Customer-centered Interventions Introduction to Social Marketing Jane Ellery, Ph.D. Fisher Institute for Wellness and Gerontology Ball State University

Audience Perspective “You don’t build it for yourself. You find out what the people want and you build it for them” - Walt Disney Health behavior change strategy that encourages an audience focus… Social Marketing

Reframing the Dissemination Challenge (AJPH, December 2009) “We have produced effective products through research, but we have not invested in customer-centered marketing and distribution systems to bring these products to public health organizations, when, where, and how they are needed.” – Matt Kreuter, Ph.D., MPH, Health Communication Research Laboratory, Washington University – Jay Bernhardt, Ph.D., MPH, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

Social Marketing: Distinctive Features Consumer orientation Uses commercial marketing technologies and theory (product, price, place, promotion; exchange theory) Voluntary behavior change Targets specific audiences Focus is on personal welfare and that of society

Social Marketing Approach Tutorial

How do you know what people want? Ask them! “Nasrudin” – Lealand Kaiser, Ph.D. Healthcare Futurist, Kaiser.net

Social Marketing Mindset What is wrong with our programs? What do we need to offer to offset their costs? What would make our product more attractive than the competition?

Segmenting Your Population Target Markets: Using Data for Decision Making

Steps for Target Marketing Segment the market – Divide into smaller groups based on commonalities Evaluate the segments – Who is reachable with your current resources… set priorities Choose one or more segments for targeting – Develop targeted interventions

Traditional Variables Geographic (location) Demographic (age, gender, SES, ethnicity) Psychographic (desires/interests, lifestyles, personalities) Behavioral (loyalty status, user status)

Stages of Change Pre-contemplation Contemplation Preparation Action Maintenance

VALS The basic tenet of VALS is that people express their personalities through their behaviors. VALS specifically defines consumer segments on the basis of those personality traits that affect behavior in the marketplace.

Thinkers Thinkers are motivated by ideals. They are mature, satisfied, comfortable, and reflective people who value order, knowledge, and responsibility. They tend to be well educated and actively seek out information in the decision-making process. They are well-informed about world and national events and are alert to opportunities to broaden their knowledge. Thinkers have a moderate respect for institutions of authority and social decorum but are open to consider new ideas. Although their incomes allow them many choices, Thinkers are conservative, practical consumers; they look for durability, functionality, and value in the products that they buy.

Criteria for Evaluating Segments Segment size Problem incidence Problem severity Defenselessness Effectiveness Reachability General responsiveness Incremental costs Responsiveness to Marketing Mix Organizational capabilities Efficiency

Chosen Approach The greatest need Most ready for action Easiest to reach Best match Targeting markets of greatest opportunity

What do we need to know… What would they rather do than the behavior we are promoting and why? (know the competition) What do they know about the desired behaviors? What do they believe? What are their values and attitudes relative to the desired behavior? (benefits, costs, barriers) Do… Know… Believe… Value

The Marketing Mix 4-Ps

Creating the Competitive Advantage “Positioning our product relative to the competition” Increase the benefits of the product Decrease the barriers (and/or costs) to the product Decrease the benefits of the competition Increase the barriers (and/or costs) to the competition

The 4 Ps Product – The behavior, package of benefits that accompanies the behavior and tangible goods and services related to the behavior Price – The cost that the target market associates with using the product Place – Where and when the target market will use the product, acquire any related tangible objects, and receive and associated services Promotion – Creating messages and selecting media channels

Price Monetary – most often related to tangible products and services Non-monetary – more intangible, but just as real… time, effort, energy, psychological risks and losses, physical discomforts Exchange theory… what we offer the target market (benefits) has to be equal to or greater than what they will have to give (costs)

Ways to Manage Costs Decrease cost of adopting the new behavior, those associated with exiting the existing behavior as well as entering the new one. – Decrease monetary costs – Decrease non-monetary costs – Decrease costs relative to the competition Increase the benefits of adopting the new behavior. – Increase monetary costs – Increase non-monetary costs

Place Develop strategies that will make it as convenient and pleasant as possible for our target audience to perform the behavior, acquire any tangible objects, and receive any services Also… try to make the competing behavior seem less convenient

Strategies to consider Make the location closer Extend the hours Make the location more appealing Be there at the point of decision making Make performing the desired behavior more convenient than the competing behavior

25 Remember to look at things differently… FINISHED FILES ARE THE RESULT OF YEARS OF SCIENTIFIC STUDY COMBINED WITH THE EXPERIENCE OF YEARS.

Questions… What have you done “differently” that has been effective? How do you feel about consumer-centered approaches? What “tools” would you need to help you adopt a more consumer-centered approach? Is consumer-centered the only approach we should be considering… or just one of many tools we should consider?

Fisher Institute for Wellness and Gerontology Ball State University Jane Ellery, Ph.D.

Segments Have brown eyes Born in Indiana Have a land line Have 2 kids Traveled internationally Lived outside the state Travel less than 10 miles to work Regularly take the stairs instead of an elevator Use CREST toothpaste Love broccoli Want to be more effective in their work