around.• Where am I?
• Where have I been?
• Where can I go next?
Rule #2: Make it easy
Source: Jacob Nielsen’s Web site www.useit.com
Rule #3: Write for the WebPrint and Web are different
•Print: READ•Web: SCAN.
Rule #3: Write for the Web
Rule #3: Write for the Web
Rule #4: Keep it short
Omit extra words that get in the way of your visitors getting to the information they want.
Rule #4: Keep it short
Omit extra words that get in the way of your
visitors getting to the information they want.
Rule #5: Chunk your copy
Rule #5: Chunk your copy
Rule #6: “Don’t make me guess!”Memos from Chief Robert Jones
•April 1, 2008•April 8, 2006•April 15, 2008•April 22, 2008
Rule #6: “Don’t make me guess!”Memos from Chief Robert Jones
•Dorm fire safety (4/1/08)•Home fire drills (4/8/08)•Prevent cooking fires (4/15/08)•Get ready for grilling (4/22/08)
Send an e-mail to Chief Jones
Rule #7: Link, link, link
Rule #7: Link, link, link
Find out who links to you…
link:http://www.link:http://www.yourwebsiteurlyourwebsiteurli.e. link:http://www.cnn.comi.e. link:http://www.cnn.com
Web 2.0 (Social Media)
Using electronic/Internet tools to share and discuss information and experiences with others to create value for the user
Social Media
Survey: Americans expect social media (September ‘08)
• 93% of online Americans say companies should have a social media presence
• 85% believe companies should be interacting with consumers through social media
Blogs
Blog = “Web log”A simple Web-publishing tool that allows
writers to post entries (text, images, graphics, audio, video, links). i.e. The Huffington Post, Lifehacker, Google Blog
• Less formal writing• Can feature multiple voices• Content is short, doesn’t need to be as “developed”• Point to related content (and these sites point back to you)• * Encourage feedback, interactive and community building
Blogs
Launched: April 2006Visits: 61,848
Comments: 271
http://nfpa.typepad.com/fireservicetoday/
Blogs
Colchester, CT
Watertown, MA
Los Angeles, CA
Sun Valley, ID
RSS
RSS = “Really Simple Syndication”A format for delivering regularly changing
Web content for people who subscribe.
RSSThe “old” way of surfing the Web
RSS The “RSS” way of surfing the Web
RSS
www.google.com/reader
Reading RSS feeds Building RSS feeds
NFPA users “Feed Editor”,but many to choose from.
Audio and Podcasts
Audio: digital file (.wav, mp3, etc.) accessed via links on your Web site, using some kind of media player (iTunes, Quicktime, WMP, etc.)
Audio and Podcasts
• Institutional knowledge – “hear from experts”
• New way of providing content
• Complements other online content
Digital audio recorders are cheap and easy to use.
NFPA uses “Audacity” to edit audio clips.
Can be loaded onto Web site like any other file.
Audio and Podcasts
Audio and Podcasts
Podcast: a series of digital files (.wav, mp3, etc.) accessed via links on your Web site, using some kind of media player (iTunes, Quicktime, WMP, etc.)
A podcast is syndicated ( ) and tends to be longer form.
This American Life, Real Time Bill Maher, 60 Minutes
NFPA issues two monthly podcasts.
Video
“A picture tells 1,000 words.A moving picture tells 10,000”
Video
Tell your story on a global scale. • related videos• comments, video responses, subscriptions, and easy tracking
Video recorders (“Flip”) are cheap, easy to use, and come with editing software.
Loading to YouTube is free.
Video
Video
NFPA’s most watched video on YouTube:
• Posted 12/07
• 42,755 views
• 38 comments
Contact me