Making and Distributing Leaflets

Handing out informative, well-designed leaflets is a great way to educate people about animal rights issues.

Defining Your Audience

The type of leaflet that you'll use will be determined by how you plan to use it.

If you've uncovered an important local issue, you might want to print fliers to hand out to people on the street. If you've collected signatures from people who are enthusiastic about animal rights issues, you could organize a meeting with an inspiring speaker and provide leaflets there. If you want to start a campaign urging local high school students not to dissect animals, create fliers for the students.

Once you've defined your audience, try to prepare a leaflet that will reach them, or order leaflets online at PETALiterature.com

Handing It Out

Leafleting is an art ... really! The following tips will help you make the most of your leafleting time:

Don't wait for people to approach you; few will. Walk up to them, and hand them a flier with a friendly smile and a positive comment like, "This explains why we’re here today." Then move on.
Make eye contact (but don't be pushy).
Hold the flier so that the title can be clearly seen by passersby.
Prepare some brief answers ahead of time to questions such as, "Who's doing this?" or "What's this all about?"
Take people's telephone numbers (ask for both work and home numbers) if they seem interested, but don't get caught up in a conversation that distracts you from your job.
Don't waste time arguing. Say politely, "I think, if you read this material, you might change your mind," and turn away.
Try to get someone else to leaflet with you, especially in potentially hostile territory, such as a circus or rodeo.
Pick up discarded leaflets before you leave the area.
Dress neatly and conservatively so that people will take your message seriously.
Don't drop leaflets into mailboxes—it is illegal. You can, however, put them through a letter slot in a door or leave them on door handles or doorsteps.
If you are planning to solicit contributions, check your local and state regulations first.

Making Words Count

Using PETA's leaflets is the best and easiest thing to do, but if you have to make your own leaflets for a local issue or for any other reason, keep the following tips in mind:

Your leaflet must tell the reader what, where, when, why, and who and must let them know specifically what they can do to help. Include a telephone number as a point of contact.
People won't read a long, complicated leaflet, so keep your sentences short and clear. Use descriptive headings, subheadings, and quotations to get your main points across, and put three or four headings on each page so that if people only read the headlines, they'll still get the message. Keep your flier simple, to the point, and easy to understand.
Don't make claims that you can't substantiate, and be careful not to make libelous statements—call the act cruel, not the individual.

Designing to Reach People

If you're making a flier to publicize an event, think of it as a small poster. Use a clear, issue-appropriate photograph or illustration to capture people's attention.

The following types of leaflets are the most frequently used:

Event or "call" leaflets are 8.5"x 11" sheets, printed on one side. Essentially, they are small posters that announce a meeting or demonstration.
Factsheets are 8.5"x 11" sheets, printed on one or two sides. Photographs are not necessary. Factsheets should never be handed out on the street; they are only for people who request detailed information.
Leaflets are typically 8.5"x 11" sheets, printed on both sides and folded in half or in thirds. Be sure to use photographs.
Street fliers are half- or third-page sheets, often printed on only one side. They should be very short and easy to read because they are designed to be handed out on the street.

Some of the most effective leaflets that we've used are 8.5"x 3.625" sheets (that's a normal sheet of paper cut into thirds) printed on one side only, with a boldfaced title, a good photograph or illustration, and short, easy-to-read text. Providing a Web address where people can get additional information on the topic as well as contact information for your group is recommended.

Tabling The following tips will also help you create your own effective fliers:

Keep a "design file." The file should include well-designed, easy-to-read leaflets and striking advertisements. Study them for ideas on layout, headlines, lead sentences, or use of photographs.
Start collecting a file of photographs. When you choose one for your flier, get it scanned (most college campuses have scanners in their computer labs, you can also pay to have photos scanned at quick-copy shops like Kinko's). If you have a digital image, you will need to confirm that it is of a high enough resolution to reproduce well. Generally, you want scans to be 300 dpi at the size that you plan to output the image. It can take a day or more to get a picture scanned, so you may want to get several good animal photographs scanned ahead of time.
Choose a software program. Simple designs can easily be accomplished in programs like Microsoft Word. More sophisticated designs usually require some knowledge and experience in page-layout programs like Quark Xpress, Adobe PageMaker, or Adobe InDesign. Many printers and copy shops (like Kinko's) can design fliers and leaflets for you for a fee if you do not have access to a computer or appropriate software.
Blank space is your friend. There is no need to fill every square inch of the leaflet. White space, such as wide margins or space around the title, often improves the design and makes the leaflet more readable and inviting. Titles should be designed in a bold, easy-to-read display font. Use a simple font for your text as well. Serif fonts (fonts with small decorative strokes added to the end of the letters' main strokes) improve readability by leading the eye along the line of type. Some examples of common serif fonts are Times New Roman, Garamond, and Palatino. Limit yourself to two fonts per leaflet.
Always give yourself plenty of time. This allows you to proofread everything before getting it printed. Typos can distract people from the message and make you look unprofessional. Use a computer, and if you know somebody who is good with graphics, enlist his or her help.
Use quick-copy shops for printing. They can print straight from a digital file or a hard copy master and can take care of any cutting or folding for you. Always make sure to review a proof before printing an entire job. When reviewing the proof, look for any typos that may have been missed, confirm that your images are printing correctly, and make sure that no text has reflowed or "fallen off" the page. To add a little color but keep costs down, consider printing your black-and-white leaflet on colored paper.

PETA has leaflets on a variety of subjects available to activists at cost. The leaflets are not copyrighted, so your group can use information from them instead of reinventing the wheel. Contact PETA's Literature Department or visit PETALiterature.com to order.

Posting Fliers

You can also distribute fliers by posting them on bulletin boards in public areas such as libraries, veterinary offices, companion-animal supply stores, student unions, supermarkets, Laundromats, and apartment buildings.

Try to ask permission before posting a flier in a public spot to make that sure it stays posted.