DrinkCoach in the Media: The positives and the lessons
Christmas came early for DrinkCoach!
We had a fantastic opportunity to work with Sharon Walker, a freelance journalist for an exclusive article published on the Telegraph online last week (9th December). She addressed her personal relationship with alcohol and enlisted Stephen, one of our DrinkCoaches to help her on her journey to moderate drinking.
After just 1 DrinkCoach session Sharon was able to successfully think about her drinking and as a result reduced her drinking during high risk situations, showing how beneficial additional support can be.
Find out more about our DrinkCoaches here.
Receiving media coverage is valuable for any organisation but for a charity that provides a service to people who need early support with their drinking, it can prove to be priceless.
We have had an overwhelming response since the article was published.
The Daily Mail, BBC radio Scotland, BBC Radio 4, BBC Radio 5 live and BBC radio Leeds have since approached us for interviews, phone in advice, radio shows and more.
As well as the increased attention from the media, Sharon’s article resonated with a lot of like minded people who want to drink more responsibly.
Effect of Telegraph article on the DrinkCoach website
On the day the article launched we saw a 115% increase in website users.
Direct referrals increased by nearly 3X compared to the previous day.
The number of Audits completed went up by a staggering 920% and Unique visitors increased by 191%.
The estimated cost savings from the additional audits taken on the 9th December is estimated at £2,565.
Not bad for 1 article!
The good and the ugly
While the media coverage has had a huge positive impact, there have been lessons to take away.
Alcohol has and probably always will be a topic that divides society. Whether you drink alcohol at dangerous quantities, drink responsibly or are completely sober, chances are you will be judged.
Some of the comments that the article received were unfortunately insensitive.
We set up DrinkCoach to help address this very stigma which was preventing people seeking help early. What can we do to encourage people to come forward earlier to prevent or minimise the impact of their drinking when people are ridiculed for seeking early help?
People don’t wake up one day with an alcohol problem, there are many signposts along the way that for some, can be difficult to acknowledge or take on board for a variety of reasons.
Everyone’s relationship with alcohol is unique and can change over the course of a lifetime. It is time that society praises people who want to make a positive change rather than giving them a hard time.
We would say that Sharon’s article goes some way to showing people that making changes, no matter how big or small they may seem, can only be of benefit.
If you need extra support to reduce your drinking you can download our free app or book a session with one of our 11 qualified drinkcoaches.