Royal Air Forces Association Brand Guidelines and Tool KitMarch 2013

Be part of something special

Templates 3.1 Letterhead template - self printing 3.2 Compliments slip template - self printing 3.3 Business card template - self printing 3.4 Business card template - pro printing 3.5 Business card template - pro printing 2 3.6 Powerpoint presentation 3.7 Ad template

How to Guides 4.1 Producing a leaflet 4.2 Producing a Poster 4.3 Writing a press release 4.4 Setting up a Facebook page 4.5 Setting up a branch email address

Introduction 1.1 Welcome 1.2 How to use these brand guidelines

The Brand 2.1 The importance of the brand 2.2 Brand values 2.3 Primary logo 2.4 Simplified logo 2.5 Logo versions 2.6 Colour palette 2.7 Typefaces 2.8 Curve graphic 2.8 Supporting logos

Contents

Welcome to the Royal Air Forces Association style guide. These guidelines have been produced to ensure our brand style is presented in a consistent and professional manner throughout all communications. Together we can create a stronger more recognisable brand.

Every organisation/brand has a face, the public face that it presents to the world. Its image will decide how it is perceived by its customer base (members & welfare beneficiaries) and potential customers (members, donors & welfare beneficiaries), so the organisation has to take care that a uniform message is conveyed through all its activities. This starts right from the logo, and goes throughout everything that we present to the outside world from every poster, banner, sign, advert and even into the words that we use when talking to the press or writing an article. The overall perception that is generated from all these is a major decider in what role the organisation plays in the market and how it stays on top.

The RAF Association has a unique identity within the RAF Family. This guideline document reflects that position. And whilst there are elements of the RAF Association brand that are unique, all RAF Association communications must comply with the overall Royal Air Force brand identity.

This document will enable you to produce professional, strong and compelling communications which will inevitably inspire and excite those around you to also be part of something special.

1.1 Welcome

If you are creating Royal Air Forces Association communications material yourself, you should use these rules as a tool kit. If you are commissioning work, these rules serve as a checklist.

You must make sure that work you approve/produce meets the criteria described in the rules and communicates the right message about the Royal Air Forces Association in the most effective way.

These rules are important. If we do not consider how we present the Royal Air Forces Association, our audience will determine our image for us. How we appear has a major effect on how we are valued; therefore, we must develop and protect our corporate image carefully to maintain its integrity.

The rules and guidelines within this document will help you to portray the Royal Air Forces Association’s image, reputation, values and personality correctly and consistently.

These rules refer to all of the Royal Air Forces Association, whether applied internally or externally, and are for use by:

RAF Association members & branches

External marketing agencies

Everyone whose work affects the image, reputation, values and personality of the Royal Air Forces Association (all Royal Air Forces Association personnel)

1.2 How to use these brand guidelines

When we’re producing communications for the Royal Air Forces Association, we need to be consistent and careful in how we present ourselves.

It’s not acceptable to produce communications which represent us poorly (for example by using the wrong logo, low-resolution photographs or badly written copy) as this will damage the integrity of the Royal Air Forces Association brand. This document explains the different elements of our brand identity (our logo, typeface, corporate colours and language) and tells you how to use them. You can also find out where to go for further information and resources.

If you would like more information, or if you would like advice on implementing the style guide, please contact:

Royal Air Forces Association Marketing Department 1171⁄2 Loughborough Road Leicester LE4 5ND Tel: 0116 266 5224 Email: marketing@rafa.org.uk

2.1 The importance of the brand

The Royal Air Forces Association is a people-based organisation. Our welfare support is provided to people in the RAF Family, it’s our people who make a difference and carry out our vital work, and it is people in the general public who support us. Our values and ethos therefore reflect this.

RAF service personnel make many sacrifices in order to serve their country. The RAF Association is here to make sure that their sacrifice never results is poverty, hardship or loneliness. We ensure this by providing welfare based on Friendship, Help and Support.

Friendship We are there for people who need us, providing friendship and helping to alleviate loneliness. We are a trusted ally, loyal and supportive, and always there for those who need us.

Help We give help without expecting anything in return. We give assistance and aid. We improve the lives of serving personnel and their families – past and present. Whether an arm of support, an listening ear, or simply providing a facility to make life just a little better, we’re there for all kinds of amazing people.

Support Whether it’s physical support, support through our knowledge and contacts or actual financial support that people need, we treat everyone equally, fairly and with integrity and respect. We will support the RAF Family in times of need in every way we can.

2.2 Brand Values Our values are summarised in a public-facing line that we use to communicate what we do to the public:

Providing friendship, help and support to our serving and former-serving RAF heroes.

We have designed the Royal Air Forces Association logo specifically so that it is in-line with the updated Royal Air Force logo and can always be recognised clearly. Always use the logo when communicating on behalf of the Royal Air Forces Association.

The Royal Air Forces Association logo The RAF Association’s primary logo is the combination of the modified RAF logo and the RAF Association Emblem in a single graphic. This graphic cannot be altered in any way.

The key modifications to the RAF’s logo are that we use the plural ‘Forces’ and we have added the words: ‘Friendship, Help, Support’ underneath in the same blue as ‘Royal Air Forces’, summarising our key activities.

Logo exclusion zone You must always keep a clear space - called the ‘exclusion zone’ - around the Royal Air Forces Association logo to make sure that it stands out.

The clear space should be the height of the letter ‘A’ in ‘Association’, on each side of the logo, as shown here.

2.3 Primary Logo

You can download the logo at www.rafa.org.uk/members-area/members-branch-resources

Both the logo and the emblem are equally important. However at times, only one element can be shown, in which case it should be the logo which gives our name, a design link to the RAF and states what the RAF Association does.

Logo exclusion zone The logo must always be used at a size that makes it clear to read. The smallest size you should use it at is 35mm wide.

You must always keep a clear space - called the ‘exclusion zone’ - around the Royal Air Forces Association logo to make sure that it stands out.

The clear space should be the height of the letter ‘A’ in ‘Association’, on each side of the logo, as shown here.

You can download the logo at www.rafa.org.uk/members-area/members-branch-resources

2.4 Simplified Logo

35mm

35mm Wide – Minimum size

It is preferable that the logo is used on the RAF Association light blue or white background, as shown.

It should not be used on any other colour or shade of blue. See colour palette on page 2.6

When the main communication is in black and white, the mono version shown can be used.

You can download the logos at www.rafa.org.uk/members-area/members-branch-resources

2.5 Logo Versions

Preferred mono version Printed on a white background

Simplified mono version Printed on a white background

Preferred version Printed on a white background

Simplified version Printed on a white background

Preferred version Printed on a light blue background

Simplified version Printed on a light blue background

Preferred reversed mono version Printed on a black background

Simplified reversed mono version Printed on a black background

2.6 Colour Palette

PANTONE®

186 CPANTONE®

295 CPANTONE®

290 C

The RAF Association’s main corporate colours are:

Royal Air Force Red (Pantone® PMS 186C) Royal Air Force Blue (Pantone® PMS 295C) Light blue background colour (Pantone® PMS 290C)

All communications must be produced using these colours – or their CMYK or RGB breakdowns. If, for any reason, the production process doesn’t allow you to use these colours, you must forward a sample of the communications material to the RAF Association Marketing Team for colour matching before the production run starts.

The Pantone® MATCHING SYSTEM is a worldwide printing, publishing and packaging language for the selection, marketing and control of colour. Pantone® is a registered trademark of Pantone® Inc.

Please do not use these pages, either on screen or as a colour printout, to match colours. The colours shown in this PDF are a visual guide only.

CMYK C2 M100 Y82 K6RGB R198 G12 B48HEX #C60C30

CMYK C100 M70 Y8 K54RGB R0 G47 B95HEX #002F5F

CMYK C25 M2 Y0 K0RGB R185 G224 B246HEX #b9e0f6

2.7 TypefacesThe RAF Association’s typeface is Myriad Pro. We have chosen Myriad Pro because it is clean, modern and easy to read, helping us communicate clearly.

Myriad Pro is available in a wide range of styles, including italic. You must use Myriad Pro in all professionally produced publicity and marketing material.

Document and page titles should be in semi-bold.

Secondary headings should be in light. Paragraph sub-headings should be in bold. The first paragraph of an article may use regular Light should be used for body type. Regular body text may be used, in limited

circumstances, to aid legibility at smaller sizes or when reversing type out of a colour.

See ‘Tool kits’ Section for examples.

Myriad Pro Light abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ 1234567890

Myriad Pro abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ 1234567890 If Myriad Pro is not available, please use Arial.

Arial Regular abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ 1234567890

Myriad Pro Semi Bold abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ 1234567890

Myriad Pro Bold abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ 1234567890

Arial Bold abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ 1234567890

Myriad Pro is used in four weights of bold, semi-bold, regular and light.

2.8 Curve graphicThe RAF Association curve graphic is a flexible and dynamic device that visually compliments the roundel and can be used with other brand elements to provide a unified identity to all our communications.The RAF Association curve graphic is to be used as a container for the RAF Association logo and supporting military or sponsor logos. Logos should be placed in the outer curve area.The RAF Association curve graphic can also be used to denote chapter or section headings within a document. The colour of the dividing curve can be changed to any from the brand palette to accent any supporting photography or graphics.The inner curve area should contain the images and text for the document subject material.

RuleYou must not change the proportion and shape of the dividing curve area.

Outer CurveDividing Curve

Inner Curve

2.9 Supporting logos

Be part of something specialPart of something specialSupporting something special

Wings Appeal logo - No Text Only to be used as a graphic device not as you would use the logo. Eg. Used as a touch screen button.

Primary Wings Appeal logo To be used on all fundraising material.

Something special straplines Not to be used as a headline as too ambiguous. Only use to support a main headline message.

Wings Appeal logo - White Out Can be used as ghosted logo at 50% opacity on the RAF Association Light Blue.

You can download the logos and straplines at www.rafa.org.uk/members-area/members-branch-resources

Mr J Jones MBE Super Promotions2 Organisation Street Rotherville ANYTOWN AC1 2CD

Reference: Air/123456/7/Org

18 December 2012

Dear Mr. Jones,

Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit.Nulla iaculis augue mauris. Duis nulla erat, feugiat ornare eleifend ac, imperdiet ac risus. Donec diam nisl, sodales sed convallis sit amet, vestibulum sit amet purus. Nam ac tellus nulla. In ut lorem eget mauris placerat faucibus non sit amet ligula. Aenean non mi in velit feugiat porttitor. Cras justo felis, vulputate nec adipiscing a, tristique vitae nisl. Fusce euismod suscipit velit. Curabitur non leo erat, at dapibus elit. Phasellus augue orci, auctor sit amet iaculis vitae, posuere vitae leo. Etiam condimentum lorem eleifend sapien pellentesque vitae fringilla nibh adipiscing. Etiam at semper lacus. Nullam feugiat rutrum venenatis. Phasellus sit amet euismod urna.

Integer pharetra suscipit consequat. In at dictum mi. Pellentesque mauris nisl, tincidunt sed suscipit quis, feugiat at turpis. Mauris aliquet, dolor eget gravida pulvinar, ligula lorem varius ante, at laoreet diam erat vitae velit. Duis nisl mauris, viverra a iaculis sit amet, condimentum sit amet purus. Curabitur lacinia, augue non lobortis hendrerit, mi nibh eleifend justo, sit amet scelerisque metus lacus vestibulum risus. Mauris pellentesque, lectus eget feugiat iaculis, risus lectus adipiscing enim, ac posuere lectus nulla eu libero. Pellentesque habitant morbi tristique senectus et netus et malesuada fames ac turpis egestas. Donec massa velit, dictum id faucibus nec, iaculis sed mi.

Praesent laoreet bibendum auctor. Praesent scelerisque, urna nec aliquet condimentum, lorem elit laoreet ipsum, quis gravida lectus nibh at ante. Sed sed odio vitae est ultrices congue. Mauris id metus justo. Proin dictum tincidunt massa sit amet luctus. Cras metus mauris, consequat a consectetur nec, lacinia non augue. Aenean vitae nibh risus. Praesent sed urna enim, a cursus est. Nullam tempus scelerisque felis ut sollicitudin.

Yours sincerely,

John Smith Squadron Leader For Commander-in-Chief

Royal Air Forces AssociationSterling Court,

Offices 1-4 Leyland Business Park, Leyland, PR25 3GR

Tel: 01772 42693 Email: rita.bibby@rafa.org.uk

3.1 Letterhead Template Self Printing20mm

16mm

E

EE

Typefaces, size and colour Royal Air Forces Association – Myriad Pro Bold 11pt with 13pt leading in RAF Association Red.

Branch Address – Myriad Pro Regular 11pt with 13pt leading in RAF Association Blue.

Letter text – Arial Regular 11pt with 12 pt leading in black

Letter Headline/Title – Arial Bold 15 with 12pt leading

You can download the letterhead template at www.rafa.org.uk/members-area/members-branch-resources

With compliments

Royal Air Forces AssociationSterling Court,

Offices 1-4 Leyland Business Park, Leyland, PR25 3GR

Tel: 01772 42693 Email: rita.bibby@rafa.org.uk

3.2 Compliments Slip Template Self Printing

20mm

16mm

15mm

E

E

E E

E E

Typefaces, size and colour Royal Air Forces Association – Myriad Pro Bold 11pt with 13pt leading in RAF Association Red.

Address – Myriad Pro Regular 11pt with 13pt leading in RAF Association Blue.

With compliments – Myriad Pro Semibold 16pt in RAF Association Red.

You can download the compliments slip at www.rafa.org.uk/members-area members-branch-resources

3.3 Business Card Template Self Printing

Rita Bibby Assistant Area Welfare Officer (Northern)

Royal Air Forces Association 117 1/2 Loughborough Road, Leicester LE4 5ND Tel: 01772 426930 Mobile: 07777 000000 Email: rita.bibby@rafa.org.uk www.rafa.org.uk

5mm 5mmE E

7.5mm

E

Typefaces, size and colour

Name – Myriad Pro Bold 10pt with 9pt leading in RAF Association Blue.

Title – Myriad Pro Bold 7pt with 9pt leading in RAF Association Blue.

Royal Air Forces Association – Myriad Pro Bold 7pt with 9pt leading in RAF Association Red.

Address – Myriad Pro Regular 7pt with 9pt leading in RAF Association Blue.

URL – Myriad Pro Semibold 7pt with 9pt leading in RAF Association Blue.

Rita Bibby Assistant Area Welfare Officer (Northern)

Royal Air Forces Association 117 1/2 Loughborough Road, Leicester LE4 5NDTel: 01772 426930 Mobile: 07777 000000 Email: rita.bibby@rafa.org.uk www.rafa.org.uk

RAFWingsAppeal

RAFWingsAppeal

@RAFWingsAppeal

rafwingsappeal

Part of something special

3.4 Business Card Template Pro Printing

5mm 5mm5mm 5mmE EE E

7.5mm

E

Front Reverse

Typefaces, size and colour

Name – Myriad Pro Bold 10pt with 9pt leading in RAF Association Blue.

Title – Myriad Pro Bold 7pt with 9pt leading in RAF Association Blue.

Royal Air Forces Association – Myriad Pro Bold 7pt with 9pt leading in RAF Association Red.

Address – Myriad Pro Regular 7pt with 9pt leading in RAF Association Blue.

URL – Myriad Pro Semibold 7pt with 9pt leading in RAF Association Blue.

Social media links – Myriad Pro Regular 8pt with 13pt leading in RAF Association Blue.

Part of something special – Hand Of Sean 15pt in RAF Association Blue.

RAFWingsAppeal

RAFWingsAppeal

@RAFWingsAppeal

rafwingsappeal

Part of something special

Rita Bibby Assistant Area Welfare Officer (Northern)

Royal Air Forces Association 117 1/2 Loughborough Road, Leicester LE4 5NDTel: 01772 426930 Mobile: 07777 000000 Email: rita.bibby@rafa.org.uk www.rafa.org.uk

3.5 Business Card Template Pro Printing 2

5mm 5mm5mm 5mmE EE E

7.5mm

E

Front Reverse

Typefaces, size and colour

Name – Myriad Pro Bold 10pt with 9pt leading in RAF Association Blue.

Title – Myriad Pro Bold 7pt with 9pt leading in RAF Association Blue.

Royal Air Forces Association – Myriad Pro Bold 7pt with 9pt leading in RAF Association Red.

Address – Myriad Pro Regular 7pt with 9pt leading in RAF Association Blue.

URL – Myriad Pro Semibold 7pt with 9pt leading in RAF Association Blue.

Social media links – Myriad Pro Regular 8pt with 13pt leading in RAF Association Blue.

Part of something special – Hand Of Sean 15pt in RAF Association Blue.

3.6 PowerPoint Template

Typefaces, size and colour

Title – Myriad Pro Semibold 37pt in RAF Association Blue or Red

Subheading – Myriad Pro Regular 25pt in White, RAF Association Red or Blue

Standard Bullet Point – Myriad Pro Regular 25pt. Dot in RAF Association Red, copy in RAF Association Blue

Secondary Bullet Point – Myriad Pro Regular 20pt. Dot in RAF Association Red, copy in RAF Association Blue

Be part of something special – Hand Of Sean always in RAF Association Blue.

You can download the Powerpoint template at www.rafa.org.uk/members-area/members-branch-resources

E

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70pixels

70pixels

Text area and image area

SAFE AREA - LEAVE BLANK

SAFE

ARE

A -

LEAV

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AN

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REA - LEAVE BLA

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SAFE AREA - LEAVE BLANK

3.7 Advert template

Providing friendship, help and supportto the RAF family in times of need.

Help us now. Join, donate, volunteer. Your support is vital. Visit rafa.org.uk or call 0116 266 5224Registered Charity 226686 in England & Wales. SC037673 in Scotland

Providing friendship, help and supportto the RAF family in times of need.

Help us now. Join, donate, volunteer. Your support is vital. Visit rafa.org.uk or call 0116 266 5224Registered Charity 226686 in England & Wales. SC037673 in Scotland

Providing friendship, help and supportto the RAF family in times of need.

Help us now. Join, donate, volunteer. Your support is vital. Visit rafa.org.uk or call 0116 266 5224Registered Charity 226686 in England & Wales. SC037673 in Scotland

Registered Charity 226686 in England & Wales. SC037673 in Scotland

Providing friendship, help and support to the RAF family in times of need.

Help us now. Join, donate, volunteer. Your support is vital. Visit rafa.org.uk or call 0116 266 5224

Will be available online 2014. Contact marketing@rafa.org.uk if you require assistance.

Full page advert Half page vertical advert Half page horizontal Quarter page

If you are thinking about producing a leaflet for your branch there are a number of questions to consider before you start. The following guidelines are designed to help you produce the content and design for a leaflet.

Why do you want to produce a leaflet? Is it to inform people about becoming a member of your branch? Inform people of the welfare support your branch can offer? Or is it to mark a special event? Do you want the leaflet to be available in other locations e.g. local tourist information office, doctors surgeries etc…? Being clear about your objective at the beginning should help you to select relevant text and images.

Who is it for? Think about the people you are trying to reach. Are they eligible to join your branch? Have they shown interest in the RAF Association previously? Why should they come to your event/become a member of your branch? Is it because they have served in the RAF or do they have family connections? Are they local to the branch?

What about the content? Having decided who you want to target and why, you need to think about content that will be relevant for your audience. You might want to include information about:

Being part of the whole RAF Association Event times and dates Meetings/social events of the branch

(opening hours) Website address (can be www.rafa.org.uk if

your branch does not have its own website) Brief story of your branch, past and present The role your branch plays in the

local community RAF Association logo

4.1 How to produce a LeafletContact details. Be careful about including information that is personal or time sensitive. For example, if you are including dates of events then you will not want to have the leaflet lying around when it is out of date. And do not include people’s names or phone numbers unless you have their permission. This information can also change and make a leaflet out of date.

If the leaflet is being written by a number of people then make sure that it is edited so that the text flows smoothly and the tone is consistent. It should above all be interesting to read.

4.1 How to produce a Leaflet

Fully-equipped for an enjoyable holidayEach comfortable chalet is well-equipped and can accommodate up to four people.

Lounge/dining area

Kitchenette with mini-oven and hob

Two bedrooms

Bathroom with electric shower (one chalet has a bath plus shower)

Electric power included in cost

Pets and smoking not permitted in chalets

Cot and highchair available upon request

Wheelchair available by arrangement

Scooters and electric wheelchair hire available locally

Bookings and arrivals…Hemsby Chalets are available between May and October. Application forms for the chalets are available from RAFA Branch Honorary Welfare Officers. Serving RAF personnel should contact their OC PMS/RAF Association Liaison Officer.

For further information please contact: The RAF Association Eastern Office 117½ Loughborough Road Leicester LE4 5ND

Tel: 0116 268 8782/1 Email: alex.watts@rafa.org.uk

www.rafa.org.uk

Registered Charity No. 226686 (England & Wales), SC037673 (Scotland)

Hemsby Chalets

Enjoy a welcome break in beautiful Norfolk

Fully-equipped for an enjoyable holidayOur comfortable holiday home accommodates up to six people if you wish to also use the stowaway double bed in the spacious lounge/dining area.

Two bedrooms: double and twin with stowaway double bed in lounge

Walk-in shower room with fold-down seat and supports

Well-equipped kitchen

Fully wheelchair-accessible

Balcony, parking space and safe, open playing fields

Spacious lounge dining area with colour TV/DVD

Bookings and arrivals…For more information about our Selsey holiday home, or to make a booking, please contact our South East & Eastern Area office on 020 8286 6667, or email us at southeastarea@rafa.org.uk

SE Area Office RAF Association3-5 Old Bridge StreetHampton WickKingston-Upon-ThamesSurrey KT1 4BU

For information on other welfare breaks offered by the RAF Association please visit www.rafa.org.uk or email enquiries@rafa.org.uk

Registered Charity No. 226686 (England & Wales), SC037673 (Scotland)

Selsey Holiday Home

Take a break on the wonderful West Sussex coast

Great value holidays available to all the RAF FamilyHow does a relaxing, affordable holiday in beautiful surroundings, close to some fabulous beaches with lots to see and do for all ages sound? Our self-catering holiday home in Selsey near Chichester on the West Sussex coast is ideal if you’re thinking of taking a break this year.

Available to book from the Royal Air Forces Association, our well-equipped holiday home is on the Green Lawns Bunn Leisure Holiday Park in Selsey and is close to the beach and many local visitor attractions.

The home provides a fantastic-value break and is available to all serving and former-serving RAF personnel and their families. Contributions will depend upon individual means and can be discussed with a welfare officer.

Perfect for full-on family fun or a quieter, relaxing break

Our Selsey holiday home is on the attractive Green Lawns site of the Bunn Leisure holiday park and is situated a short distance from the beach. Guests can take advantage of free bus travel and complimentary access to the larger Bunn Leisure park and there are on-park swimming pools, bars, clubs, shops and restaurants to discover, plus a theatre and gym with sauna and steam room at the main site.

Selsey itself is close to a number of visitor attractions around Chichester including the Tangmere Military Aviation Museum, Goodwood and Arundel Castle, and many more. Bognor Regis (where you’ll find Bognor RAFA club) and other beaches are also close by – and the Isle of Wight is just a short boat trip away.

Whether as a family or a couple, you’ll find Selsey is the ideal base to explore all that the West Sussex area has to offer.

Example 6 page DL Leaflet

Please visit www.rafashop.com to order pre-printed leaflets.

A poster is a great way to publicise a forthcoming event or to inform people of the opportunity to become a member of your branch. There are key points to consider before making it.

The following guidelines are designed to help you produce the content and design for a poster.

Why do you want to produce a poster? Is it to inform people about becoming a member of your branch? Inform people of the welfare support your branch can offer? Or is it to publicise a special event? Being clear about your objective at the beginning should help you to select relevant text and images.

Who is it for? Think about the people you are trying to reach. Are they eligible to join your branch? Have they shown interest in the RAF Association previously? Why should they come to your event/become a member of your branch? Is it because they have served in the RAF or do they have family connections? Are they local to the branch?

What about the content? Having decided who you want to target and why, you need to think about content that will be relevant for your audience. The following points will help to get all the information you need across to your audience in a quick and effective way:

A catchy headline e.g. Join here today! Or Wings Appeal Swing Dance in aid of the RAF Association. Your poster title has to attract, inform & summarise.

Event times and dates Location Where tickets can be purchased (if applicable) For more information visit: Website address

(can be www.rafa.org.uk if your branch does not have its own website) or contact...

RAF Association logo

Be careful about including information that is personal, do not include people’s names or phone numbers unless you have their permission.

4.2 How to produce a poster for a branch eventWhere will the poster be displayed? Having some thoughts on where the poster will be displayed will help you with the design of the poster – is it in a busy location? What will make it stand out? Does the poster have to be printed at a certain size?

For advice or guidance, please contact your area office or email marketing@rafa.org.uk

As you will be aware, positive publicity and press coverage can be an invaluable way to raise awareness of your event and increase fundraising, but for many people, the prospect of approaching a newspaper can be quite a daunting one. Here are some hints and tips for promoting your event within the media.

Think – What are you trying to achieve from your press release? Raise funds? General awareness ?

Writing your press release:

Keep your copy short and punchy (350 words max). Answer the following questions within it – Who? What? Where?

When? How? Why? Assume they won’t read on – have you got the most interesting

facts in the first few lines? The attention grabber should be in the title and first paragraph - make it

stand out and summarise the article. It should be a clear introduction to the news that follows.

Establish Contacts:

Do Make a good contact, so you know who to send your article to. Who are your local journalists? Let them know what to expect from the event – are you just sending them

a press release or would they be interested to attend? Outline your story and be prepared to answer questions about it. Keep your promises – if you agree to provide further information or a call

back… please do! (And as soon as possible) They may want a different angle – try to be flexible but stay in control. Be helpful. The easier you can make their job for them the better. Set up your own website/blog to refer the journalist to.

Don’t DON’T FORGET TO CHECK THEIR DEADLINES! - The greatest story in the

world is no good on Tuesday if they go to press Monday! Don’t be afraid to call to establish contact, but check it’s a good time to talk! Don’t expect the whole piece to be used word for word.

For advice or guidance, please contact your area office or email marketing@rafa.org.uk

4.3 How to write a press release

EX-SERVICEMEN IN GREAT WALL BID / MAMMOTH MARATHON CHALLENGE / LOOPY WORLD RECORD ATTEMPTTwo <engineers/pilots/etc> from RAF <xxx> will push themselves to the limit when they <xxx> in aid of the RAF Association.Training has begun in earnest for <names>, who are looking to complete their challenge on <xxx>.It is hoped that the team/pair/crew will raise thousands of pounds for the RAF Association which provides help and support for past and present members of the RAF and their families.More details of event….. interesting facts – how many miles, how much training needed, a world record etc.Why you decided to do it and how daunting it’s going to be…. <insert quote>Why is the RAF Association such a good cause/ give examples – Miles More Minutes/ Storybook Wings etc… <continue quote>How can people sponsor you?… <insert details>Ends…

4.3 How to write a press releaseExample press release:

Insert your contact details here – phone, mobile, email address, website or blog – but no postal addresses.Include as many as possible – and be available on them!

1. Create Your Page Page category - your Facebook page should be placed in the category of ‘company, organisation or institution’ and then ‘Non-profit organisation’

2. Fill In Information Page name - your branch page should be named with ‘Royal Air Forces Association’ and then your branch name so that when people search for the branch on Facebook they can find it easily e.g. Royal Air Forces Association St Helen’s Branch

3. Add a Photo Upload a picture for your page – We have a resized logo for use on your Facebook identity image, it is the RAF Association’s simple logo, without the Eagle on the globe and the Friendship, Help and Support wording due to the very small size that the profile image will recur at as a thumbnail throughout the website. Due to the need for the image to fit the square box, we have resized a logo for you to use on Facebook for ease-of-use.

4. Suggest your page to friends You can import your email addresses straight into Facebook or invite people to like you page by inviting them individually. This will help to make sure that your page is a success from the start and seen by as many people in your existing network as possible.

5. Start writing content Why not start with information about your branch - put meeting times and places in the ‘About’ section and to add the historical information about the branch to the timeline.   You can also link to your branch website (if you have one) from within this section.

6. Get a Vanity URL Make your Facebook page name easy to remember, when you edit your page you can create a URL in the format of facebook.com/RAFAssociationLondon or similar.

4.4 How to set up a Facebook page7. Use the Tools That Are Available Facebook has FAQs and prompts built into it to help coach you into the best use of your page. Take time to explore the best advice and latest updates so that you get the most out of it.

8. Assign Other Admins Share the branch login with other branch members if it’s a branch email address that has been used to set up the page – with other members of your branch so that if you go on holiday, or if you move to another branch the branch can still maintain its Facebook page in your absence.

You can download the image at www.rafa.org.uk/members-area/members-branch-resources

Here’s an example of what your Facebook page should look like once it has been set up. The image at the top can be changed periodically and you can put whatever you want into this space to represent your branch

Hints and tips for maintaining your page

The posts that you have put up as you won’t be seen so easily as those you post as the page itself and so try to make sure that every time you post on the page, you do it as the branch.  This will keep your personal identity separate to that of the branch.

Share photos with captions that relate to the photo as this attracts more likes and interactions with your followers

You could also make events for your branch meetings.

You may find it useful to connect with other branches and pages – one that’s particularly good is the St Helen’s branch page http://www.facebook.com/rafasthelens

4.4 How to set up a Facebook page

Why not set up an email address unique to your RAF Association Branch or Registered Members Group (RMG)?

1. Agree with your branch members who will be responsible for the email account

2. Set up a free email account using the email provider Gmail (Google)

3. Start the name of the email with RAFA. Followed by the name of your branch or RMG

Example London branch or London RMG. It would look like this: rafa.londonbranch@gmail.com or rafa.londonrmg@gmail.com

4. Inform CHQ of the new branch email address so it can be added to the database

5. Start using your new email address to inform members of events you are holding, fundraising activity you are carrying out, or simply updating people on how well you are doing as a branch

If you have any queries about setting up a new email address, please contact your Area Office.

4.5 How to set up a branch email address