Developing effective social marketing strategies

Social marketing requires more than just attractive visuals and PR campaigns. Within our approach, and in accordance with the key stages of behavioural models including the NSMC* Total Process Planning Model, we discover the reality of the issues through thorough research and insight work – basing our programmes on evidence rather than assumption.

Scoping - Thorough research is integral to the success of our social marketing planning, and frequently includes quantitative research such as questionnaire design, piloting, sample definition and selection, fieldwork and data analysis, face to face, phone and email surveys.

We also use qualitative research approaches from focus groups and in-depth interviews to bring further depth of insight and understanding.

Adding further value, our social marketing team has a number of experienced moderators and state of the art viewing facilities for the qualitative research and a fully trained team of experienced fieldworkers. A number of our team are members of the Market Research Society. All of our research projects follow the criteria laid down in the Market Research Society’s ‘Code of Conduct’.

Developing - This stage of the process is where findings from the research are turned into creative ways to address the issues, identifying key messages, concepts and channels of delivery. While each behaviour change project is different, we always follow the same principles of thorough testing and evaluation at all stages within this part of the process, focused on the project objectives and desired outcomes, and providing us with solutions that use the right language, tone, content or activity to reach, engage and resonate with our target groups.

Implementing - This involves putting together a social marketing project plan and identifying key activity in close collaboration with our partners to and to strategically deliver messages and interventions, challenge assumptions and move behaviour within the context of the brief. In developing our plans we seek to identify key partners, stakeholders and connectors that can support delivery, promoting cross-party buy in and building sustainable, localised pathways for future activity.

Evaluating & Following Up - Having clear milestones and targets is something we build into every behavioural change project plan. It goes without saying that we approach all projects not only ‘with the end in mind’, but with a view to establishing robust mechanisms and systems for ongoing development. We also understand that demonstrable results are imperative – and that the ‘return on investment’ is the achievement of specific, quantifiable behavioural change.