{"id":8324,"date":"2019-08-07T21:00:57","date_gmt":"2019-08-08T04:00:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/routeware.com\/blog\/the-essential-guide-to-modernizing-recycling-communications-for-todays-customers\/"},"modified":"2025-05-05T14:51:18","modified_gmt":"2025-05-05T21:51:18","slug":"the-essential-guide-to-modernizing-recycling-communications-for-todays-customers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/routeware.com\/en_gb\/blog\/the-essential-guide-to-modernizing-recycling-communications-for-todays-customers\/","title":{"rendered":"The Waste Hauler’s Guide to Modernizing Recycling Communications For Today\u2019s Customers"},"content":{"rendered":"

Strapped for time?<\/em> Download this guide<\/strong><\/em><\/a> in PDF format.<\/em><\/p>\n

It\u2019s never been more challenging to keep a recycling business running. At the same time, proper recycling and waste management<\/strong><\/a> has never been more critical to the health of our communities and the planet.<\/p>\n

With the China trash ban of 2018<\/strong><\/a> creating a sea change in markets, national media headlines decrying a recycling system in crisis, and hometown recycling programs closing amid the chaos, some private waste haulers<\/strong><\/a> are struggling to adjust.<\/p>\n

Further complicating matters, contamination consumes nearly a quarter of the space in every recycling truck in the United States, and a majority of recyclers don\u2019t really know what they\u2019re supposed to be recycling in the first place.<\/p>\n

Well, as they say, when the going gets tough, the tough get going.<\/p>\n

This guide offers 10 ways to get going, proposing that by improving recycling communications, we can clean up the recycling stream and simplify daily business operations, and thereby continue to provide a critical and fundamental service to our communities.<\/p>\n

I. Content Summary<\/h3>\n

Strapped for time? Here is a condensed summary of this guide:<\/p>\n

    \n
  1. Confirm first: Confirm what\u2019s recyclable with your MRF in light of international market changes.<\/li>\n
  2. Be clear and concise: Use phrases and bullets, eliminate repetition and stay consistent.<\/li>\n
  3. Improve customer service the easy way: Overcome the most common customer complaints through improved, up-to-the-minute communication.<\/li>\n
  4. Completely normal: Cast recycling right as a social norm in your communications and watch contamination reduce dramatically.<\/li>\n
  5. Stop the negativity: Don\u2019t focus too much on what not to do in recycling. It could actually encourage contamination.<\/li>\n
  6. Harness wish-cyclers: Get your most enthusiastic but sometimes error-making recyclers on board with detailed messages that satisfy their curiosity.<\/li>\n
  7. Use the 1-5-50 rule: One thought only can be communicated successfully via broad media. Five things will be heard in a group setting. More than 50 ideas need to live in a searchable database.<\/li>\n
  8. Hone with data: Use the search information your customers provide to guide future messaging.<\/li>\n
  9. Go mini: Launch a short-lived, extra-focused campaign to get the word out on a single tough issue.<\/li>\n
  10. Save time and money: Use an app-based recycling solution, such as ReCollect to reduce call volumes, brand your program and delight people, too. Call centers love it when their employees can find the answer to customer challenges quickly and easily. This reduces call times and training times.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    II. 10 Ways to Improve Your Program<\/h3>\n

    For a more in-depth read, what follows is the research behind the quick tips from Section I.<\/p>\n

    \"Modernizing<\/figure>\n

    1. Confirm what\u2019s recyclable<\/h3>\n

    About 60 percent of recycling programs communicate conflicting information to customers about what goes where. How long has it been since you confirmed what\u2019s recyclable with your MRF?<\/p>\n

    In its 2017 MRFShed Report, The Recycling Partnership revealed that a majority of communities (60 percent) published conflicting information about what\u2019s recyclable. With major news coverage of the China ban under headlines such as \u201cChina\u2019s Import Ban Broke Plastics Recycling<\/strong><\/a>\u201d (National Geographic, June 2018), customers may be understandably wary of their good-faith recycling efforts going to waste\u2014literally. At this critical juncture with your customers, it\u2019s more important than ever to build trust through open communication. Start by confirming what\u2019s getting recycled using a tool such as this one<\/strong><\/a>.<\/p>\n

    Source: The Recycling Partnership\u2019s 2017 MRFShed Report<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

    \"Modernizing<\/figure>\n

    2. Make recycling instructions clear and concise<\/h3>\n

    Recycling messages must be clear and to-the-point for customers to remember them. Luckily, there are a few easy rules and tools you can use to make sure your messages are on-point.<\/p>\n

    The research on attention is clear: Most people have an attention span of about eight seconds and can remember a string of seven items. The good news is, you don\u2019t have to be a great writer to create clear, engaging recycling copy.<\/p>\n

    Here\u2019s how:<\/p>\n