Team Members:Alexandra Broussard

Wade KimbroJack Lien

Maggie MooreNhi Tieu

Loyola University New Orleans

Faculty Adviser: Jeffrey Ory, ABc, APR

Professional Adviser: Meg Courtney

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Seafood gumbo, jambalaya, crawfish étouffée, red beans and rice with a plate of everything fried. Delicious? YOU BET. Unfortunately, these high calorie dishes are the perfect menu for childhood obesity. New Orleans is a city known for its indulgent culture, resilient spirit, delicious Cajun and Creole dishes and a festival for every food imaginable. New Orleanians hail their home as “Fat City,” a term descending from “Fat Tuesday” (the literaltranslation of Mardi Gras). But “Fat City” and its high calorie and sedentary lifestyle, has transformed New Orleans into the nation’s fourth most obese city according to The Center for Disease Control and Prevention. A report by Kids Walk Coalition stated one in three children in New Orleans qualify as overweight or obese. It’s a statistic that needs slimming, so the 2012 Loyola University New Orleans PRSSA Bateman Team tackled the childhood obesity epidemic head on with our Choose Dat Not Dis campaign.

The goals of the Choose Dat Not Dis campaign were to raise awareness about the effects of childhood obesity within New Orleans families and provide simple steps to lead them to a healthy lifestyle and turning “Fat City” into “Slim City.” Food choice is quite personal. Our team recognized the subject’s sensitivity early on, so our Choose Dat Not Dis campaign encouraged our target audiences to keep food they loved but make important low-calorie substitutions in their diet and activities wherever possible. Telling New Orleans families to choose healthy food options during February when the indulgent celebration of Mardi Gras overpowered our message for two weeks was a challenge. However, the Choose Dat team incorporated the flavors of that festival into our campaign and encouraged our community to enjoy, but to enjoy wisely, by making easy ingredient substitutions. To extend our message, we worked with local food providers, grocery chains and restaurants to ensure we increased awareness where food decisions are most often made.

We partnered with chefs from award-winning, Southern eateries, GW Fins and Le Foret, to create healthy dishes that kept the unique New Orleans flavor. We also worked with Rouses Supermarkets, the nation’s 11th largest-independently-owned grocery store, to promote our healthy Choose Dat Not Dis options.

The phrase “Who Dat?” is a local chant made famous and wildly popular by the New Orleans Saints, Super Bowl XLIV winners. The cry resonates, and is instantly recognizable throughout the Gulf South as a way of showing support for New Orleans and its institutions. Through our primary research we recognized how quintessential the phrase is to the city, so our team came up with the slogan Choose Dat Not Dis to guarantee our campaign communicated a culturally-relevant slogan .

During February, the Choose Dat Not Dis campaign increased the awareness of childhood obesity among our target audiences through 15 workshops reaching more than 956 people. Local United Way representatives informed us that promoting healthy living in New Orleans was going to be a goal of all of their agencies, so our team kept their needs in mind and created a long-standing campaign that all United Way agencies can pick up and implement successfully.

We invite you to join the Choose Dat Nation and choose easy substitutions to live a healthier lifestyle.

Executive Summary

According to Trust for America’s Health, Louisiana is the fifth most obese state in the nation. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Report on Childhood Obesity stated that 47.5 percent of children in Louisiana are obese. A report released by the National Initiative for Children’s Healthcare Quality states Louisiana has no Center for Disease Control state-based nutrition and physical activity program, compared with 28 states that do. School-based nutrition and physical activity interventions are shown to be equally effective and significantly less expensive than clinical obesity treatments. According to the Louisiana Department of Health and Hospitals 2004 fact sheet, 31 percent of African-American school-aged children in New Orleans are overweight or obese.

Some United Way agencies have programs that focus on childhood obesity, but the local United Way leaders felt a new program was needed that could be uniformly implemented by all agencies. We focused on setting goals for health, not weight. For the most effective results, we taught children how to “Move it, Move it” by offering children a variety of physical activities, different food choices and easy ways to Choose Dat Not Dis in their lives.

Situational Analysis

- 20.7 percent of Louisiana children are obese compared with 16.4 percent of children nationwide according to Tulane University’s Prevention Research Center.- In New Orleans, 64.4 percent of adults are overweight or obese, as reported by the Prevention Research Center at Tulane University. In Louisiana, 31.2 percent of adults are obese compared to 22 percent natiowide.

Secondary Research

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- Childhood obesity leads to a greater risk of diabetes, higher blood pressure levels, high cholesterol, high glucose intolerance, increased heart rate and cardiac output, as reported by the CDC. The relationship between cardiovascular risks and obesity persists from childhood to adulthood. - Lower socioeconomic status attributes to a higher rate of childhood obesity, according to the National Center for Health Statistics. - 84 percent of predominantly African-American schools in New Orleans fall under a “very high poverty” socioeconomic status, with 75 percent of students receiving free/reduced cost lunches, as reported by The Institute of Race & Poverty. - Children attending public schools are more likely to be overweight than those attending private schools, according to the American School Health Association. - High-fat, energy-dense foods are cheaper than lean meats, fresh fruits and vegetables, according to Livestrong, a website that offers diet, nutrition and fitness tips for a healthier lifestyle. - New Orleans is the worst food desert in the nation, according to NewsOne, a news website targeting African- Americans. A food desert is defined as a residential area where healthy, affordable food is hard to obtain. - Children are 61 percent more likely to be obese and 43 percent more likely to be overweight if they live in unsafe neighborhoods, according to the leading journal of health policy, Health Affair. - Researchers believe that concentrated poverty isolates poor residents from opportunity and services, leading to higher crime rates, joblessness, failing schools and ill health, according to an article in The Times-Picayune.

Our team interviewed elementary school teachers, parents, health professionals, nutritionists and staff of local nonprofit organizations that focus on childhood obesity; and we conducted focus groups with communication professionals. We also conducted gap analysis surveys to measure implementation effectiveness.

Health Professionals- A childhood obesity campaign needs to focus on positive aspects such as physical activity and nutritional food choices, rather than losing weight.- Evidence supports that the best way to reach the target audience is with community-wide campaigns that have a mass media component.- Most effective treatment for the childhood obesity epidemic is prevention.- Provide cookbooks/recipes to parents to help them incorporate healthy meals into their children’s diet.- It is important to stress the severe health risks associated with obesity.- Schools are an effective way to reach children.- Small changes in lifestyle are an effective starting point.

Nonprofit Staff Interviews- Parents need material to read on childhood obesity.- It is most effective to work directly with children at their schools.- The best way to approach the topic of obesity, without being offensive, is show the effect that unhealthy foods and a lack of exercise have on everyone, not just children.

Kindergarten & Elementary School Teachers- School recess and physical education programs have been cut drastically in New Orleans schools. Recess can be used as a reward for good behavior and only given to the students once a week.- A majority of students are on free or reduced lunch.- Snacks that are offered to children are usually unhealthy.

Professional Focus Group- The team needed a campaign that would catch the children’s attention and draw them in with fun, interactive activities, and we also needed to address parents, so everyone can see that as a team, we Choose Dat Not Dis.- It is critical to change behavior among the target audiences if we wanted to make an impact.- Teachers may have a greater impact than parents since the children see more of their teachers in some cases.- The team had a better chance of changing one habit at a time rather than changing our target audience’s entire diet or lifestyle.- The Choose Dat team needed to reach working parents at their place of employment.- We must find ways to get children active inside their homes due to the high crime rate in New Orleans.

Primary Research

Key MessagesElementary Students- It is easy to Choose Dat Not Dis.- Push yourself to “Move it, Move it” by being active after school.- Choose Dat Not Dis means small, easy changes that can make a big difference. - Visualize what food looks like in your body.

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Target Audiences Primary Audiences- Kindergarten to second-grade students in public and private elementary schools in New Orleans Secondary Audiences- Parents of elementary school students in the New Orleans metropolitan area- Teachers of kindergarten to second-grade students in public and private elementary schools in New Orleans - Members of the Loyola University New Orleans (Loyola) community- New Orleans community and local media

Challenges and OpportunituesDis Challenge: New Orleans was shut down during February in celebration of Mardi Gras, which conflicted with two weeks of possible events. Our team questioned how to relate both the severity and reality of childhood obesity to an audience that was distracted. We were also trying to secure partners and implement a campaign that our audience would respond and relate to during Mardi Gras season.

Dat Opportunity: Every member of our team is a New Orleans native; therefore, we understand the culture. We recognized it would be unrealistic and impossible to ensure positive results by simply telling locals and visitors to choose a healthy lifestyle during Mardi Gras. After all, Popeye’s Fried Chicken is a Mardi Gras staple. We embraced Who Dat Nation’s culture and language by coming up with the phrase “Choose Dat Not Dis.” Our team recognized the sensitivity of the subject, so instead of bluntly addressing childhood obesity, we focused on how to combat obesity by choosing a healthy lifestyle. As we embraced our city’s culture, we incorporated our city’s signature fleur de lis into the logo with our own twist by using bananas, apples, carrots and an ear of corn to remake the symbol.

Dis Challenge: As we began to select partnerships for our campaign, we met with a representative from Rouses Supermarkets. We discussed the possibility of including our team logo and Choose Dat Not Dis options in their circular, a cooking demo with Rouses’ ingredients and an opportunity to inform Rouses’ customers of our key messages at a pledge stand in one of their stores. We set up a timeline for implementation and received a confirmation of our event dates, however, the Rouses Supermarkets representative later informed us that due to time constraints the implementation would need to be postponed until after February.

Dat Opportunity: We realized that changes during a strategic public relations campaign are a reality, so we sought various partnerships that would aid us in reaching our target audience. During one of our focus groups, we discussed the possibility of utilizing churches as they are a close-knit community where we could reach a large group of people. We contacted a church with high membership and attendance each week.

Dis Challenge: Our team of five Caucasian and Asian-American students who attend a private Jesuit university faced cultural barriers. We lacked experience in effectively communicating an important message to a predominantly African-American elementary school student population, with a majority of students’ families falling below the poverty line and living in unsafe neighborhoods.

Dat Opportunity: We created a culturally-relevant campaign using relatable language that would resonate with our audience. The Choose Dat team attained the students’ respect and attention by treating them as equals. We understood that many of the students live in poverty-stricken, unsafe neighborhoods, so we created fun indoor activities for students. While visiting schools we educated students on the importance of being physically active and incorporated many different physical activities into our presentations.

College Students- It is easier to Choose Dat Not Dis than to go on a strict diet.- Cooking healthy can be easy and cheap.- You can live a healthy lifestyle by making small changes. - Healthy food is as tasty as unhealthy food. Parents- It is affordable to Choose Dat Not Dis.- It is quick and easy to make a healthy meal for your family.- Serious health effects stem from childhood obesity. New Orleans Community - It is easy and affordable to Choose Dat Not Dis.- Living healthy in a city where the food is the culture can be easy when given the knowledge.- Small changes can lead to a healthier lifestyle. - Healthy food is as tasty as unhealthy food.

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Objective 1: Increase awareness by 10% among 200 children between the ages of four and eight of healthy food options and creative physical activities.

Objectives, Strategies and Tactics

Strategy 1: Create fun and interactive activities for students in kindergarten through second grade at six local elementary schools. The Choose Dat team split their activities into different stations at each school to keep the students alert, interested and focused. Rationale: According to interviews with elementary school teachers, young students do not learn well in lecture-style sessions. The students learn more effectively through interactive activities, vivid visualsand small groups.

Tactic 1: Encourage students to choose water not soda. One of our main messages throughout the campaign was that making small changes can be an effective way to transition into a healthier lifestyle. Choosing water not soda was a small change we suggested at every Choose Dat Not Dis event. To illustrate how much weight gain results from drinking one can of soda every day for a year, we gave students a 15 pound medicine ball to physically feel the weight. We also informed them one can of soda is comparable to consuming 10 packets of sugar. When we boiled a soda, the water evaporated and left us with a thick, gooey substance. We then put the “soda” in a test tube to show students what they were really drinking when they choose soda over water. When students were asked to guess what the substance in the tube was, most of the responses were tar, chocolate syrup, jelly or dirt. They were shocked when they were told it was soda.

Tactic 2: Inform students of the amount of fat in the foods they eat. We calculated how many teaspoons of fat were in popular food choices such as fried chicken, a hamburger and french fries and jambalaya with sausage, as well as healthier choices such as a turkey sandwich and jambalaya with brown rice and seafood. An executive interviewee recommended that we refer to grams of fat as “yucky stuff” to be effective with children. Instead of saying the tubes contained grams of fat, we told students it was the amount of “yucky stuff” in the foods they eat.

Tactic 3: Compare the number of jumping jacks that are in different foods. Telling students a hamburger and french fries have 1,030 calories may not make a huge impression, but telling them they must do more than 343 jumping jacks to burn off that hamburger and french fries merits a shocking response. One jumping jack burns almost three calories, so when given the choice, students chose to do fewer than 50 jumping jacks to burn off a turkey sandwich or 14 jumping jacks for fruit instead of more than 140 jumping jacks for fried chicken.

Tactic 4: Inform students of fun physical activities they can do to “Move It, Move It” at home. Many New Orleans neighborhoods are not safe for children to play outside after school. However, research showed that it is crucial for young children to engage in physical activity or “Move it, Move it” every day. The Choose Dat team discovered games children can play inside or in their backyards at home such as freeze dance, red rover, follow the fitness leader and red light, green light. The team chose the catchy phrase “Move it, Move it” as a spin off of the popular song, “I Like to Move it Move it.”

Tactic 5: Show students a fat replica that represents five pounds. During an executive interview with a nutritionist, she showed us a fat replica that she uses as a visual with children. When we interviewed elementary school teachers they stressed to us that the use of shocking visuals was vital to the success of our campaign. After completing all of our activities with the students, we asked them to guess how many pounds of pure fat our fat blob represented. The initial guesses were far from the five pounds, but rather ranged from 10 to 25 pounds.

Tactic 6: Create a coloring book for students to remind them of the Choose Dat Not Dis foods they learned about. We wanted students to remain excited about ways to Choose Dat Not Dis and tell their families what they learned during our workshop. The coloring book was a resource to remind them of healthy foods to choose and contained pictures of the Choose Dat Not Dis food options.

Tactic 7: Collect pledges from teachers stating that they will teach our message. We wanted students to continue learning our key messages year after year so they continue to view Choose Dat Not Dis as a way of life instead of a task.

Strategy 2: Work with local elementary schools to educate children about living a healthy lifestyle. Rationale: In our focus groups, we discovered that many students spend more time with their teachers than they do with their parents. Therefore, we thought it was best to interact with children in an environment where they are comfortable.

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Tactic 1: Host workshops at six local elementary schools. The Choose Dat team worked with 63 first- and second-grade students at Ella C. Pittman Elementary School, 43 pre-kindergarten students at Nelson Elementary School, 36 kindergarten students at Estelle Elementary School, 42 first- and second-grade students at Woodland West Elementary School, 40 kindergarten to second-grade students at Lake Forest Elementary Charter School and 97 first- and second-grade students at Arden Cahill Academy. The Choose Dat team brought fun and interactive activities to the classroom and taught the students easy ways to Choose Dat Not Dis. The students visited the different stations to meet a Choose Dat team member where students examined what was inside the fat tubes, did jumping jacks to burn off different foods, felt how much weight is gained from drinking sodas daily and learned how to “Move it, Move it” with fun physical activities. Afterwards, the students played a fat blob guessing game. Students chanted “I Choose Dat” and got excited about living a healthy lifestyle at school and at home.

Objective 1 Outcome - EXCEEDEDAt the workshops the team reached a total of 321 students - 61 percent more than our goal. We worked with six schools and hosted seven workshops.

We increased students’ knowledge of: - What healthy food choices are by 36 percent – 260 percent more than our goal.- What activities they should be doing after school by 19 percent – 90 percent more than our goal. - All schools combined, we increased the students’ knowledge of ways to live a healthy lifestyle by 27 percent – 170 percent more than our goal.

The team distributed 321 copies of the Choose Dat Not Dis coloring books. By the end of the workshops students chanted “I Choose Dat!” as well as “I choose water, not soda!”

Objective 2: Inform 200 parents or primary guardians of young children about the causes and health risks that stem from childhood obesity.

Strategy 1: Encourage parents or primary guardians of young children to commit themselves and their families to tackling childhood obesity by living a healthy lifestyle. Rationale: Our team understood that children are not making all of their food choices independently. Also, through our secondary research we discovered that children of two obese parents are 50 to 75 percent more likely to be obese and children of one obese parent are 25 percent more likely to be obese.

Tactic 1: Create pledge cards to distribute at campaign events. Individuals signed pledge cards and agreed to Choose Dat Not Dis through their food and activities for themselves and their family.

Tactic 2: Create a perforated pledge card so individuals had a piece of paper to take with them to remember what they pledged. They took home the bottom half of the pledge card, which listed different foods to choose and ways to be active.

Tactic 3: Distribute pledge cards on the parade route. Pledge cards were distributed and collected at 19 parades in New Orleans during the time of year when some of the worst health decisions are made. The Choose Dat team encouraged members to choose baked chicken, not fried chicken, or go even further by packing a lunch instead of buying a fast food meal on the parade route. The Choose Dat team presented Mardi Gras Choose Dat Not Dis options that parade goers could pick up at their local Rouses Supermarkets, such as sandwich trays, trail mix and Skinnygirl margarita, on a WGNO-TV’s (ABC affiliate) “Good Morning New Orleans” segment.

Tactic 4 - Distribute pledge cards at Believer’s Life Family Church. After service on Sunday, Feb. 12, the day before the main week of Mardi Gras festivities began, members of the church community were given samples of healthy oyster soup and interacted with members of the Choose Dat team as we informed them of our key messages. After the service, Danny Milan, owner of Le Foret restaurant, explained to members of the church how to create delicious and nutritious meals. The pastor of the church referred to our campaign during service and encouraged members to visit our Facebook page for more information about the campaign. Pledge cards were distributed and collected. (See Objective 2, Strategy 1, Tactic 2).

Strategy 2: Encourage parents who work at Touro Infirmary, a partner of Children’s Hospital, to Choose Dat Not Dis for themselves and their family. Rationale: In our primary research we found most parents in our target audience work multiple jobs. Also, in one of our focus groups, participants stressed that many working parents would not have time to come to a presentation after work. A Loyola alumna helped us invite parents to the presentations.

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Tactic 1: Raise awareness among working parents by reaching out to them at lunch meetings with an interactive presentation. The Choose Dat team asked parents to participate in our presentation during their lunch break at work in a familiar and convenient environment.

Tactic 2: Create and distribute parent packets. The packets contained reasons to Choose Dat Not Dis, easy, cheap and healthy meals that are cheaper per serving than buying a meal at a fast-food restaurant to “Save Dat Money” and ways to “Move it, Move it.” The materials ensured that parents would have information they needed to Choose Dat Not Dis.

Tactic 3: Distribute and collect perforated pledge cards. Employees signed pledges and agreed to Choose Dat Not Dis through their food and activities for themselves and their family. (See Objective 2, Strategy 1, Tactic 2).

Tactic 4: Create and distribute healthy recipes with the help of New Orleans chefs. The Choose Dat team worked with chefs from Le Foret and GW Fins, both of whom were recognized by New Orleans Magazine, to create easy, cheap and affordable recipes for parents to make for their families.

Objective 2 Outcome - EXCEEDEDThe Choose Dat team collected a total of 208 parent pledges - exceeding our goal by four percent. Employees were very engaged during our presentations because we spoke to them about their families rather than work-related topics. One Touro employee took 15 extra parent packets and asked if we could email her all of our materials so she could pass them along to other parents. Another employee commented that the material in the presentation was very informative and useful for a busy family.

Along the parade route team members approached parents with children and gave suggestions of how to keep their family healthy during the weeklong city celebration. The team collected 75 pledges from parents on the parade route, and more than 125 pledges from parents at Believer’s Life Family Church and Touro employees at the presentations.

Objective 3: Increase awareness of ways to lead a healthy lifestyle within the Loyola community and the New Orleans community by five percent.

Strategy 1: Create a culturally relevant campaign.Rationale: Focus group participants stressed that it was essential for the Choose Dat team to utilize the city’s culture in our campaign, especially since we were implementing during the hype of the New Orleans Saints’ football season leading into Mardi Gras.

Tactic 1: Create a culturally-relevant title. We created a title that linked the popular New Orleans Saints’ slogan, “Who Dat,” to living a healthy lifestyle. Choose Dat Not Dis was first mentioned during a focus group and all other executives interviewed agreed that it was a catchy and culturally-relevant title for our campaign.

Tactic 2: Create a culturally-relevant logo. The fleur de lis is more than the symbol of the New Orleans Saints; it is a symbol of New Orleans. Our team crafted a design of the fleur de lis using different fruits and vegetables to keep our logo culturally relevant and true to the campaign.

Tactic 3: Raise awareness at the biggest celebration in the city, Mardi Gras. The implementation phase of the Choose Dat Not Dis campaign fell in the middle of New Orleans’ largest party of the year. Pledges were collected at 19 parades as team members discussed the key messages of our campaign with parade goers. (See Objective 2, Strategy 1, Tactic 2).

Tactic 4: Partner with Rouses Supermarkets, the 11th largest-independently-owned grocery store in the nation. Rouses Supermarkets graciously donated groceries valued at $150 for our food demos and media segments, as well as 20 $5 gift cards for us to utilize as social media incentives.

Strategy 2: Create awareness of Choose Dat Not Dis through local media. Rationale: To spread the Choose Dat Not Dis message to the masses, we sought a medium that would amplify our voice and reach beyond the people we connected with directly. Research from PBS shows 59 percent of parents receive their news from television, which was the most effective means to spread our message.

Tactic 1: Distribute a press release about our campaign to four local news stations, the Loyola newspaper, the major newspaper in New Orleans and bloggers. To reach New Orleanians beyond those present at our events, we sought media outlets and strategically pitched a variety of topics relevant to each station.

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Choose DatTactic 2: Raise awareness on WGNO-TV (ABC Affiliate) “Good Morning New Orleans.” Two team members were featured as guests and shared Choose Dat Not Dis Super Bowl Sunday options. The 3:55 segment on the morning show resulted in more than 5,300 impressions and $1,958.35 in public relations value. The segment gained more impressions on the WGNO-TV official website.

Tactic 3: Raise awareness on WDSU-TV (NBC Affiliate) Saturday morning news show, the only Saturday morning show in New Orleans. Two team members were featured as guests and shared Choose Dat Not Dis Super Bowl Sunday options. The 3:43 segment on the morning show resulted in more than 47,900 impressions and $9,291.65 in public relations value. The segment gained more impressions on the WDSU-TV official website.

Tactic 4: Raise awareness on WWL-TV (CBS Affiliate) “Eyewitness Morning News.” WWL-TV “Eyewitness Morning News” is the highest rated morning show in the region, so much so that it airs from 5 to 9 a.m. each morning, rather than the nationally televised “CBS Morning Show.” One member of our team, along with nationally renowned Chef Tenney Flynn of GW Fins and Dr. Christy Valentine, a general family practitioner and obesity expert, were featured guests on the WWL-TV “Eyewitness Morning News.” During the segment, Chef Flynn created a Choose Dat Not Dis meal by cooking with seafood and brown rice, Valentine gave health tips and a member of the Choose Dat team spoke about the campaign and the reasons to live a healthy lifestyle. The 4:51 segment on the morning show resulted in more than 73,600 impressions and $17,000 in public relations value. The news show featured a short clip to present the delicious and nutritious meal ready to serve. The segment gained more impressions on the WWL-TV official website.

Tactic 5: Raise awareness on WGNO-TV (ABC Affiliate) “Good Morning New Orleans.” Two team members were featured as guests for a second time on WGNO and shared Choose Dat Not Dis Mardi Gras options. The 3:12 segment on the morning show resulted in more than 5,378 impressions and $1,600.00 in public relations value. The segment gained more impressions on the WGNO-TV official website.

Tactic 6: Raise awareness in Loyola’s weekly newspaper, The Maroon. The Maroon, which is distributed to faculty, staff and students on Loyola’s campus as well as the Greater New Orleans community through the online publication, highlighted the campaign. The coverage we received resulted in more than 3,000 print impression, 5,000 online impressions and $400 in public relations value.

Tactic 7: Raise awareness on the Mass COMMents blog. Team members were asked to write a piece for Mass COMMents, the Loyola School of Mass Communication blog, which is posted on the Loyola home page, explaining how they got the community involved in the campaign.

Tactic 8: Raise awareness on a local blog site, I’m a NOLA girl. The author of the blog wrote a piece about the campaign and highlighted the team’s healthy Choose Dat Not Dis hummus recipe.

Strategy 3: Create a social media presence online to open a two-way communication channel with our partners and target audiences. Rationale: Research showed that audiences are more receptive and willing to participate in a campaign with an active social media presence. Thus, we created a two-way communication channel that allowed our target audience to participate in the campaign.

Tactic 1: Create a Facebook fan page. The Choose Dat team connected with members of the New Orleans community beyond those able to attend workshops and events. The Choose Dat Facebook page connected with 406 people and made 94,187 impressions. At our page’s peak, 398 people were talking about Choose Dat Not Dis.

Tactic 2: Partner with Rouses Supermarkets for social media incentives. (See Objective 3, Strategy 1, Tactic 4).

Tactic 3: Create a Twitter handle. The Choose Dat team connected with members of the New Orleans community beyond those able to attend workshops and events. The Choose Dat Not Dis Twitter connected with 77 followers.

Strategy 4: Create awareness within the Loyola community about ways to lead a healthy lifestyle. Rationale: Focus group participants encouraged us to incorporate the Loyola community into our campaign. We extended our campaign message to include college students and informed them of ways to live a healthy lifestyle while in a college environment and on a tight budget.

Tactic 1 - Host taste tests on campus. Twice per week, students have a 90 minute “window,” where there are no classes. The Choose Dat team chose this time to serve samples of healthy shrimp etouffée prepared by a local chef from GW Fins, Tenney Flynn. The team gathered pledges after students tasted a delicious, healthy version of the classic dish.

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Tactic 2: Hand out fat-free, sugar-free red velvet Valentine’s Day cupcakes prepared by Sodexo dining services. The Choose Dat Not Dis cupcakes fit the team’s theme of making small changes that make a big difference. The team encouraged Loyola students to be conscious of the sweets they consume daily.

Tactic 3: Host Choose Dat Not Dis presentations with the two biggest sororities on campus. The team shared easy food substitutions, fun physical activities and cheap, easy recipes. Through these presentations, the team reached more than 150 Loyola students.

Tactic 4: Collect pledge cards from students at each of the events mentioned above. (See Objective 2, Strategy 1, Tactic 2).

Tactic 5: Post flyers and rack cards around campus and display the Choose Dat Not Dis logo on the televisions in the School of Mass Communication. With the help of Sodexo, rack cards were placed in every napkin holder in the main cafeteria on campus, and flyers were posted around dormitory common areas and in the Danna Student Center, the central building on campus where every food vendor is located.

Tactic 6: Show students a fat replica that represents five pounds. (See Objective 1, Strategy 1, Tactic 5).

Tactic 7: Raise awareness in Loyola’s newspaper, The Maroon. (See Objective 3, Strategy 2, Tactic 6).

Tactic 8: Raise awareness on the Mass COMMents blog. (See Objective 3, Strategy 2, Tactic 7).

Strategy 5: Create awareness among members of Believer’s Life Family Church.Rationale: According to primary and secondary research, an effective way to reach our target audience was through a church community. By communicating our key messages to them in an environment where they felt comfortable, they were eager to learn about and adopt our Choose Dat Not Dis ways of life. Therefore, we strategically sought a partnership with a large and diverse church community in New Orleans.

Tactic 1: Distribute pledge cards at Believer’s Life Family Church. (See Objective 2, Strategy 1, Tactic 2 and Objective 2, Strategy 2, Tactic 4).

Objective 3 Outcome - EXCEEDED Choose Dat Not Dis resulted in a total of 132,300 media impressions and $30,250 in public relations value, according to value analysis provided by a Loyola School of Mass Communication professor.

The Choose Dat Not Dis social media effort resulted in a total of 94,187 impressions and connected with 483 people.

A total of 635 members of the New Orleans community pledged to live a healthier lifestyle. Out of the 635 pledges, 208 were collected from parents and 429 were collected from faculty, staff and students of Loyola.

The Choose Dat team conducted a global survey of the Loyola community to represent a microcosm of the New Orleans general public to measure the effectiveness of our campaign. The global survey, which was distributed randomly around Loyola’s campus, shows how much impact the team had on students. On average, we increased:-The Loyola community’s knowledge of ways to lead a healthy lifestyle by 7.4 percent – 48 percent more than our goal. -When asked how easy it is to cook a healthy meal, the response “very easy” increased by 12 percent. -When asked how easy it is to prepare a home cooked meal on a budget, the response “very easy” increased by 11.3 percent. -Five percent more students answered it is not more affordable to eat fast food over cooking at home. -There was an 8.3 percent increase in students who thought small changes in their lifestyle would have a major impact on health.

Objective 4: To create a long-standing campaign that can continue to be utilized by a total of five United Way agencies, local businesses and elementary schools in New Orleans after Feb. 29, 2012.

Strategy 1: Identify local United Way agencies to continue our campaign.Rationale: We wanted to ensure local United Way agencies were incorporated into our campaign. Local United Way representatives informed us that their next main focus would be to promote healthy living in New Orleans. Therefore, while creating our campaign we continuously considered what would benefit United Way agencies in their future endeavors.

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Tactic 1: Create Choose Dat Not Dis, a Guide to Living a Healthy Lifestyle. From our experience implementing Choose Dat Not Dis, we created recommendations for our program to be continued. From the list of local United Way agencies, 14 were contacted and given our materials to continue the campaign.

Tactic 2: Share our materials and key messages with Volunteers of America of Greater New Orleans, a local United Way agency. Our team met with a representative of Volunteers of America of Greater New Orleans after they reached out to us after seeing our campaign to discuss how they could continue our campaign. Volunteers of America presented the outline of their upcoming multi-level project so we could strategically help them incorporate the Choose Dat Not Dis key messages into their plans.

Tactic 3: Share our materials and key messages with A’s & Aces, a local United Way agency. Our team communicated with a representative of A’s & Aces to discuss the key messages, activities, strategies and tactics that we implemented with students so their team could continue our campaign.

Tactic 4: Identify local United Way agencies to implement food demonstrations at Rouses Supermarkets. Our team scheduled food demonstrations during February, but due to time constraints Rouses Supermarkets representatives were unable to find a mutually beneficial day during the February implementation month. Fortunately, Rouses Supermarkets allowed us to pass along the opportunity to any local United Way agency interested in the partnership.

Strategy 2: Identify local elementary schools to continue our campaign.Rationale: The best way for our campaign to surpass the time frame of February and ensure students receive motivation, influence and continuous positive reinforcement to live a healthy lifestyle was to make recommendations to local schools about how key messages of the Choose Dat Not Dis campaign can be incorporated into their classes year round.

Tactic 1: Create Choose Dat Not Dis, a Lesson Plan to teach young students how to live a healthy lifestyle. From our experience implementing Choose Dat Not Dis, we created recommendations for teachers to use to continue our program in the classroom year round.

Tactic 2: Collect pledges from elementary school teachers. Teachers of the classes we worked with signedpledges agreeing to continue our messages with their current and future students. We sent all of our materials and instructions to be utilized at the schools.

Strategy 3: Identify local restaurants to spread our message further. Rationale: As five New Orleans natives, we understood the importance of the hospitality and restaurant industy, and the desire of New Orleanians to enjoy a nice night out. Therefore, we wanted to ensure that out target audiences had a Choose Dat Not Dis option to choose when dining out.

Tactic 1: Display our logo on Le Foret menus. As part of our strategy to further extend our message, one of our local restaurant partners, Le Foret, agreed to display our logo on their menus throughout February and into March. To further show their support, servers were briefed with how to explain to guests what the Choose Dat Not Dis logo stood for and how it related to various options on the menu.

Strategy 4: Identify businesses to carry on our message and reach a national audience.Rationale: Since there are local brands that have gained national recognition, we decided to choose different local businesses that can carry our messages to a national audience.

Tactic 1: Incorporate the Choose Dat Not Dis logo in Jazzmen Rice’s national advertising campaign through magazines, news stations and social media. Jazzmen Rice is a locally based brand with national recognition. The Choose Dat Not Dis campaign ideas, photos and results will be used to show a national audience the experience living a healthy lifestyle can provide in this campaign.

Tactic 2: Incorporate the Choose Dat Not Dis key messages into an upcoming Naked Pizza project. Naked Pizza, an international healthy pizza company, wants to promote how their crust is made with 10 whole grains compared to only one processed grain that other competing pizza companies use. Robbie Vitrano, a founding partner of Naked Pizza, contacted the Choose Dat team after reading the article anout the campaign published in The Times-Picayune about the possibility of incorporating our key messages into their marketing.

Strategy 5: Continue to raise awareness of the Choose Dat Not Dis key messages through local media outlets.

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Rationale: Due to printing issues and scheduling arrangements, one news article and one media segment was not scheduled to be released until after February. The Choose Dat team decided it was important for our target audiences to continuously be exposed to key messages of the Choose Dat Not Dis campaign. Note: Media impression numbers and PR value amounts from these media clips are not included in the total media value of the campaign since they were not published until after the campaign time frame.

Tactic 1: Raise awareness on “Cox Plugged In.” Two members were featured as guests and shared our Choose Dat Not Dis key messages with high school students. Two members of the Choose Dat team were agreed to be featured on the “Cox Plugged In” show in February. The segment was delayed until the first week of March.

Tactic 2: Raise awareness in The Times-Picayune and its affiliate website, Nola.com. Judy Walker, the food editor for the most circulated newspaper in New Orleans, wrote an article highlighting the Choose Dat Not Dis campaign. Multiple media releases highlighting different angles of the Choose Dat Not Dis campaign were sent to The Times-Picayune in February. However, an article was not published until March 22, after the campaign had ended.

Objective 4 Outcome - EXCEEDEDWe exceeded our goal by ensuring a total of 10 local United Way agencies, local businesses and elementary school teachers would continue our Choose Dat Not Dis messages. Volunteers of America of Greater New Orleans has agreed to incorporate our key messages when planning their implementation with students from two charter schools starting in 2013 and continuing to grow to at least five charter schools throughout the following five years. A’s & Aces will use Choose Dat Not Dis materials when teaching students about ways to be healthy. Le Foret displayed our logo on 50 menus. Jazzmen Rice has agreed to include our sloga, logo and key messages on the materials for their national integrated marketing campaign. We have met with Naked Pizza, and they are looking at ways to include our messages and visuals into their marketing campaign.

We wanted the message of Choose Dat Not Dis to continue to resonate after February. The Choose Dat team was able to fulfill the request from the “Cox Plugged In” team, an article was published in The Times-Picayune, and we have alerted local United Way agencies that Rouses Supermarkets would still like to host a food demonstration on site. Our team was continuously contacted as a result of the campaign coverage.

ConclusionChoose water, choose popcorn, choose salsa, choose hummus...that’s just four of the simple ways we asked New Orleanians to transition into a healthier lifestyle. The obesity problem is becoming a reality across the nation, and with our Choose Dat Not Dis campaign, we captured the attention of our target audiences by conveying an achievable goal that they could easily integrate into their daily routine. The Choose Dat team activated the city to Choose Dat Not Dis by using several communication channels to educate our target audiences about how to make health conscious decisions with simple changes.

Our campaign inspired people to choose a healthier lifestyle to better benefit themselves and their loved ones. The Choose Dat team educated our target audiences on how to make quick, cheap and easy substitutions while still indulging in the New Orleans cuisine. We strengthened the commitment to adopting a healthy lifestyle by getting 635 members of the New Orleans community to sign pledges committing themselves to Choose Dat Not Dis.

Throughout the month of February, we hosted a total of 15 Choose Dat Not Dis workshops at six schools, two sororities, a local hospital, a prominent church and on Loyola’s campus. We reached a total of 750 New Orleans youth and community members and 206 parents about the ways to live a healthier lifestyle. Our six media segments resulted in 132,299 impressions and $30,250 in public relations value, and through our social media pages we connected with 484 people and made 94,187 impressions. Our goal to continue our campaign past February resulted in two United Way agencies, six schools and two businesses carrying our message further.

This campaign empowered future generations to spread the message of Choose Dat Not Dis by living a healthy lifestyle themselves. We interacted with our target audiences to show healthy substitutions can be cheap, easy and fun for New Orleanians, and we established that small steps can have an immense effect on becoming a healthy individual. The Choose Dat team invites you to join the 321 elementary students, 208 parents, 750 New Orleans youth and the entire city of New Orleans in our effort by showing us how you Choose Dat Not Dis.