Campaign description
The campaign about SunSmart Victoria Australia is one of the most successful community health campaigns in Australia (SunSmart Victoria, 2012a). The initiative which was started in 1980s uses advertising with the aim of promoting sun protection and skin cancer prevention messages.
The media messages used by SunSmart have been tailored to work with the community and culture awareness in Australia. The message used by the campaign has positively impacted the society as people have been able to consume the messages through the awareness. As a result, it has been possible for them to reduce the associated risks of skin cancer and sunburns.
Australia is ranked as one of the countries in the world with the highest levels of skin cancer (SunSmart Victoria, 2012a). Current statistics indicates that among 3 Australians 2 will be diagnosed of skin cancer as they reach seventy. With more than a thousand Australians being threatened by skin cancer on a daily basis, the need to campaign by SunSmart to promote skin cancer prevention and sun protection campaigns has been prompted.
In Victoria alone, reports by SunSmart show that four hundred and one people die annually from skin cancer. The major cause of skin cancer is overexposure to ultraviolet radiation from the sun. Through SunSmart campaign, awareness has been created where people are informed on ways of preventing and protecting themselves from skin cancer. Ideally, the five measures adopted for sun protection are slip, slop, slap, seek, and slide.
Media for the campaign
The campaign is carried through the use of the print media, documentaries, video, through the radio and television. Currently, the campaigns are carried online to have the SunSmart campaign in the public domain. Campaigns carried through Facebook, for instance, are able to reach different people both at local and international levels.
Market group
The campaign major market group are the young people in the society who are prone to overexposure to the UV radiation which may lead to skin cancer. One of the memorable campaigns was carried by SunMart with Cooch Creative in 2010 where posters were placed in bus stops with the conveyed message of skin protection (Samuel, Colliss, Battista, & Zappia, 2010).
According to SunSmart projections, Australia prepares for an increase in cancer among the ageing population, hence the need to emphasize on preventive skin cancer measures in early age (SunSmart Victoria, 2012a). As a result, SunSmart has been able to promote heath protective campaigns through social marketing with the aim of changing the behaviour of many Australians which improves health outcomes.
Based by the analysis carried by the National Skin Cancer Awareness Campaign in 2006-2007 summers among the adolescents and adults, it emerged that most of the people in the population have been able to use any of the five measures advocated for the prevention of skin cancer. In Victoria there has been an increase in skin cancer and change in people’s behaviours as a result of SunSmart skin cancer prevention campaign (Sinclair, 2009).
According to SunSmart Victoria (2012), young Australians of between 12 and 24 years are more prone to cancer because of over exposure to the UV rays. The advert has been designed with the aim of increasing the number of Victorian young people and Victorian adolescents. The ability to remember the summer, the children will be able to have fun as their practice sun protection measures. Finally, SunSmart will be in a position to engage but also to educate the young people and adolescents (SunSmart Victoria, 2012).
Problem recognition
The SunSmart campaign advertisement seeks to address the issues associated with over exposure to sun radiation which may lead to skin cancer and sunburns. In addition, the advertisement seeks to educate the young people on the benefits associated with skin prevention by associating and influencing them in a more personal way.
The advert has been designed in such a way that it creates awareness in the young generation which has the capacity of passing it to peers and younger generation. Based on the theory of social influence, the advertisement has the capacity of influencing the behaviour of the people. According to David, Cappela and Fishbein (2006) the content of the advert has the capacity of engaging the people cognitively which either generates negative or positive perspectives.
Hoyer and MacInnis (2008) state that consumers are able to recall information with the aim of confirming the overall beliefs instead of contradicting them. Confirmation bias has been integrated in this context to influence the decision making process of the target market. For example, through the advertisement, SunSmart Campaign is able to instil information in the minds of the young which reinforces their beliefs at an early age.
The message can be recalled in years to come thus impacting them positively. Hoyer and MacInnis (2008) are keen to observe that our perception can be influenced by physical factors such as pictures as in the case of the advert (SunSmart Victoria 2012a). The external stimuli then change the perception thus affecting the behaviour of an individual. Based on the stimuli generated, consumers are able to develop consumption behaviour which may be repetitive (Blundell, 1988).
This determines the consumption behaviour of the consumers based on perception and experiences. The advertisement encourages prevention rather than cure which has to be accepted at an early stage. SunSmart motivates people without the guarantee that the message will be received positively as advocated for.
In addition, the message encourages people to adopt sun protection behaviours rather than use sunscreens to cover their faces (Sinclair, 2009). Although the campaign educates and encourages people on skin protection measures, it may conflict with school regulations.
Theory and application
The young group of the market group indentified in the report as target of the SunMart campaign is of the age between 12-24 years. This group defines youthfulness and young adulthood in the society. The advertisement on skin cancer prevention applied in SunSmart campaign to create awareness can be best explained through the theory of group influence.
To begin with, the rationale behind the theory of group influence is that the emotions, behaviours, and the opinions of other people in the society or a group can be influenced by others. This can be achieved through marketing practices like advertisement, persuasion, peer pressure, socialization and conformity. Through normative social influence, the society or a group of people is able to conform towards certain expectations.
Barnum and Markovsky (2007) argue that social influence theory is based on the assumption that behaviours, attitudes, opinions, and the perception of people can be influenced by others hence conforming to those groups. David, Cappella and Fishbein (2006) note that the theory of social influence is supposed to create a conversation among the target group, and enhance social communication with the aim of influencing others intentions, social norms, attitudes, or beliefs.
In other words, certain behaviour has to be generated which is influenced by a campaign through social influence. In addition, consumers are supposed to generate experience from particular brand consumption based on the benefits they derive from it (Verhoef, Lemon, Parasuraman, Roggeveen, Tsiros & Schlesinger, 2009).
In reference to the SunSmart campaigns on skin cancer prevention, the theory of social influence could be most applicable. The campaigns carried by SunSmart can be categorised as public communication campaigns as they rate in a social environment. According to David, Cappella and Fishbein (2006), personal influence on an opinion is changed in social setting when campaigns are used thorough social diffusion.
In addition, the creation of a “buzz” in a social domain on a particular topic that creates awareness and affects the lives of people is more likely to receive positive response (David et al., 2006). The advertisement on skin cancer and sunburn prevention as carried by SunMart is a social campaign which is carried through to reach different segmentations. For example, the advertisement has been used in schools with the aim of influencing students at younger generations to adopt preventive measures against the exposure of UV radiation.
Based on the SunSmart statistics, an estimate of 440,000 children have so far been reached through the SunSmart primary school program. The program offers schools with curriculum and policy resources and sun protection guidelines with the intention of influencing the perception and opinion of the children (Hill, Dobbisnson & Makin, 2009). In addition, the message of SunSmart has been able to reach over 25, 000 employees and their knowledge has improved significantly.
Since the campaign is all about behaviour change among the young through awareness creation, the theory of social influence plays a great role. In past studies carried by the Task Force on the effectiveness of the advertisement in the Australian Kidskin project, it was found that children had developed a positive effect of wearing hats to protect them from sun (DEECD, 2011).
In addition, the sun radiation program incorporated in their curriculum, was able to influence the behaviour of the children. Conclusion made was that social communication campaigns on health issues have the capacity of influencing a group of people positively. A correlation has been drawn between behaviours and attitudes of mothers and their children. According to DEECD (2011) “un protection practices of children are linked to the attitudes and behaviour of their parents”.
For instance, mothers who have sunburnt skins are more likely to have children with sunburn skins compared to parents with high levels of sun protection behaviours (Geller, Brooks, Colditz, Koh & Fraizier, 2006; Benjes, 2004). This can be explained by theory of social influence that consists in the fact that the internalization of message makes people conform to certain norms or behaviours in the society.
The campaigns have been able to influence the behaviour of parents which is later passed on to their children. This has created what Hirschman (1992) refers to consumer compulsive behaviours as the consumers are aware of the dangers associated with exposure to sun radiation.
To ensure that the message is received by the target market group, SunMart has been able to engage different community groups, government, schools and workplaces with the ensuing individual sun protection mechanisms are implemented (DEECD, 2011).
As a result, some programs like the schools programs have become accepted in schools are they impact people’s way of lives positively. In a study carried by Geller et al., 2006) showed that “offspring of mothers with skin cancer reported more routine use of sunscreen than the offspring of mothers without skin cancer”. This can be as a result of the theory of social influence. In addition, it is arguable that the advertisement of SunMart campaign has had positive influence on people’s lives.
People have been able to adopt behaviours which minimize or limit the exposure of people against SUV radiation (Saraiya et al., 2004). The behaviours have resulted in addictive behaviour which is based on the high levels of dependence and attachment (Hoyer & Machinnis, 2008). In addition, addictive behaviours involve continuous use of something because of the dependability. In reference to this claim, the target market group rely highly on SunSmart for their survival.
Strategy assessment and conclusion
Based on individual opinions, the campaign is effectively going to work on the young generation which forms the market target group. The young generation is easily influenced, and peer pressure plays an integral role in their behaviours. In order to be accepted in any social group, an individual has to conform to the rules of that group (David et al., 2006).
Therefore, the advertisement will positively influence the perception and the behaviour of the targeted group and encourage them adopt measures which prevent skin cancer and sunburns. It is believed that our target group will be able to use the message learned in the campaign and apply it positively.
In addition, the messages can be used to influence the behaviour and the perceptions of other people in the society. However, some of the measures advocated in the SunSmart campaign cannot be adopted especially in schools as they conflict with some of the school’s rules and regulations. It is illegal to wear hats and wear glasses in most schools thus preventing the adoption of such measures.
Disseminating sun protection messages through community wide programs is a cost effective method as it cuts across different demographic lines. In addition, the program is able to reach a wide spectrum of audience thus promoting awareness and advocacy for better sun prevention mechanisms. This claim can be supported by a study carried by Glanz, Harlpen, and Saraiya (2006) that found that programs that create awareness through improved methods of sun protective behaviour through educational policies, have been effective.
The whole campaign evolves around the creation of awareness on the prevention of sunburns and cancer among the people. In general, the advertisement fits the Victorian SunSmart campaign well.
It can be concluded that the Victorian SunSmart campaign has the capacity of influencing the people’s perception on the issue. Because of the message content integrated in the advertisements and the cited consequences, the message can be easily absorbed by the young generation thus developing a culture of cancer and sunburn prevention which is cost effective compared to other methods.
It can also be meantioned that parents who have been diagnosed with skin cancer or skin burns, have high likelihood of ensuring their children adopt the prevention measures. Students in schools can be reached through school curriculums which ensure that the welfare of others is safeguarded. The high skin cancer prevalence in Australian has forced SunSmart to corporate with other stakeholders and relay positive messages on the prevention of sunburn and cancer from occurring later in one’s life.
By means of the theory of social influence and confirmation bias, the perception of individuals can easily be altered in the positive way. The targeted market group is able to influence the behaviour of other people in their groups thus realizing the goal of the campaign. Confirmation bias allows the consumer to recall a message confirmed in a certain campaign context. As a result, culture of cancer prevention is developed.
List of references
Barnum, C., & Markovsky, B. N. (2007). Group membership and social influence. Current Research in Social Psychology, 13(3), 1-38.
Benjes, L. S., Brooks, D. R., Zhang, Z., Livstone, L., Sayers, L., Powers, C., & Geller, A. C. (2004). Changing patterns of sun protection between the first and second summers for very young children. Arch Dermatology Journal, 1(40), 925-930.
Blundell, R. (1988). Consumer behaviour: Theory and empirical evidence-A survey. The Economic Journal, 98(389), 16-65.
David, C., Cappela, J. N., & Fishbein, M. (2006). The social diffusion of influence among adolescents: Group interaction in a chat room environment about antidrug advertisements. Annenberg School for Communication, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia: PA.
DEECD. (2011). Increased rate of children who are protected from summer sun. Department of Education and Early Childhood Development. Web.
Geller, A. C., Brooks, D. I., Colditz, G.A., Koh, H. K., & Fraizier, A. L. (2006). Sun protection practices among offspring of women with personal or family history of skin cancer. American Academy of Pediatrics, 117(4), 688-694.
Glanz, K., Halpern, A. C., &Saraiya, M. (2007). Behavioural and community interventions to prevent skin cancer. Journal of American Medical Associations, (142), 356-360.
Hill, D. J., Dobbisnson, S. J., & Makin, J. K. (2009). Intervention to lower ultraviolet radiation exposure: Education, legislation, and public policy. American Society of Clinical Oncology, 526-531.
Hirschman, E. (1992). The consciousness of addiction: Toward a general theory of compulsive consumption. The Journal of Consumer Research, 19(2), 155-179.
Hoyer, W. D., & MacInnis, D. J. (2008). Consumer behavior. Mason, OH: South-Western.
Samuel, R., Colliss, M., Battista, S., Zappia, A. (2010). Cooch creates cut-through outdoor for SunSmart. Web.
Saraiya, M. et al. (2004). Intervention to prevent skin cancer by reducing exposure to ultraviolet radiation: A systematic review. American Journal of Preventive Medicine, 27(5), 422-452.
Sinclair, C. (2009). Skin cancer prevention: A blue chip investment in health. Cancer Council Australia & The Australasian College of Dermatologists. Web.
Sun Smart Victoria. (2012). A summer to remember (summer 2011-2012). Sun Smart. Web.
Sun Smart Victoria. (2012). Skin cancer. Sun Smart. Web.
Verhoef, P. C., Lemon, K. N., Parasuraman, A., Roggeveen, A., Tsiros, M., & Schlesinger, L. A. (2009). Customer experience creation: Determinants, dynamics and management strategies. Journal of Retailing, (85), 3-41.
Appendix
Appendix 1 – A Summer to Remember (summer 2011-2012)
Adolescence is a critical period where sun exposure is more likely to contribute to skin cancer in later life. Australian adolescents have the highest incidence of melanoma in the world; making it the most common cancer for young Australians aged 12–24 years. Aiming to increase the number of Victorian adolescents and young people practicing safe sun behaviours, SunSmart launched ‘A Summer to Remember’ Facebook campaign.
The key concept of ‘A Summer to Remember’ centred around the idea that tans and memories may fade, but your skin remembers everything – all the sunburns, tans, solarium visits and just simple day-to-day time spent outdoors without sun protection. It all adds up to increase the risk of skin cancer.
Developed to educate and engage with adolescents and young people (16–24 years old), ‘A Summer to Remember’ invited its audience to share pictures of their favourite Slip, Slop, Slap, Seek and Slide summer memories, whilst being reminded of the campaign tagline, ‘Your skin remembers’.
Recognising that summer memories and sunshine go hand in hand, the campaign encouraged Victorians to associate summertime fun with sun protection.
Conducted over the 2011/12 summer season, the campaign competition was refreshed each fortnight to maintain momentum and interest. Across five rounds, the entry focus shifted through the five key SunSmart messages – Slip, Slop, Slap, Seek and Slide. Prizes were selected based on young people’s passion points and aimed at creating quintessential summer experiences in
Victoria, ranging from music festival tickets to surf lessons and cruiserboards.
Appendix 2
