Effective Social Marketing Research Articles

Exploration of the Factors Influencing Attitudes to Breastfeeding in Public.

Negative attitudes toward breastfeeding in public have consistently been identified as a key barrier to breastfeeding continuation. In order to design effective social marketing campaigns to improve public attitude toward breastfeeding in public, it is critical to identify segments of the population who are less likely to support this activity, their underlying reasons, and the medium through which they can be reached. The aims were to (a) identify the underlying dimensions that drive acceptance or opposition to breastfeeding in public, (b) test whether specific population segments were more or less likely to support breastfeeding in public, and (c) identify suitable media outlets to reach them. A cross-sectional survey testing agreement with 60 statements was administered online between May 2016 and May 2017 and was completed by 7190 respondents. Exploratory factor analysis was used to identify 12 dimensions driving acceptance or opposition to breastfeeding in public. The influence of demographics and media consumption on attitudes toward breastfeeding in public was tested using Welch's t tests and one-way analyses of variance (ANOVAs). Acceptance of breastfeeding in public was found to differ with gender, age, religion, and parental and breastfeeding status, but not household income. Support for breastfeeding in public also varied with media consumption habits. This work lays the foundation to design effective social marketing campaigns aimed at increasing public support for breastfeeding in public.

Social Marketing of Mental Health Treatment: California's Mental Illness Stigma Reduction Campaign.

Objectives. To understand the processes involved in effective social marketing of mental health treatment. Methods. California adults experiencing symptoms of probable mental illness were surveyed in 2014 and 2016 during a major stigma reduction campaign (n = 1954). Cross-sectional associations of campaign exposure with stigma, treatment overall, and 2 stages of treatment seeking (perceiving a need for treatment and use conditional on perceiving a need) were examined in covariate-adjusted multivariable regression models. Results. Campaign exposure predicted treatment use overall (odds ratio [OR] = 1.82; 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.17, 2.83). Exposure was associated with perceived need for services (OR = 1.64; 95% CI = 1.09, 2.47) but was not significantly associated with treatment use in models conditioned on perceiving a need (OR = 1.52; 95% CI = 0.78, 2.96). Exposure was associated with less stigma, but adjustment for stigma did not affect associations between exposure and either perceived need or treatment use. Conclusions. The California campaign appears to have increased service use by leading more individuals to interpret symptoms of distress as indicating a need for treatment. Social marketing has potential for addressing underuse of mental health services and may benefit from an increased focus on perceived need.

Evaluation of sport participation objectives within a health-focussed social marketing sponsorship

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to empirically test O’Reilly and Madill’s (2012) process model to assess social marketing elements of a multi-year partnership between Coca-Cola Canada and a physical activity microgrant program, known as Teen Challenge, managed by ParticipACTION, a Canadian not-for-profit organization that champions sport and physical activity participation. ParticipACTION’s Teen Challenge is a multi-year initiative that was developed in 2008 and involves over 5,800 community organizations (COs) and over 500,000 Canadian teens across the nation (ParticipACTION, 2016). Design/methodology/approach A series of ten hypotheses related to the evaluation are tested using longitudinal data from event participants over a five-year period from 2009 to 2013. Findings The study revealed that sponsor and sponsee shared objectives around sport participation, including the three found in this study. Practically, this is a positive result for sport participation properties who might now consider this as part of a sponsorship sales strategy. The research found that both Coca-Cola Canada and ParticipACTION have the following shared objectives in this particular sponsorship: motivate and support youth to get active and live a healthy life; remove barriers that youth face in getting physically active; and encourage more COs to be involved in the program. Conceptually, this finding extends the discussion of shared social marketing objectives in sponsorship proposed by Madill and O’Reilly (2010). Research limitations/implications The findings support the sponsorship literature, in suggesting that shared objectives among sponsorship partners are important for the sponsorship to achieve successful outcomes (Cornwell et al., 2001). Shared sponsorship objectives can be utilized as a strategic tool for the sponsee to demonstrate the effectiveness of the program and to build a long-term relationship. The results of the logistic regression analysis indicate that COs which viewed partners’ collaboration as positive agreed that the Teen Challenge program made physical activity more accessible and affordable for youth. Practical implications This study provides several important implications for non-profit organizations that aim to establish an effective social marketing campaign. One way for non-profit organizations to build a strong relationship with sponsors was through positive collaboration where the two partners work together (e.g. activation) to maximize the sponsorship’s effectiveness. First, it increased youth participation in the Teen Challenge program and made it affordable for teens to participate in other physical activity programs. Second, it enhanced Coca-Cola’s image as supporters of active lifestyle in the eyes of COs. Finally, it affected the likelihood that COs would recommend the program. Social implications Results of the survey of COs that are registered with the program provides us with another important finding that positive partner collaboration is only one component of overall effectiveness. Another component would be to take action to communicate to COs that positive collaboration indeed took place in the sponsorship. One way to achieve this goal is to demonstrate to COs the importance of funding that the sponsor provides as well as the impact of sponsorship partners’ positive collaboration on the overall program. The authors also found that sponsorship partners’ positive collaboration in the delivery of the Teen Challenge program played an important role in whether COs recommend the program to others. Originality/value The results of this research contribute to the evaluation of the sponsorship of a health-oriented social marketing sponsorship of a sport participation property or sponsee (ParticipACTION) and a major brand as sponsor (Coca-Cola).

Ontnuchterende voorlichtingscampagnes over comazuipen bij studenten

Abstract Fear and humor appeals (with physical and social threats) on bingedrinking in student populationsWhat is the best way to make young adults aware of the costs of bingedrinking? What is the most effective social marketing strategy to change a target audience’s behavioral intention in a desired way? Fear appeals create an unpleasant tension, which will motivate the individual to reduce the uncomfortable feeling by adapting his behavior as recommended in the social marketing message. However, research exploring the effectiveness and the ethical framework of such fear appeals has yielded inconsistent findings. Therefore, humor is often suggested as an alternative strategy to influence behavioral intentions in health communication.A 2 (appeal: fear vs. humor) x 2 (threat: physical vs. social) between-subjects online experiment was set up, with 164 participants (19-26 years old). Fear appeals appeared to persuade students to a greater extent compared to humor appeals. Similarly, physical threats were more effective than social threats. However, when combining those two message components frightful advertisements with a social threat led to the greatest message conviction. Furthermore, we recommend social marketeers who are planning to use humor appeals in their anti-binge drinking campaign to focus on physical threats instead of social threats. The latter will only reduce the effectiveness of the message.

A review of family planning policies and services in WHO Eastern Mediterranean Region Member States.

Family planning (FP) is a cost-effective public health and development intervention. Eastern Mediterranean Region (EMR), has one of the lowest contraceptive prevalence rate (CPR) and high unmet need for family planning. The aim of this review is to assist Member States in highlighting those areas that need strengthening to improve quality of FP services in information and commodity supplies. A structured questionnaire focusing on FP services was sent to 22 Member States of the WHO Eastern Mediterranean Region between August and December, 2015. Sixteen (73%) countries responded. Family planning services are part of the basic health benefits package and are delivered at hospitals, primary healthcare centres and outreach clinics to all women regardless of their ability to pay in the majority of Member States. In 16 Member States the family planning/birth spacing (FP/BS) counselling and FP methods are provided by general practitioner/ family doctor, nurses and midwives. In many Member States the services are integrated with child health, STI and HIV services. In 16 Member States FP/BS is part of the pre- and in-service training programmes for all cadres of healthcare providers. FP/BS is actively promoted through effective social marketing of FP/BS methods in two thirds of Member States. The findings of the survey indicate that national policies and programmes endorse FP to achieve national targets. Despite progress in many areas in FP services, many countries still struggle with weak implementation of FP programmes. There are also policy gaps for key vulnerable groups including the poor, the disabled and adolescents. This review highlighted policy and programmatic gaps required to strengthen those FP services that can help improve maternal and infant health outcomes. Special programmes for adolescents, refugees and persons with disabilities need to be streamlined and strengthened.

PENGARUH DRIVE FOR ENVIRONMENTAL RESPONSIBILITY, COLLECTIVISM DAN SUBJECTIVE NORM TERHADAP BEHAVIORAL INTENTION PENGGUNAAN REUSABLE BAG

The purpose of the research is to examine the effect of driver for environmental responsibility, collectivism and subjective norm on behavioral intention in using reusable bag. This was a quantitative survey using a total sample of 282 respondents. Data were analyzed by using multiple regression method in order to test the hypotheses. Findings of the research revealed that driver for environmental responsibility and subjective norm were two strong predictors for behavioral intention in using reusable bag. However, there was no significant effect of collectivism on behavioral intention. The study contributes to the literature of pro-environmental behavior and its antecedents as well as suggestions for policy makers and retailers to design effective social marketing campaign to promote pro-environmental behavior, which is using reusable bag.

Consumers’ Behaviors and Attitudes toward Doggy Bags: Identifying Barriers and Benefits to Promoting Behavior Change

ABSTRACTThis study identifies barriers and benefits of consumers’ current doggy bag behaviors and provides the information required to run an effective community-based social marketing campaign encouraging consumers to take their uneaten restaurant and café food home. This is done by applying a two-stage methodology, including quantitatively analyzing existing survey data and qualitatively investigating focus group discussion. Multiple barriers to widespread doggy bag participation were common and varied for different individuals and included both convenience and social stigma-related factors. The rational appeal of “saving money” was found to be the most effective motivator for encouraging doggy bag usage, especially for women, young people, students/unemployed, and low-income earners. Social marketing strategies and behavior change tools can be developed to remove the barriers and enhance the benefits of using doggy bags, such as developing positive social norms around using doggy bags and highlighting the financial incentive of using them. This research contributes to a limited but growing literature on out-of-home food waste and provides practicable insights for both public policy and for the food service sector for future initiatives aiming to reduce food waste.

Cutting through Content Clutter: How Speech and Image Acts Drive Consumer Sharing of Social Media Brand Messages

Consumer-to-consumer brand message sharing is pivotal for effective social media marketing. Even as companies join social media conversations and generate millions of brand messages, it remains unclear what, how, and when brand messages stand out and prompt sharing by consumers. With a conceptual extension of speech act theory, this study offers a granular assessment of brands’ message intentions (i.e., assertive, expressive, or directive) and the effects on consumer sharing. A text mining study of more than two years of Facebook posts and Twitter tweets by well-known consumer brands empirically demonstrates the impacts of distinct message intentions on consumers’ message sharing. Specifically, the use of rhetorical styles (alliteration and repetitions) and cross-message compositions enhance consumer message sharing. As a further extension, an image-based study demonstrates that the presence of visuals, or so-called image acts, increases the ability to account for message sharing. The findings explicate brand message sharing by consumers and thus offer guidance to content managers for developing more effective conversational strategies in social media marketing.

Validation of a scale of health beliefs about type 1 diabetes for the Mexican context: HBM-T1DM

To generate a scale to measure health beliefs among Mexican adolescents and young people with type 1 diabetes (T1DM) to determine the extent to which they affect adherence to treatment and to be able to develop more effective social marketing campaigns. Based on the Health Belief Model (HBM), a scale was generated; three field tests were applied, and it was administered in two regions of Mexico to young people with type 1 diabetes.Tests of reliability, stability, convergence-discrimination and predictive validity were developed. The main predictor is perceived barriers to treatment adherence, followed by self-efficacy to disease control, susceptibility/vulnerability to disease complications and perceived benefits of treatment. This scale may be especially useful for better monitoring young Mexican patients with T1DM and prevent sequelae of disease.

تقييم فاعلية توظيف استراتيجيات التسويق والإعلام الاجتماعي في حملات الصحة العامة دراسة حالة على حملة التوعية الوطنية للوقاية ومكافحة أزمة الكوليرا في اليمن

This study is aimed at assessing the effectiveness of the national awareness campaign for preventing and combating the cholera crisis in Yemen using social marketing and communication. The study relied on the case study methodology, using qualitative and quantitative methods to monitor and analyze the efforts and activities of the campaign including interviews, documents, and other information disseminated through these channels. The study found that there was substantial effort by campaign partners in employing effective social marketing strategies in dealing with health problems. These efforts were directed toward addressing the environmental and individual barriers, with particular attention paid to the latter. Social marketing campaign standards were employed in the campaign's efforts and activities. The campaign used social media to promote preventative behaviors as an overall strategy, though there were some shortcomings in terms of integration and interactivity.

The Stigma of Mental Illness: Using Segmentation for Social Change

Despite the unequivocal incidence and burden that mental illnesses place on the world, those with mental illness remain not only neglected but also deeply stigmatized across societies. The stigma that surrounds mental illness serves as a barrier to treatment and recovery, leading to serious negative consequences such as school failure, job loss, and suicide. While many large-scale social marketing efforts have found some success in reducing stigma, we contend that the recommended approaches, which utilize the input of people with mental illness and those close to them, are inadequate and that a deeper understanding of those who stigmatize is needed. This research first provides a comprehensive examination of the components that comprise stigma and then uses these components to segment the general population. The authors then present recommendations based on differences in the endorsement of stigma among these segments to inform policy and advocacy groups in developing more varied and potentially more effective social marketing campaigns.

Antecedents of Social Network Trust in SNS Usage: The Moderating Role of Offline Familiarity

With the rapid development of social networks, there is a focus on marketing strategies and business models that are based on social media. In the academic world, scholars believe that online trust is a key factor contributing to online purchasing behavior. This article explored several factors in social media trust and verified the moderating role of offline familiarity by using relevant research on online trust in conjunction with a structure equation model. The results show that independent variables such as reputation, SNS interaction, information quality, reciprocity, satisfaction and shared values have a positive influence on trust, whereas perceived similarity does not, and information quality is the most important factor. In addition, offline familiarity significantly moderates the relations between information quality, reciprocity, reputation, shared values and social media trust. This information is important to assist companies in developing an effective social network marketing strategy.

A Study on Understanding Social Media users by Segmentation Analysis Focus on South Korea

Objectives: The goal of this research is to search the SNS (Social Networking Service) users after that we classify SNS users by effectiveness of social media marketing and SNS usage. Methods/Statistical Analysis: A total of 235 valid questionnaires were employed for this study. The cluster analysis was used to categorize respondents based on their response toward social media marketing. To identify characteristics of segments, the average of each of components was used. In the next step, a discriminant analysis was employed to investigate whether the groups are properly placed. Finally, The ANOVA was used to differentiate the three clusters. Findings: This study found that SNS users were divided into 3 groups: The cluster 1 was named as ; the cluster 2 was named as ; the cluster 3 as . Improvements/Applications: This study provides useful implication for marketers and a lot of companies to carry out effective Social Networking Service marketing program.

The power of the “like” button: The impact of social media on box office

The mainstream research of social factors and box office performance has concentrated on post-consumption opinion mining and sentiment analysis, which are difficult to operationalize to the benefits of the industry practitioners whose objective is to maximize box office sales. In this study, we propose the Facebook “like” as an effective social marketing tool before the release of movies for several reasons. Firstly, people's prerelease “liking” of movies can be influenced by marketing campaigns. Secondly, the clicks of “likes” create social impact, as suggested by the Social Impact Theory, on moviegoers' consumption behaviors. And thirdly, Facebook “like” provides practitioners with real-time visible updates. By studying the impact of prerelease “likes” on box office sales, we not only contribute to the literature by offering a new social metric to evaluate the box office performance, but also provide the industry practitioners with quantitative support for the effectiveness of their social marketing activities. Our empirical results indicate that the prerelease “likes” exert a significantly positive impact on box office performance. More specifically, 1% increase in the number of “likes” in the one week prior to release is associated with an increase of the opening week box office by about 0.2%. As it approaches the release date, the prerelease “like” impact becomes stronger, suggesting that the latest prerelease “likes” are more effective in driving box office performance.

The effectiveness of social marketing in global health: a systematic review.

Social marketing is a commonly used strategy in global health. Social marketing programmes may sell subsidized products through commercial sector outlets, distribute appropriately priced products, deliver health services through social franchises and promote behaviours not dependent upon a product or service. We aimed to review evidence of the effectiveness of social marketing in low- and middle-income countries, focusing on major areas of investment in global health: HIV, reproductive health, child survival, malaria and tuberculosis. We searched PubMed, PsycInfo and ProQuest, using search terms linking social marketing and health outcomes for studies published from 1995 to 2013. Eligible studies used experimental or quasi-experimental designs to measure outcomes of behavioural factors, health behaviours and/or health outcomes in each health area. Studies were analysed by effect estimates and for application of social marketing benchmark criteria. After reviewing 18974 records, 125 studies met inclusion criteria. Across health areas, 81 studies reported on changes in behavioural factors, 97 studies reported on changes in behaviour and 42 studies reported on health outcomes. The greatest number of studies focused on HIV outcomes (n = 45) and took place in sub-Saharan Africa (n = 67). Most studies used quasi-experimental designs and reported mixed results. Child survival had proportionately the greatest number of studies using experimental designs, reporting health outcomes, and reporting positive, statistically significant results. Most programmes used a range of methods to promote behaviour change. Programmes with positive, statistically significant findings were more likely to apply audience insights and cost-benefit analyses to motivate behaviour change. Key evidence gaps were found in voluntary medical male circumcision and childhood pneumonia. Social marketing can influence health behaviours and health outcomes in global health; however evaluations assessing health outcomes remain comparatively limited. Global health investments are needed to (i) fill evidence gaps, (ii) strengthen evaluation rigour and (iii) expand effective social marketing approaches.

Integrating Quantitative and Qualitative Research Methods in Health Communication Research

Health Educators working to promote health behaviors have realized that mere quantitative research surveys alone not necessarily provide all of the data inputs that are needed to develop effective communication strategies. Therefore, qualitative methods such as focus groups and in-depth interviews, besides less precise, but useful semi-quantitative approaches, such as intercept surveys, have emerged as part of their research gamut. In an ideal Health Education/IEC program, researchers use both quantitative and qualitative data to provide a more complete picture of the issue being addressed, the target audience and the effectiveness of the program itself. The purpose of this paper is to look at how these two different research approaches can be integrated to inform the development of an effective social marketing program.

Improving gestational weight gain and breastfeeding promotion: Visual communication to overcome health literacy barriers

Maternal and infant outcomes in the US rank among the worst in the developed world. Too-little or too-much weight gain during pregnancy is linked to these poor outcomes and failure to initiate breastfeeding. Despite interventions, these remain public health concerns. Two important elements to improve public health efforts include greater attention to audience's levels of health literacy and increased use of effective visual communication. The purpose of this research was to investigate linking two related issues to improve health promotion efforts. A survey covered knowledge, beliefs, and opinions of weight gain during pregnancy, breastfeeding practices, and perceptions of visual information. Four conditions were implemented: a control group which received no promotional material, a group which received a gestational weight gain brochure, a group which received a breastfeeding brochure, and a group that received a brochure that combined gestational weight gain and breastfeeding information. A total of n = 83 women participated, the majority of which were mothers or soon-to-be-mothers. Results indicate the combined gestational weight gain and breastfeeding brochure did not achieve greater impact among participants, but did not detract from participant's opinions in comparison to the single-issue brochures. Participants identified more with materials that included breastfeeding information. This study incorporated principles essential to effective social marketing campaigns – attractive visuals and clear communication – to improve beliefs and knowledge about appropriate gestational weight gain and breastfeeding practices. Given the substantial health benefits of these practices, this investigation calls for continued development of creative approaches to engage women in these health issues.

The social marketing theory-based (SMT) approach for designing interventions

Purpose– Despite the importance of theory as a driving framework, many social marketers either fail to explicitly use theory as the basis of designing social marketing interventions or default to familiar theories which may not accurately reflect the nature of the behavioural issue. The purpose of this paper is therefore to propose and demonstrate the social marketing theory (SMT)-based approach for designing social marketing interventions, campaigns or tools.Design/methodology/approach– This conceptual paper proposes a four-step process and illustrates this process by applying the SMT-based approach to the digital component of a social marketing intervention for preventing domestic violence.Findings– For effective social marketing interventions, the underpinning theory must reflect consumer insights and key behavioural drivers and be used explicitly in the design process.Practical implications– Social marketing practitioners do not always understand how to use theory in the design of interventions, campaigns or tools, and scholars do not always understand how to translate theories into practice. This paper outlines a process and illustrates how theory can be selected and applied.Originality/value– This paper proposes a process for theory selection and use in a social marketing context.

Eliciting positive social change: marketing’s capacity to drive prosocial behaviours

Purpose – While social marketing has been utilised to bring about positive social change, ultimately, the decision to engage in prosocial behaviour resides with the individual. The purpose of this paper is to explore the determinants and outcomes of prosocial behaviours. Design/methodology/approach – A web-based self-administered survey was used to collect data from a convenience sample of largely university staff and students. Data obtained were analysed using SEM-based partial least squares methodology. Findings – The results show that individuals who are future oriented and issue involved are more likely to engage in prosocial behaviour. Also, these individuals are more likely to assess fewer negative consequences and experience more positive feelings as a result of their prosocial behaviour. Research limitations/implications – While the study focuses on two social issues, it does provide some explanation of self-reported behaviour, rather than intention to behave. However, future research could pay attention to a wider array of social issues and undertake post hoc testing to measure the characteristics of the chosen social issues. This may enhance findings, and provide greater support for the generalisability of the model. Also, future research could be directed towards the examining the role of perceived risk and feelings as an outcome of behaviour. Practical implications – A better understanding of the prosocial individual can assist in designing more effective social marketing campaigns. In particular, focusing on positive feelings as a result of engaging in prosocial behaviour has practical implications. Originality/value – Little attention has been given in the marketing and consumer behaviour literature to understanding the prosocial individual. To this end, this research empirically tests a model of prosocial behaviour for two social issues that integrates determinants (social responsibility, time orientation and issue involvement) and outcomes (assessment of negative consequences and feelings). Moreover, the results highlight that positive feelings are a significant outcome of prosocial behaviour.

Is removing blood donation barriers a donation facilitator?

Purpose – The aim of this study was to assess whether the removal of blood donation “barriers” facilitates blood donation intentions, using a sample of African migrants, and to identify the implications for social marketing. African migrants are currently under-represented as blood donors in Australia. Some members of the African community have unique donation needs that can only be served by this community. Design/methodology/approach – Interviews were conducted with 425 people from the African community in Victoria and South Australia. Factor analysis was performed on the barriers and the removal of barriers. Item groupings for both constructs differed, suggesting that barriers and their removal are not necessarily opposite constructs. Findings – The cultural society factor was negatively associated with blood donation intention (i.e. a barrier), whereas engagement and overcoming fear were positively associated with blood donation intention (i.e. facilitators). Cultural issues and lack of understanding were not seen to impede blood donation. Additionally, the removal of cultural barriers did not facilitate increases in blood donation intentions. Thus, the removal of barriers may not be sufficient on their own to encourage donation. Research limitations/implications – This only examines the issue with regards to whether the removal of barriers is a facilitator of blood donation with one group of migrants, and relationships may vary across other migrant and non-migrant groups. Practical implications – Policymakers often use social marketing interventions to overcome barriers as a way of facilitating blood donation. This research suggests that removing barriers is indeed important because these barriers impede people considering becoming blood donors. However, the findings also suggest that the removal of barriers is insufficient on its own to motivate blood donations (i.e. the removal of barriers is a hygiene factor). If this is the case, social marketing campaigns need to be multifaceted, removing barriers as well as leveraging facilitators, simultaneously. Social implications – This work identified that the impact of barriers and their removal may facilitate effective social marketing campaigns in differing ways, in the context of blood donation. Originality/value – How barriers and their removal impact social marketing activities (i.e. blood donation behaviour) has generally not been explored in research.