Citizen Behavior Change: The Social Marketing Approach
The views expressed are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of ASPA as an organization.
By Nancy Lee April 13, 2019
When it comes to influencing citizen behavior change for
social good, policymakers, agency directors and program managers typically begin
with an education campaign, one that
relies primarily on words to influence behavior adoption (Buckle Up. We Love
You.). When this effort results in disappointing outcomes, even after years of
promotion, a law is often proposed,
passed and enforced (Click It Or Ticket), typically one with fines. This PA TIMES column is to encourage
consideration of a third option, social
marketing, one that is often the most effective and efficient in achieving
high rates of behavior change, and, importantly, also one that can achieve the greatest
return on investment of resources. For increasing seatbelt usage, that familiar
sound (Ding. Ding. Ding.) reminding us to buckle up would be an example of a
social marketing approach.
Let’s consider pet waste to illustrate these distinctions in
more detail. Early efforts to encourage pet owners to pick up their pet’s waste
most commonly involved creating signs and placing them in parks and public
places, ones providing simple instructions and sometimes mentioning environmental
benefits (See Figure 1). When these efforts did not achieve significant
behavior change outcomes, agencies turned to laws, fines and enforcement,
emphasizing consequences for noncompliance (See Figure 2). In many communities,
still frustrated with disappointing behavior change levels and accumulations of
pet waste in parks and other public spaces, a third option was tried, one
designed to help the citizens pick up after their pet by overcoming barriers
such as not having a plastic bag and/or a convenient trash container to dispose
of it (See Figure 3).
This social marketing approach was first distinguished in the
late 60s by Philip Kotler and Gerald Zaltman and has been successfully applied to
address, “Wicked Problems,” around the world by focusing on behaviors that are uniquely
designed to:
Improve Health: Opioid overdose,
Tobacco use, Alcohol abuse, Teen pregnancy, Obesity, HIV/AIDS, Fruit and vegetable
intake, Breastfeeding, Breast cancer, Colon cancer, Immunizations, Eating disorders,
Anemia, Polio, Tuberculosis, Malaria.
Prevent Injuries: Youth suicide, Domestic violence, Gun
storage, School violence, Senior falls, Household poisons, Head injuries,
Pedestrian injuries, Alcohol-related crashes.
Protect the Environment: Recycling, Composting, Natural yard care,
Wildfires, Littering, Water conservation, Wildlife habitat protection,
Alternative yransportation, Energy conservation, Forest restoration.
Impact Academic Performance: Literacy, High school graduation,
College applications, Tutoring.
Enhance Financial Well Being: Checking accounts for the unbanked,
Retirement savings, Mobile banking, Identity theft, Fraud.
Three future PA Times columns that I will write in 2019 will discuss in-depth success stories for each of these social issues, presenting the Problem, Social Marketing Solution, and Results.
Author: Nancy Lee is a Teaching Associate at the University of Washington where she teaches social marketing in the MPA program. She has coauthored 13 books, 11 with Philip Kotler. She has a small consulting firm in Seattle, Social Marketing Services, has consulted on more than 100 social marketing campaigns, and has conducted workshops on Social Marketing in 12 countries. Her e-mail is [email protected]
Citizen Behavior Change: The Social Marketing Approach
The views expressed are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of ASPA as an organization.
By Nancy Lee
April 13, 2019
When it comes to influencing citizen behavior change for social good, policymakers, agency directors and program managers typically begin with an education campaign, one that relies primarily on words to influence behavior adoption (Buckle Up. We Love You.). When this effort results in disappointing outcomes, even after years of promotion, a law is often proposed, passed and enforced (Click It Or Ticket), typically one with fines. This PA TIMES column is to encourage consideration of a third option, social marketing, one that is often the most effective and efficient in achieving high rates of behavior change, and, importantly, also one that can achieve the greatest return on investment of resources. For increasing seatbelt usage, that familiar sound (Ding. Ding. Ding.) reminding us to buckle up would be an example of a social marketing approach.
Let’s consider pet waste to illustrate these distinctions in more detail. Early efforts to encourage pet owners to pick up their pet’s waste most commonly involved creating signs and placing them in parks and public places, ones providing simple instructions and sometimes mentioning environmental benefits (See Figure 1). When these efforts did not achieve significant behavior change outcomes, agencies turned to laws, fines and enforcement, emphasizing consequences for noncompliance (See Figure 2). In many communities, still frustrated with disappointing behavior change levels and accumulations of pet waste in parks and other public spaces, a third option was tried, one designed to help the citizens pick up after their pet by overcoming barriers such as not having a plastic bag and/or a convenient trash container to dispose of it (See Figure 3).
This social marketing approach was first distinguished in the late 60s by Philip Kotler and Gerald Zaltman and has been successfully applied to address, “Wicked Problems,” around the world by focusing on behaviors that are uniquely designed to:
Improve Health: Opioid overdose, Tobacco use, Alcohol abuse, Teen pregnancy, Obesity, HIV/AIDS, Fruit and vegetable intake, Breastfeeding, Breast cancer, Colon cancer, Immunizations, Eating disorders, Anemia, Polio, Tuberculosis, Malaria.
Prevent Injuries: Youth suicide, Domestic violence, Gun storage, School violence, Senior falls, Household poisons, Head injuries, Pedestrian injuries, Alcohol-related crashes.
Protect the Environment: Recycling, Composting, Natural yard care, Wildfires, Littering, Water conservation, Wildlife habitat protection, Alternative yransportation, Energy conservation, Forest restoration.
Engage Communities: Homelessness, Organ donation, Blood donation, Voting, Animal adoption, Crime prevention, Mentoring, Volunteering.
Impact Academic Performance: Literacy, High school graduation, College applications, Tutoring.
Enhance Financial Well Being: Checking accounts for the unbanked, Retirement savings, Mobile banking, Identity theft, Fraud.
Three future PA Times columns that I will write in 2019 will discuss in-depth success stories for each of these social issues, presenting the Problem, Social Marketing Solution, and Results.
Author: Nancy Lee is a Teaching Associate at the University of Washington where she teaches social marketing in the MPA program. She has coauthored 13 books, 11 with Philip Kotler. She has a small consulting firm in Seattle, Social Marketing Services, has consulted on more than 100 social marketing campaigns, and has conducted workshops on Social Marketing in 12 countries. Her e-mail is [email protected]
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