Think Social Marketing Doesn't Work? Just Did!

Have you ever driven down the road and seen a blank billboard that reads: Think Advertising Doesn't Work? Just did! Call 1-800-….. to use this billboard. Maybe you don’t pay attention to that billboard or maybe you do. In my case those billboards really irk me. Something about their tone. Like they tricked me. I don’t know. I just don’t like it. Besides if there’s a blank billboard in town why don’t they use it to promote some regional issue?

Anyway… this post isn’t about billboards that try to trick you… but rather about social marketing and how it really works.

For those of you who aren’t aware -- social marketing is any use of marketing techniques to improve social well being by changing behavior and attitudes about social concerns, creating a change in the entire community. The major differences between commercial marketing (the marketing you all well know and love i.e. Coca-Cola) and social marketing is that social marketing is identified by it being values driven, accountable by the public, and based on building relationships out of trust.

Here in St. Lucia we’re just over half way through our 2 week workshop on utilizing Education Entertainment to affect Climate Change in the Caribbean. Today Media Impact Program Director Sean Southey gave a great presentation on Social Marketing – it’s importance, why to use it, and how to best create a social marketing campaign for each of the countries involved in this project.

Just to give you a small glimpse of the presentation. Sean explained how effective social marketing campaigns really are by showing the following pictures and seeing if we could finish the phrase. Can you finish the following messages from the campaigns? I’m pretty sure you can. Make me proud!

What does Smokey the Bear say?

Friends don't let Friends.....

Don't mess with...