Anti-Smoking Campaigns
A secondhand smoke YouTube singing sensation.
Never underestimate the power of a good idea. It will stick in your head for years. It will push itself to the forefront among other ideas. And when the right people see it and believe in its potential, they will jump on your bandwagon. I came up with the idea for “Secondhand Smoke, Secondhand Rose”, 17 years ago working on the Michigan Department of Community Health account at Brogan. At the time, we were doing some TV spots, so radio wasn’t in the budget and YouTube did not exist. But the tune, “Secondhand Rose,” (which is in public domain) and my rewrite of the words had a sticking factor. And the tune stuck in my head for years. So recently when I heard MDCH needed a radio spot about secondhand smoke for parents of young children, I remembered that idea from long ago. Of course, the original script was gone, considering it was written on one of the first Macs! But I recreated it. And I couldn’t have scripted what happened next better. Our wonderful clients at MDCH, Kelly Niebel and Jason Holben, let us produce it as both a radio spot and a YouTube video (the latter has over 4,000 hits just after a couple weeks). Serendipitously, we found the perfect talent shooting another spot for STEM awareness. We called in favors to make it amazing and stay in budget. But the icing on the cake: powerful results. The calls to the Michigan Tobacco Quit Line were so dramatic, one of our clients exclaimed she “almost fell out of my chair.” So that great idea you have, it can happen. It just may need a little longer incubation period. What do you think of our “Secondhand Smoke, Secondhand Rose” spot for the Michigan Department of Community Health? I'm glad it stuck in my head all those years!
A Super Bowl showstopper - Madonna isn't the only thing still in vogue.
Madonna revived her 90's hit VOGUE at the SuperBowl half-time show last night. Prompting Bogan & Partners to revive BOGUE, our award-winning anti-smoking commercial for the Michigan Department of Public Health. Our client debuted it shortly after the release of VOGUE and we think it has held up as well as Madonna.
Research-based H1N1 ad.
By now, we've all seen a lot of H1N1 ads. But are they working? Our client, Michigan Department of Community Health, decided to go straight to the target audience - minority populations of African Americans, Arab Americans and Hispanics who have NOT received the vaccine - with focus groups to understand WHY NOT. The problem? They simply don't trust it. Respondents said it was "rushed into circulation", "pushed by the government", and is "unsafe", "untested and experimental," and "unproven." Of course, all misperceptions and untruths, as the vaccine is the safest, most effective way to prevent the flu. We know that trust is a critical component of the healthcare marketing equation -- and that we had to overcome this basic feeling of mistrust. Since the majority of respondents said their doctor would be the single person they would trust the most about whether or not to get the H1N1 vaccine, we encouraged action through this open door. Even though we know 61% if adults search online for health information and 81% of Internet users search online for health information (Pew Research Center), we bravely persevered with what research told us is the most effective call to action: TALK TO YOUR DOCTOR.
The print ad is straightforward. Designed to help people make a list of questions to ask their doctor about seasonal flu and H1N1. I think its simplicity and utilize are unexpected -- and will break through the clutter.
Kudos to MDCH for their research-savvy approach. We'll keep you posted as this just started running. Let us know what you think!
Michigan says so-long to smoked lasagna.
May 1st is quickly approaching. For most, it’s just another normal day. For Michigan residents, it will mean that we can walk into any bar or restaurant and walk out still smelling like the sweet scent of perfume that we put on earlier in the evening.
But, more importantly, it means we will no longer be exposed to secondhand smoke, the third leading cause of preventable death in Michigan.
In order to raise awareness of Michigan's new indoor smoking ban, we partnered with our long-time client, the Michigan Department of Community Health, to kick off a very cost-effective social marketing PSA campaign. Check out the spot below.
And join us in saying so-long to smoked cheesecake, smoked side salad, smoked carrot cake...
Creative social marketing example #18: Michigan Department of Community Health.
Okay, I cannot do a blog series on creative social marketing without giving some props to our client, the Michigan Department of Community Health. For over 20 years, we’ve been partners in creating some of the most memorable ad campaigns in the state. One of our agency favorites, is “I smoke when I’m coloring.” Research showed the best way to get adults to quit smoking was to do it through their kids. This campaign swept award shows, lit up the quit line call center and was so successful other states were calling in for it. We even heard that the commercial inspired Whoopi Goldberg to quit smoking. Leo Burnett once said, “There is no such thing as a great advertising agency. There are, however, a few great clients.” MDCH is a great one (thanks for being great partners, guys), and we’re not blowing smoke.
This blog post is #18 in the series, 21 creative social marketing examples.
Creative social marketing example #14: Partnership for a Drug-Free America.
“This is your brain. This is your brain on drugs.” Was there even anti-drug advertising before this memorable spot hit our TV sets in the 80’s? The mother to all PSA’s, this spot has been quoted, copied, spoofed, and lives on in our pop culture. To replay in our social consciousness without paid media, now that is effective social marketing. My favorite of the original versions was the heroine spot below from 1988. And also another classic spot is the one where the dad confronts his son in his bedroom about his weed. “Who taught you how to do this stuff?”, the dad asks. The son screams, “You alright! I learned it by watching you!” Talk about a parental guilt trip. And now a new generation is watching these psa’s on youtube. Decades ago the partnership laid the foundation for the future of social marketing and they are still going strong.
This blog post is #14 in the series, 21 creative social marketing examples.
Creative social marketing example #6: The Truth.
I have been trying to put out cigarettes for twenty years. No need to send me Chantix, as I am not nor ever was a smoker. But my advertising career began baptism by fire helping our agency pitch the Michigan Department of Community Health. We have done a lot of great anti-smoking creative over the years, so I am an aficionado on the subject. Of course, for years "the truth" campaign has been powerful. I loved crazyworld and how it turns common sense upside down to show just how crazy our government and society is when it comes to big tobacco versus how they regulate other things. So initially, I was going to blog about that campaign. To be honest, I wasn’t as big of fan of the new truth tv spots, which are very focused on the big tobacco executives. But as I delved into the microsite, I learned the TV was the result of an elaborate social experiment, where they had a fake job recruiter interview real candidates. Of course, when they learn part of their job is killing 17% of the world’s population, pleading the 5th and poisoning their customers, they are not so into the job. Brutal truth but also very informative and entertaining. Check out the "Making Of" video below and the Urea Collector game. And if you do smoke, try Chantix. It worked for my brother who smoked a pack a day since junior high.
This blog post is #6 in my series, 21 creative social marketing campaigns.
Creative social marketing example #1: Above the Influence.
We used to tell teens to “just say no”. It was defense. Now, with this campaign, The Partnership for Drug Free America is making staying drug-free really cool, empowering and inspiring. This campaign is so right on. I’ve seen many of the spots over the years on TV and the whole collection is online. These are my favorites...
Above the influence has a facebook fan page with 17,855 fans. And the web site is rich with sections on…
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Games, like thumb wrestling, word play and sketchpads
- Wallpapers and buddy icons
- Drug facts
- Get help/ask a doctor
- Conversation starters
- Mobile expressions—so you can inspire others with videos, podcasts, photos and words from your phone
- And, of course, links to the great creative
I am sharing the link with my teenage daughters. Hopefully, they will have fun while being under the influence of above the influence.
What do you think? Do you think a great social marketing campaign can really help teens overpower peer pressure?
This is the #1 in my blog series 21 creative social marketing campaigns.
21 creative social marketing campaigns.
I love finding brilliant advertising creative that makes me wish I thought of it. And I especially love it, when it’s for a client that’s trying to make the world a better place. That’s what social marketing is all about. And because it’s only “sell” is to try to get us to change our behaviors or attitudes about something, it can be powerful when done well.
In this blog series, I will write about 21 creative social marketing campaigns I admire. If you have any favorite campaigns to add to this list, leave me a comment and link, and I will check it out. 
- Above the Influence
- Amnesty International
- American Stroke Association
- Boys and Girls Club
- Children’s and Adolescents Reference Center
- the truth
- Covenant House
- Invent Now
- Land Transport New Zealand
- Looking Glass Foundation
- My Sister’s Place
- Nike Foundation
- Parkinson’s Society Canada
- Partnership for a Drug-free America
- obesity prevention
- stop land mines
- thinkb4yourspeak
- Michigan Department of Community Health
- World Wildlife Fund
- United Nations Campaign
- United Way
If you would like to check out 26 social media examples in detail check out Lisa Braziel’s blog at our sister company Ignite Social Media.
If you’re not sure what’s the difference between social marketing and social media, check out my post on that subject.
Inhaling the night air and something else.
This past Friday night I was at the rehearsal dinner for a young couple to be married the next day. The party was in the groom’s parents’ lovely home. It was all pretty snazzy. The 45 or 50 guests were gussied up, tan, fit, multi-generational and probably mostly WASP. The menu was authentic Italian cuisine. There was staff. The over-the-top flowers were plentiful and stunningly arranged. A rented bartender served cocktails and champagne for the father’s welcoming toast to the guests and the young couple. Most of the party stayed indoors because the temperatures and humidity were tropical. Rain threatened and then showed up. So who went outdoors in the wilting heat and then the storm? Smokers. Who smokes any more? Not my friends and contemporaries. (I am old.) It was the kids. The twenty-something young professionals and of them, the young women, were the smokers. Hoping to look smart? Hoping to stay slim? Hoping to become addicted to the most dangerous chemicals you can ingest that are proven to be the most destructive to health and well-being? Probably not that one.
I said to one young woman—the hostess’ daughter, “Does your mother know you’re doing this? You shouldn’t smoke, you know.” She said, “No one should!” Laughed. Inhaled. Twirled her cocktail skirt. I felt bad. For the past 25 years, I’ve written and been involved in social marketing against smoking and secondhand smoke. Our agency, working with the Michigan Department of Community Health primarily, has targeted all ages, races, demographics with measureable successes. It’s discouraging to see any one smoking. Did you miss the messages? Apparently. We know the anti-smoking work is never finished. We know it’s tough to counter the glamorous smokers served up in movies and elsewhere. We won’t quit.
You’ll find our award winning and very effective anti-smoking tv commercials on psastation.com
When I see young women sucking on cigarettes in an electrical storm, risking the ruination of costly cocktail dresses, I don’t think smoking looks chic. I think it looks like addiction. And I feel sad. What do you think?
