S.A.F.E.: urgency around bicycle theft should spur action

The bicycle. How could we live without it? We step on the pedals to run errands, to get to school or work, to the sports club or to any imaginable appointment. The two-wheeler, whether or not powered by an electric motor, is also increasingly used to go for a ride. This benefits both the climate and our health, and this popularity translates into explosive sales of expensive models such as e-bikes and road bikes. The bicycle gives us a sense of freedom.

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But this freedom is still far too often taken away from us. For years, bicycle theft has been the most common form of property crime in the Netherlands. But now the financial damage is skyrocketing because e-bikes in particular are sought-after prey for organized gangs of thieves. The Stichting Aanpak Fiets- en E-bikediefstal (S.A.F.E.), in which government agencies, market parties, social organizations and knowledge institutes work together, wants to put a stop to this trend. S.A.F.E. therefore commissioned a study by Bureau Beke into the actual state of bicycle theft in the Netherlands. The results and recommendations should provide building blocks for an integrated fight against bicycle theft. But how do you ensure that the stakeholders act accordingly?

Approach: the power of exclusivity
In the case of such a large study, we first determined the media strategy. As a conference in a room full of people is not possible in this day and age, we decided to present the research results in a webcast. S.A.F.E. together with knowledge center Fietsberaad-CROW invited the stakeholders, De Wolven took care of the media. In a kind of two-stage rocket, we first drew the attention of a select group of media to the webcast about the report. The fact that we were already able to share some worrying insights with them aroused the necessary interest in the study, as we had hoped. Many of the TV, print and online media we approached wanted to see the report under embargo. After the webcast, the embargo was lifted and the media were allowed to publish about the study. As a final push, we sent out a broad press release at the same time. Our content strategy was that we identified the finding that affects society the most: ‘Annual damage to bicycle theft rises to 600 million euros’. In order to outline the urgency of the issue. Further results, the modus operandi of (organized) bicycle thieves and recommendations were included in the press release so stakeholders could select the information relevant to them.

Result: the news was not to be missed
S.A.F.E. should be able to use the media attention as leverage in lobbying policy makers, police, bicycle industry, insurers, recovery services and other stakeholders, to jointly realize the recommendations of the report. In any case, the publicity was enormous. In addition to great interest from professional and regional media, the research results received ample attention on TV, radio, in the newspaper and online. A brief overview: in-depth articles in Trouw, Het Parool, De Telegraaf and AD; online news items on, among others, Nu.nl and Rtlnieuws.nl; interviews on Radio 1, Radio EenVandaag and Radio Veronica; and TV items in Hart van Nederland and RTL Nieuws; and an appearance in the TV studio of current affairs show EenVandaag.

“That many bicycles are stolen in the Netherlands is not news. In fact, we literally take it at face value. In the communication for S.A.F.E. we really worked towards the presentation of the report. Where we initially hammered on the importance of cooperation and an integrated approach to bicycle theft, the national study was the ultimate proof of the problem. The study was much needed to reveal the true nature of the scale of bicycle theft in the Netherlands. By identifying the right findings, formulating the most effective message and choosing good timing, the story reached all stakeholders. It is now up to them to work together and take action.”

Joost Morel, PR advisor