WARREN — While most publicly funded services need no advertisement, centers for recycling electronics or hazardous waste must educate the public about the services they provide and why they are needed.

Marketing, including a strong social media presence, can help more people use these facilities, keeping harmful contaminants out of the local environment.

“There are several messages we need to relay to the public. We have to let people know why they should recycle certain things — like why they shouldn’t pour oil down drains and what the environmental effects of doing that are — and letting people know what services we actually provide so they have the knowledge about how to do the right thing,” said Jennifer Jones, executive director of the Geauga-Trumbull Solid Waste Management District on Enterprise Drive in Warren.

“Some people don’t realize they are doing the wrong thing, and some people do know, but they don’t know how to get rid of it properly,” Jones said.

The district has experimented with different ways to handle its social media presence and marketing, using contractors, assigning employees the tasks and hiring contractors to teach employees — but recently settled on leaving the job in Jones’ hands.

Jones’ posts are designed to educate the public not just of the district’s hours or special recycling events, but also about what can be recycled and to answer questions.

One example was a May 23 post: “Treating yourself to takeout? Styrofoam doesn’t belong in our dropoff recycling bins or your recycling cart.”

Another came June 1, the day before the district reopened for the spring: “Got old or broken TVs, computers, monitors, A/C units, dehumidifiers, or almost anything else electronic? Did you know many of those items are full of lead and other materials that are not good for landfills? Want to get rid of them in an environmentally responsible way? Bring them to our Trumbull Collection Facility starting tomorrow, June 2nd from 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. You won’t even get out of your car / truck.”

One of the biggest mistakes recyclers make when dropping off items in a collection bin is leaving the residue of what it contained inside the can, bottle or jar.

“Contamination is one of the biggest issues right now,” Jones said.

It is harder to recycle dirty materials, and not all processing centers will accept the contaminated items. People also often put things in the collections sites that can’t be recycled, and sometimes they flood collection sites with trash, contaminating the clean recyclables.

The district is open 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. some Saturdays, Tuesdays and Fridays when it accepts only electronics and appliances, and Fridays when it accepts household hazardous waste and electronics and appliances.

More information about what can be accepted at the facility and what can be placed in the dropoff containers around both counties, visit www.Start Recycling.com.

Jones said sharing information via social media can be more effective than a mailed newsletter.