Hopes, Dreams and Public Health Branding

ISM Institute for Social Marketing

Professor Gerard Hastings

Communicating Health, The Tobacco Example BRUSSELS

9-11 October 2008

2

STRUCTURE

1. Communication

2. Branding

3. Marketing

4. Conclusions

3

Communication

Four questions:

•  What factual message(s) do you take from it?

•  What other message(s) do you take from it?

•  Do you like it? (why? / why not?)

•  Who is it from?

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5

Communication

Four questions:

•  What factual message(s) do you take from it?

•  What other message(s) do you take from it?

•  Do you like it? (why? / why not?)

•  Who is it from?

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Communication

•  Factual messages: impotence

•  Other messages: many and various

•  Liking: again varies

•  Source: not sure (European Commission)

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Three ideas:

•  Active consumer

•  Emotion matters

•  Source matters

All social marketing communications have an emotional dimension - a ‘personality’ or

‘tonality’ - whether the sender intends it or not (Levebre 1995)

Communication

Knowledge The facts: smoking kills; veg

saves

Knowledge The facts: smoking kills; veg

saves

Attitudes

Smoking is bad

Condoms are sexy

Veggies are good

Cooking is fun

Knowledge The facts: smoking kills; veg

saves

Attitudes

Smoking is bad

Condoms are sexy

Veggies are good

Cooking is fun

Behaviour

Eat fruit & veg

Avoid tobacco

Jog

Knowledge The facts: smoking kills; veg

saves

Attitudes

Smoking is bad

Condoms are sexy

Veggies are good

Cooking is fun

Behaviour

Eat fruit & veg

Avoid tobacco

Jog

Identity

Lifestyle

Hopes

Feel good

This is me

Power

Knowledge The facts: smoking kills; veg

saves

Attitudes

Smoking is bad

Condoms are sexy

Veggies are good

Cooking is fun

Behaviour

Eat fruit & veg

Avoid tobacco

Jog

Identity

Hopes

Feel good

This is me

Power Lifestyle

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STRUCTURE

1. Communication

2. Branding

3. Marketing

4. Conclusions

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STRUCTURE

1. Communication

2. Branding: can we construct public health brands?

3. Marketing

4. Conclusions

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Viral Campaign

13% pass along rate

16 Help website

(in 22 languages)

Viral Campaign

17 Help website

(in 22 languages)

Prevention

Cessation

Passive

Cessation

Viral Campaign

Television

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Awareness of the Help TV Ads

59% of under 25’s have seen it; 82% liked what they saw

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Website visits over time

Clear link between TV and website

20 Help website

(in 22 languages)

Television

Prevention

Cessation

Passive

Cessation

Events

Viral Campaign

21 Help website

(in 22 languages)

Cessation

Cessation

Events

Partnerships

National governments NGOs Youth Parliament MTV

Viral Campaign

Prevention

Passive

Television

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Reputation –  Time –  Trust –  Emotion matters

Recognition Promise Delivery

A Brand is Born?

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The Rewards of Branding*

1. Longevity

2. Subtlety

3. Trust

4. Cultural relevance

5. Co-ownership

*

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STRUCTURE

1. Communication

2. Branding

3. Marketing

4. Conclusions

Behaviour change

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Marketing

•  We know commercial brands influence key health behaviours

•  Public health has done the research: - Tobacco (Cochrane Collab 2004)

- Energy dense food (WHO 2006) - Alcohol (JPHP 2005)

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Behaviour Change

 6.8 million website visits (as of 21/9/08)

 448,000 viral visits;13% pass along rate

 140,000 smokers across EU signed up for email cessation coaching

Has Help changed behaviour?

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STRUCTURE

1. Communication

2. Branding

3. Marketing

4. Conclusions

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Conclusions

•  Branding is a vital part of the behaviour change domain

•  The commercial sector has shown how effectively it can be used

•  We need to pick up the baton: long term, serious investment in consumer relationships

•  Social marketing is about hearts as well as minds and bodies

This paper was produced for a meeting organized by Health & Consumer Protection DG and represents the views of its author on thesubject. These views have not been adopted or in any way approved by the Commission and should not be relied upon as a statement of the Commission's or Health & Consumer Protection DG's views. The European Commission does not guarantee the accuracy of the dataincluded in this paper, nor does it accept responsibility for any use made thereof.