Integrated mass media campaigns: the Australian experience

1
Integrated mass media campaigns the Australian
experience

• Judith Watt
• Head of SmokeFree London programme
• Former member, Ministerial Tobacco Advisory
  Group, Australia

Tobacco Control Lessons and Experiences Kells,
Northern Ireland, March 2001
2



3
Ministerial Tobacco Advisory Group

• Chaired by an acknowledged expert
• Included government and non-government people
• Small (five members)
• Had direct access to the Minister (if needed)

4
Ministerial Tobacco Advisory Group

• National Tobacco Campaign
• National Tobacco Strategy
• Best practice model for sales to minors
• Research to inform nicotine regulation
• Review of the national Quitline service
• Development of national response to ETS
• Review of health warnings
• Negotiations with tobacco industry ondisclosure
  of ingredients

5
Focus on adult cessation
Why?

• Impact on tobacco-related disease
• Credibility for teen-directed interventions
• Prospects of success good

6
Before the campaign started
Age group by smoker/ex-smoker
NTC Evaluation data
7
Before the campaign started
Smokers by occupational group
NTC Evaluation data
8
Campaign target

• Smokers 18-39 years
• Blue-collar skew

9
Preparatory research

• Published research
• 107 pieces unpublished research
• Recent qualitative research

10
Smokers said ...

• I want to quit sometime
• Tell me something new!
• Shock me!

11
Does fear arousal work?
We should not be frightened of using fear in our
efforts to induce change in health-related
attitudes and behaviours. Arousing fear is
unlikely to be counter-productive or to produce
boomerang effects, particularly if the message
provides clear advice on what to do (and the
benefits).

Sutton, Shock Tactics and the Myth of the
Inverted U.Brit. J. Addiction (1992)
12
Communication brief (1)

• The personal agenda
• ? Today
• ? Tomorrow
• ? Some time soon
• ? When I get around to it
• Intention ? action
• Todays personal agenda
• Actions that occur over time need resources and
  reinforcements

13
Communication brief (2)
To potentiate intention, stimulate individuals to

• gain fresh insights on the recommended behaviour
• reassess the importance of the behaviour
• reassess the urgency of carrying out the
  behaviour
• reassess the personal relevance of the behaviour
• have confidence in their own ability to carry out
  the behaviour (self-efficacy)
• remember or be reminded to do it
• for long-term change, gain more than is lost by
  carrying out the behaviour (response efficacy)

14
Smokers translation

• "Smoking is like buying a ticket in a lottery
  thats drawn when youre 70 Ill chance that.

15
Appointing the agency

• Agencies invited to a credentials pitch
• not a concept pitch
• Five agencies invited to pitch
• Four turned up with concepts anyway
• We appointed the one which didnt

16
Expert briefings

• Evening briefings with medical and scientific
  experts
• Visits to pathology labs and hospital wards
• Responding to their many requests for information
  and explanation

17
Structure of advertisements
Stimulus element
Smoker response
1. Empathy device 2. Conditioning device 3. New
news 4. Certain effects
The people behind this ad understand
me Conditions association between act of smoking
and images of damage This affects me and I did
not know it I cant bear to think Im doing
that to myself These are immediate and certain
effects of smoking, not just a chance I take
18
Evaluation Measures

• Implementation monitor
• Media monitor (paid, unpaid)
• Price monitor
• Quitline calls
• Tracking survey
• Pre - post surveys

• Prevalence
• Consumption

19
(No Transcript)
20
Media buy May 1997 - Dec 1998
21
Media buy vs Quitline calls
WNTD 31 May
Artery Lung launched 12 June
Brain Call for help
launched 22 April
Tumour launched 16 July
TARPs
New Year PR activity
Calls
Feb 98
Dec 98
May 97
22
Main findings after 6 months

• More people thinking about quitting
• Thought about quitting at least daily - up 18
  from baseline
• More people trying to quit
• Tried to quit in past 2 weeks - up 100 from
  baseline (3 to 6)
• More people had quit
• Quit in past year -up 37 from baseline (8.3 to
  11.4)
• Fewer people were smoking
• Smoking prevalence Benchmark 23.5 Nov 1997
  22.1

23
Positive shiftthrough stages of change
15
13
8
Preparation
Contemplation
Pre- contemplation
-10
Pre-contemplation Contemplation Preparation
(Not considering quitting in next 6
months (Considering quitting in next 6
months (Planning to quit in next 30 days
48 at baseline) 36 at baseline) 16 at
baseline)
24
Main findings after 18 months
25
What might have confounded results?

• Pricing of cigarettes
• There is no evidence that discounting became
  more prevalent or more extensive over the period
  of the campaign
• Scollo M, Owen T, Boulter J NTC
  Evaluation, 2000

26
Did the campaign affect young people?

• 96 of smokers and recent quitters were aware of
  the campaign.
• 85 of smokers and recent quitters found the
  campaign relevant to them.
• 49 reported new learning about the health
  effects of smoking cigarettes.
• 67 said the campaign made them more likely to
  quit smoking.

27
Did the campaign affect young people?

• A majority of teenage recent quitters (68) said
  it helped them to stay quit.
• A majority of teenage non-smokers (86) said it
  helped them remain non-smokers.
• An average of 8 out of 10 teenagers felt that the
  campaign did not increase the appeal of smoking
  for teenagers it made smoking seem less cool
  and desirable.

28
What happened to smoking prevalence?

• By end of 1998 it had reduced by around
• 1.8 from baseline

29
Economic evaluationa

• Based on measured prevalence reduction
• 920 premature deaths averted
• 3,358 additional years of life to age 75
• 9.6m in health care cost offsetsb
• 19 per quitterb
• 3,913 per premature death avertedb
• 1,574 per year of life saved b

a Carter and Scollo, 2000 b Approx 3.6m was
spent on the campaign
30
International use of campaign

• TV campaign used in New Zealand, Massachusetts,
  Singapore and Poland
• Smokers changed in Singapore to Chinese and Malay
  people in local settings
• Canadian health warnings used images from
  Australian campaign

31
And, finally

• Two new ads in the same format but with younger
  people
• New phase of the campaign being developed now
  with parents being the main target