case studies
Public Awareness Campaigns
Introduction
This explanation of public awareness campaigns was written by Rupert Wolfe Murray and Iulia Sebesan of Productive International Invest SRL, and represents our views and work experience in Romania. This document is intended to inform potential clients about the scope of public awareness campaigns and how we can add value to them.
What is a Public Awareness Campaign (PAC)?
There are subtle differences between a PAC and an advertising campaign. The primary meaning of "awareness" in the communication industry is to make a target audience "aware of" a product, service or issue (e.g. a new law about the importance of recycling). In other words, the aim of a PAC is simply to inform people. The aim of an advertising campaign, on the other hand, includes the task of raising awareness about the product or service, but it goes further; it aims to stimulate an action among the target audience, for example the purchase of a particular product or service, or increased "brand awareness" when browsing in a supermarket. Most public awareness campaigns are commissioned by public institutions or NGOs with the purpose of informing the public about an issue or new obligation, almost of all of which are considered to be in the public interest.
Risks
Although PACs tend to be commissioned by public sector organisations they are invariably carried out by private companies -- advertising agencies. This makes a lot of sense. An ad agency represents a concentration of creative talent, production skills and proven marketing success, and they are skilled at analysing public trends and communicating with specific target audiences. A public institution is unlikely to have any of these skills. The only way a public institution can execute a PAC without an ad agency is to recruit a team of communication experts, but this is a risky approach. In other words, PACs can't realistically be carried out without ad agencies.
The problem is that an advertising agency is unlikely to accept the premise that a PAC should simply "raise awareness". Advertising is about both raising awareness and stimulating an action, and advertising executives will convincingly argue that they can "add value" to the PAC, at no extra cost, by suggesting a course of action for people to take. For example, a PAC to raise awareness about a new recycling law could also include a suggestion to go to the nearest recycling point. There are scores of examples of this happening in Romania, e.g. all the Child Rights PACs (this is a link to the latest PAC run by the National Authority for the Protection of Child Rights, it is in Romanian) included a telephone hotline people could report child abuse.
It is our view that such an approach risks diluting the impact of a PAC, and that the aim should be simply to inform. If you try and educate the public about child rights, for example, it implies the transfer of a lot of knowledge as well as a change of attitude. If you can do this it is a significant achievement. But if you also suggest that the public get involved in preventing child abuse by calling the hotline you risk overloading them with information. It is our impression that many PACs in Romania (this is a link to the 2008 PAC for roma rights, in Romanian) lacked impact because they were too loaded with information, new concepts as well as obligations. On the other hand if the PAC has an impact on certain individuals they can simply find out more by following a link to a website, particularly if it is a site with an easy-to-remember address. This is a far simpler way of stimulating an action without diluting the key message.
In order to avoid this risk, or at least analyse it objectively, the commissioning organisation should make sure they have their own communication expert, who has significant experience of PACs and ad agencies. Without such an expert the commissioning organisation, which may lack communication experience, is not in a good position to evaluate the ad agency's attempt to make the PAC into more than just an excercise in awareness raising. Of course these criteria can be specified in the terms of reference, or brief, but these tend to be used as guidelines for tenders and often change when a contract has been awarded (particularly if the additional activity comes at no extra cost).
The real risk here is that the whole PAC could be compromised by packing too much into it. The golden rule in this instance should be "less is more"
Why are PACs of interest to the media?
PACs are referred to as "social campaigns" by the media and advertising industry. This is an important distinction for TV stations because a TV spot for a "social campaign" can be broadcast on their networks without regard to the CNA (National Audiovisual Council of Romania ) rules on TV advertising. The CNA has strict rules about how much advertising is allowed on national television stations (about 15 minutes of ads per hour) and Romanian TV stations are closely monitored, and sometimes fined for breaching these rules. In order to qualify as a "social campaign" the TV spots must be submitted to the CNA for approval, and this is invariably given if the PAC was commissioned by a public service, NGO or donor, if the message is in the public interest and if there are no commercial beneficiaries of the campaign.
When social campaigns were first produced in Romania they were welcomed by the TV stations because it enabled them to broadcast short spots about difficult social issues, which show a different reality from the usual TV spots, and many of them were professionally made by the best ad agencies in Romania. However, by 2008 there was a glut of social campaigns and CNA, the TV stations as well as the general public have become more indifferent to them. In 2008 it was no longer easy to get broadcast time on the national TV stations as there were too many PACs and the advertising market was booming. The situation in 2009 is very different due to the global financial crisis: it can be assumed that TV stations will be more open to broadcasting PACs, if only to fill their advertising slots.
When the TV stations have too many PACs on their hands, as well as enough commercial spots, they tend to ignore social campaigns. They are under no obligation to broadcast these spots. It is important that the TV station editors like the PAC they have been presented with, that it motivates and moves them, or it is likely to be ignored or broadcast very little. In other words, if you want your PAC to be broadcast make sure your spot is appreciated by the TV station (and this can be done by using the best available professionals).
Examples of Public Awareness Campaigns in Romania
There have been hundreds of PACs in Romania over the last 10 years, covering social exclusion, child abuse, ethnic minorities, consumer protection, recycling, disabled people, social security, health and voting. We would like to present the following PACs:
"The Children's Home is not a home" (Casa de copii nu e acasa, link to an interview in Romanian with Saatchi creative director Bogdan Manea) was probably the most successful PAC ever carried out in Romania. Commissioned by the National Authority for the Protection of Child Rights in 2000, it aimed to raise awareness among the public that institutionalisation of children in difficulty was not a good solution and the message was that a "children's home" is no substitute for a real home. The campaign was part of a complex reform process that resulted in the setting up of a network of foster families (maternal assistants) and the closing down of the large and grim childcare institutions, and its contribution was to successfully inform the public that institutionalisation was not acceptable. They campaign also included a phoneline service. The campaign was funded by the EU Phare programme and it was executed by the Romanian branch of Saatchi and Saatchi, who were able to add much value to the project by making good use of their "media buying" power; Saatchi is one of the biggest "media buyers" in Romania (an ad agencies "buys" space in the media for its clients to show their ads). They also made good use of BTL (below the line activities) such as huge posters in bus shelters. Although the TV spots were professionaly made there was a tendency to pack in too much information into a spot that is less than half a minute long, added to the fact there were a lot of logos to take in at the end of the spot -- all of which risks the message being lost on viewers. But the campaign had a major public impact.
The National Authority for the Protection of Children's Rights subsequently commissioned two more PACs with funds from the EU Phare programme (both of which we were involved in, but on other activities). The first of these was promoting the fact that "Children's Rights are Law" and the second one , which can be seen here, promoted the values of good parenting ("You too can be a better parent" was the campaign slogan). Poster and radio spots were also produced. Although both of these TV spots were as well produced as the first (Saatchi) one, they did not get so much media exposure because they lacked the media buying influence of Saatchi. Although the spots can be broadcast for free by the TV stations it is essential that the ad agency has a "media buyer" who has sufficient energy and influence. Another factor that negatively affected these campaigns was that the media, by 2006, was getting tired of social campaigns.
Image from the TV spot and outdoor for CNA, text reads "don't abandon your child
in front of the TV".
We were involved in of one of the most successful PACs in Romania -- for CNA (The National Audiovisual Council of Romania ), a project that was managed by Rupert Wolfe Murray. The aim of the PAC was to raise awareness among parents about the risks of leaving their children exposed to too much TV, as research shows that over 35% of Romanian children have TVs in their own room and that children's cartoons are among the most violent material currently on Romanian TV. The campaign message was "don't let your child be educated by the TV" and the TV spots were heavily broadcast during 2007 on all TV stations, over 2000 times. Radio spots were also produced, at incredibly low cost, and these had a huge impact and even won advertising awards as well as outdoor banners and a brochure for 8 to 10 year olds. Details about the campaign can be seen here. There were some interesting lessons to be learned from this PAC: two ad agency professionals were hired but no ad agency was involved (this is very unusual); the PAC budget was far less than similar campaigns and yet the impact in the media was far higher than average -- primarily because the TV stations liked the material and agreed with the message (which was not cluttered with too many concepts).
What learned from PACs in Romania?
Based on our experience with, and observation of, PACs in Romania we would like to offer the following advise to those planning a PAC:
· Clear objectives: This universal piece of good advice is often ignored in Romania, where project objectives tend to be numerous and complex. A PAC needs one or two very clear communication objectives if it is going to have an impact. Simplicity and clarity are the keys to effective communication. The more complex the objectives are the less impact the PAC will have.
· Logo overload: Many of the EU Phare funded TV spots failed to communicate because there was far too much information at the end of the ad. Typically, a Phare funded TV spot would include the logo/flag of the EU, the old eagle symbol of the public sector organisation involved, and a trendy new symbol for the actual campaign. It would also include a disclaimer, a campaign message and perhaps a voiceover. Usually all this information was presented in just one second.
· Invest sufficient energy: there is a tendency among managers of publicly funded PACs to simply produce the outputs described in the contract -- for example "produce TV and radio spots" -- but not to invest enough time and energy in ensuring they get broadcasted. This is relatively easy to "get away with" when the client is a public institution with no experience of working with an ad agency, but it would be impossible with a multinational client which train staff to manage the relationship with ad agencies. In order to have a real impact on the public it is essential that sufficient energy is invested in getting the spots broadcast, and that the right expertise is in place to do this.
· Understand the strengths and weaknesses of ad agencies: advertising agencies can play an essential role in coordinating all the elements of a CAP. But if they are busy with bigger clients it is possible that your project is given little attention and the right people are not assigned to the job (ad agencies are masters of "multi-tasking" and often one doesn't know who one is working with). In order to get the most out of an ad agency it is recommended to hire a communication expert whose job is to support the relationship between client and communicator, and to help resolve misunderstandings. It is also helpful if someone on the clients side understands the value of creative concepts (see next point).
· Respect the professionals: it is common for some clients to show a lack of respect towards the creative work of designers, photographers and copywriters -- and this can kill creativity and spoil a working relationship. Often these advertising experts work very hard on developing graphic concepts, and a lot of time is spent brainstorming, and it is easy to dismiss these efforts. Another common mistake is to start analysing a graphic concept you don't like, for example suggesting a different colour scheme. This can infuriate designers. Best approach is simply to say "that one is not quite right. can you do me something else" or discuss it in general terms.
· Know the key roles: It is possible to "do it yourself" when running a PAC, but it is not recommended unless you have an experienced communication expert running the project on the client's behalf. You will also need to hire (and supervise) an experienced coordinator/producer, a strategist/planner and a media buyer, as well as good support staff. For small organisations that can't afford a PAC this may be the only option and it is essential to know the role and contribution of each one of these experts.
· Don't assume TV stations will broadcast your PAC: Although CNA will award a PAC the "social campaign" status relatively easily, this does not mean the TV stations will broadcast the spots. They are under no obligation to broadcast "social campaigns" and it is essential the individuals at the TV stations are personally motivated by them (see above)
· Don't forget PR and BTL: Much of this paper is about TV advertising, which is the most powerful instrument in a PAC, but there are lots of other very useful tools that should be considered when planning a PAC. Radio spots, for example, can have a huge impact and are far cheaper than making TV spots. PR (press or public relations) can also have a huge impact on awareness especially if the client hires a media "insider", someone who knows how to place items in the key newspapers (it is said that certain newspapers have much more influence than their circulation figures would suggest). BTL (below the line) activities are another important ingredient of PACs and can include all type of events, road shows (caravans), promotions at certain locations and the distribution of printed materials.
How to plan a PAC?
Awareness campaign are complex projects that involves many resources (people, money, time, equipment) and generally follow these steps:
1. Planning: develop the strategy and the budget
2. Execution: implement the mix of activities that will reach your objectives
3. Evaluation and follow up: what were the results, lessons learnt, next steps.
There are several roles that Productive International Romania SRL can play in planning or executing a PAC (all of which can add value):
· developing the strategy (especially for public sector organisations, NGOs, EU projects)
· writing the Terms of Reference (for EU or public sector projects) or brief (for ad agencies)
· liason between public sector organisations and the ad agency
· international media relations
Planning
You cannot start an awareness campaign without a strategy to guide you through it and a budget to pay for it. A strategy should define your target audience, your objectives, your messages, your activities and budget. You should develop the strategy with your colleagues and partners; getting them involved is the best way of gaining their support. The strategy needs to identify the best ways to raise awareness, to have an impact and to be cost effective.
Execution
Together with the advertising agency, you will agree a plan of action and a budget. This will be the basis of your work and your reference throughout all of the campaign. You need to make a feasible plan, because you will find yourself juggling 10 or more activities, involving so many resources, that you really can’t afford to drop any balls.
Here are a few examples of typical activities:
· Publishing: design, write, print and distribute various materials (see our case study about brochures here)
· TV campaign: produce a TV spot (from storyboard to video clip), media buying (placing it on TV), monitoring the impact
· Radio spots, a very cost effective way to communicate
· Events: conferences, seminars, talks
· Media relations: getting articles published in the media
· Website: this should be a central platform for a PAC, where all materials can be found
· Distribution of materials: a very important part of your PAC because it ensures that your printed materials reach your target audience (make sure you plan this activity correctly, assign enough money and people to it as it often gets neglected.)
The areas where we can add value to the above list is in publishing -- writing, editing, graphic design -- media relations and websites. And also project management and coordination.
The decision making process in implementing a PAC is a constitutional monarchy. While a core team of people, as well as the stakeholders, should offer their opinions, the final decision should belong to one person alone; the project manager. Otherwise, much time will be wasted, momentum will be lost and the PAC would risk failing.
Budgeting is also something you need to get right. And there are so many things you need to budget for. You need a very clear eye, to make sure you didn’t miss anything important (such as distribution). Most campaigns have a person in charge of budgeting and buying (asking for offers, choosing from suppliers, contracts and payments, quality control).
The key factor in the execution phase is supporting the project manager and key staff.
Evaluation
So, after month of hard work, did you meet your objectives? Did the money invested pay off? Was it worth it? Did the target audience learn what you wanted them to?
There are various ways in measuring the impact of a campaign, for example:
· Media monitoring: how many times were you in the media?
· GRPs (Gross Rating Points: the percentage of the target audience reached by an advertisement): how many people saw your TV spot?
· Media analysis: how much impact did the media exposure have?
· Omnibus polls: how many people knew the message at the end of your campaign compared to the beginning?
· Sales monitoring throughout the campaign
No matter how good they seem, all campaigns have their weak points. Identify them and find solutions for your next project. Talk to the member of your team, how did they feel about working on the project, what went wrong, what was a success?
And finally, incorporate all this information into an evaluation report that doesn’t only show graphs and number, but also provides a useful analysis of the results and puts it into context. An awareness campaign is usually followed by a "reminding" campaign, a loyalty campaign, a follow up campaign, and the evaluation report will form the basis for these.
Resources
Child rights PACs:
The Children's Home is not a home (Casa de copii nu e acasa), link to an interview in Romanian with Saatchi creative director Bogdan Manea
Children's Rights are Law (Drepturile copiilor sunt lege)
You too can be a better parent (Şi tu poţi fi un părinte mai bun), link to the latest PAC run by the National Authority for the Protection of Child Rights, in Romanian
PAC for CNA 2008:
Don't let the TV educate your child (Nu-ţi lăsa copilul educat de televizor)
Brochure for the kids
PAC for Roma rights 2008:
The SPER campaign,link to the campaign site, in Romanian
Introduction
This explanation of public awareness campaigns was written by Rupert Wolfe Murray and Iulia Sebesan of Productive International Invest SRL, and represents our views and work experience in Romania. This document is intended to inform potential clients about the scope of public awareness campaigns and how we can add value to them.
What is a Public Awareness Campaign (PAC)?
There are subtle differences between a PAC and an advertising campaign. The primary meaning of "awareness" in the communication industry is to make a target audience "aware of" a product, service or issue (e.g. a new law about the importance of recycling). In other words, the aim of a PAC is simply to inform people. The aim of an advertising campaign, on the other hand, includes the task of raising awareness about the product or service, but it goes further; it aims to stimulate an action among the target audience, for example the purchase of a particular product or service, or increased "brand awareness" when browsing in a supermarket. Most public awareness campaigns are commissioned by public institutions or NGOs with the purpose of informing the public about an issue or new obligation, almost of all of which are considered to be in the public interest.
Risks
Although PACs tend to be commissioned by public sector organisations they are invariably carried out by private companies -- advertising agencies. This makes a lot of sense. An ad agency represents a concentration of creative talent, production skills and proven marketing success, and they are skilled at analysing public trends and communicating with specific target audiences. A public institution is unlikely to have any of these skills. The only way a public institution can execute a PAC without an ad agency is to recruit a team of communication experts, but this is a risky approach. In other words, PACs can't realistically be carried out without ad agencies.
The problem is that an advertising agency is unlikely to accept the premise that a PAC should simply "raise awareness". Advertising is about both raising awareness and stimulating an action, and advertising executives will convincingly argue that they can "add value" to the PAC, at no extra cost, by suggesting a course of action for people to take. For example, a PAC to raise awareness about a new recycling law could also include a suggestion to go to the nearest recycling point. There are scores of examples of this happening in Romania, e.g. all the Child Rights PACs (this is a link to the latest PAC run by the National Authority for the Protection of Child Rights, it is in Romanian) included a telephone hotline people could report child abuse.
It is our view that such an approach risks diluting the impact of a PAC, and that the aim should be simply to inform. If you try and educate the public about child rights, for example, it implies the transfer of a lot of knowledge as well as a change of attitude. If you can do this it is a significant achievement. But if you also suggest that the public get involved in preventing child abuse by calling the hotline you risk overloading them with information. It is our impression that many PACs in Romania (this is a link to the 2008 PAC for roma rights, in Romanian) lacked impact because they were too loaded with information, new concepts as well as obligations. On the other hand if the PAC has an impact on certain individuals they can simply find out more by following a link to a website, particularly if it is a site with an easy-to-remember address. This is a far simpler way of stimulating an action without diluting the key message.
In order to avoid this risk, or at least analyse it objectively, the commissioning organisation should make sure they have their own communication expert, who has significant experience of PACs and ad agencies. Without such an expert the commissioning organisation, which may lack communication experience, is not in a good position to evaluate the ad agency's attempt to make the PAC into more than just an excercise in awareness raising. Of course these criteria can be specified in the terms of reference, or brief, but these tend to be used as guidelines for tenders and often change when a contract has been awarded (particularly if the additional activity comes at no extra cost).
The real risk here is that the whole PAC could be compromised by packing too much into it. The golden rule in this instance should be "less is more"
Why are PACs of interest to the media?
PACs are referred to as "social campaigns" by the media and advertising industry. This is an important distinction for TV stations because a TV spot for a "social campaign" can be broadcast on their networks without regard to the CNA (National Audiovisual Council of Romania ) rules on TV advertising. The CNA has strict rules about how much advertising is allowed on national television stations (about 15 minutes of ads per hour) and Romanian TV stations are closely monitored, and sometimes fined for breaching these rules. In order to qualify as a "social campaign" the TV spots must be submitted to the CNA for approval, and this is invariably given if the PAC was commissioned by a public service, NGO or donor, if the message is in the public interest and if there are no commercial beneficiaries of the campaign.
When social campaigns were first produced in Romania they were welcomed by the TV stations because it enabled them to broadcast short spots about difficult social issues, which show a different reality from the usual TV spots, and many of them were professionally made by the best ad agencies in Romania. However, by 2008 there was a glut of social campaigns and CNA, the TV stations as well as the general public have become more indifferent to them. In 2008 it was no longer easy to get broadcast time on the national TV stations as there were too many PACs and the advertising market was booming. The situation in 2009 is very different due to the global financial crisis: it can be assumed that TV stations will be more open to broadcasting PACs, if only to fill their advertising slots.
When the TV stations have too many PACs on their hands, as well as enough commercial spots, they tend to ignore social campaigns. They are under no obligation to broadcast these spots. It is important that the TV station editors like the PAC they have been presented with, that it motivates and moves them, or it is likely to be ignored or broadcast very little. In other words, if you want your PAC to be broadcast make sure your spot is appreciated by the TV station (and this can be done by using the best available professionals).
Examples of Public Awareness Campaigns in Romania
There have been hundreds of PACs in Romania over the last 10 years, covering social exclusion, child abuse, ethnic minorities, consumer protection, recycling, disabled people, social security, health and voting. We would like to present the following PACs:
"The Children's Home is not a home" (Casa de copii nu e acasa, link to an interview in Romanian with Saatchi creative director Bogdan Manea) was probably the most successful PAC ever carried out in Romania. Commissioned by the National Authority for the Protection of Child Rights in 2000, it aimed to raise awareness among the public that institutionalisation of children in difficulty was not a good solution and the message was that a "children's home" is no substitute for a real home. The campaign was part of a complex reform process that resulted in the setting up of a network of foster families (maternal assistants) and the closing down of the large and grim childcare institutions, and its contribution was to successfully inform the public that institutionalisation was not acceptable. They campaign also included a phoneline service. The campaign was funded by the EU Phare programme and it was executed by the Romanian branch of Saatchi and Saatchi, who were able to add much value to the project by making good use of their "media buying" power; Saatchi is one of the biggest "media buyers" in Romania (an ad agencies "buys" space in the media for its clients to show their ads). They also made good use of BTL (below the line activities) such as huge posters in bus shelters. Although the TV spots were professionaly made there was a tendency to pack in too much information into a spot that is less than half a minute long, added to the fact there were a lot of logos to take in at the end of the spot -- all of which risks the message being lost on viewers. But the campaign had a major public impact.
The National Authority for the Protection of Children's Rights subsequently commissioned two more PACs with funds from the EU Phare programme (both of which we were involved in, but on other activities). The first of these was promoting the fact that "Children's Rights are Law" and the second one , which can be seen here, promoted the values of good parenting ("You too can be a better parent" was the campaign slogan). Poster and radio spots were also produced. Although both of these TV spots were as well produced as the first (Saatchi) one, they did not get so much media exposure because they lacked the media buying influence of Saatchi. Although the spots can be broadcast for free by the TV stations it is essential that the ad agency has a "media buyer" who has sufficient energy and influence. Another factor that negatively affected these campaigns was that the media, by 2006, was getting tired of social campaigns.
Image from the TV spot and outdoor for CNA, text reads "don't abandon your child
in front of the TV".We were involved in of one of the most successful PACs in Romania -- for CNA (The National Audiovisual Council of Romania ), a project that was managed by Rupert Wolfe Murray. The aim of the PAC was to raise awareness among parents about the risks of leaving their children exposed to too much TV, as research shows that over 35% of Romanian children have TVs in their own room and that children's cartoons are among the most violent material currently on Romanian TV. The campaign message was "don't let your child be educated by the TV" and the TV spots were heavily broadcast during 2007 on all TV stations, over 2000 times. Radio spots were also produced, at incredibly low cost, and these had a huge impact and even won advertising awards as well as outdoor banners and a brochure for 8 to 10 year olds. Details about the campaign can be seen here. There were some interesting lessons to be learned from this PAC: two ad agency professionals were hired but no ad agency was involved (this is very unusual); the PAC budget was far less than similar campaigns and yet the impact in the media was far higher than average -- primarily because the TV stations liked the material and agreed with the message (which was not cluttered with too many concepts).
What learned from PACs in Romania?
Based on our experience with, and observation of, PACs in Romania we would like to offer the following advise to those planning a PAC:
· Clear objectives: This universal piece of good advice is often ignored in Romania, where project objectives tend to be numerous and complex. A PAC needs one or two very clear communication objectives if it is going to have an impact. Simplicity and clarity are the keys to effective communication. The more complex the objectives are the less impact the PAC will have.
· Logo overload: Many of the EU Phare funded TV spots failed to communicate because there was far too much information at the end of the ad. Typically, a Phare funded TV spot would include the logo/flag of the EU, the old eagle symbol of the public sector organisation involved, and a trendy new symbol for the actual campaign. It would also include a disclaimer, a campaign message and perhaps a voiceover. Usually all this information was presented in just one second.
· Invest sufficient energy: there is a tendency among managers of publicly funded PACs to simply produce the outputs described in the contract -- for example "produce TV and radio spots" -- but not to invest enough time and energy in ensuring they get broadcasted. This is relatively easy to "get away with" when the client is a public institution with no experience of working with an ad agency, but it would be impossible with a multinational client which train staff to manage the relationship with ad agencies. In order to have a real impact on the public it is essential that sufficient energy is invested in getting the spots broadcast, and that the right expertise is in place to do this.
· Understand the strengths and weaknesses of ad agencies: advertising agencies can play an essential role in coordinating all the elements of a CAP. But if they are busy with bigger clients it is possible that your project is given little attention and the right people are not assigned to the job (ad agencies are masters of "multi-tasking" and often one doesn't know who one is working with). In order to get the most out of an ad agency it is recommended to hire a communication expert whose job is to support the relationship between client and communicator, and to help resolve misunderstandings. It is also helpful if someone on the clients side understands the value of creative concepts (see next point).
· Respect the professionals: it is common for some clients to show a lack of respect towards the creative work of designers, photographers and copywriters -- and this can kill creativity and spoil a working relationship. Often these advertising experts work very hard on developing graphic concepts, and a lot of time is spent brainstorming, and it is easy to dismiss these efforts. Another common mistake is to start analysing a graphic concept you don't like, for example suggesting a different colour scheme. This can infuriate designers. Best approach is simply to say "that one is not quite right. can you do me something else" or discuss it in general terms.
· Know the key roles: It is possible to "do it yourself" when running a PAC, but it is not recommended unless you have an experienced communication expert running the project on the client's behalf. You will also need to hire (and supervise) an experienced coordinator/producer, a strategist/planner and a media buyer, as well as good support staff. For small organisations that can't afford a PAC this may be the only option and it is essential to know the role and contribution of each one of these experts.
· Don't assume TV stations will broadcast your PAC: Although CNA will award a PAC the "social campaign" status relatively easily, this does not mean the TV stations will broadcast the spots. They are under no obligation to broadcast "social campaigns" and it is essential the individuals at the TV stations are personally motivated by them (see above)
· Don't forget PR and BTL: Much of this paper is about TV advertising, which is the most powerful instrument in a PAC, but there are lots of other very useful tools that should be considered when planning a PAC. Radio spots, for example, can have a huge impact and are far cheaper than making TV spots. PR (press or public relations) can also have a huge impact on awareness especially if the client hires a media "insider", someone who knows how to place items in the key newspapers (it is said that certain newspapers have much more influence than their circulation figures would suggest). BTL (below the line) activities are another important ingredient of PACs and can include all type of events, road shows (caravans), promotions at certain locations and the distribution of printed materials.
How to plan a PAC?
Awareness campaign are complex projects that involves many resources (people, money, time, equipment) and generally follow these steps:
1. Planning: develop the strategy and the budget
2. Execution: implement the mix of activities that will reach your objectives
3. Evaluation and follow up: what were the results, lessons learnt, next steps.
There are several roles that Productive International Romania SRL can play in planning or executing a PAC (all of which can add value):
· developing the strategy (especially for public sector organisations, NGOs, EU projects)
· writing the Terms of Reference (for EU or public sector projects) or brief (for ad agencies)
· liason between public sector organisations and the ad agency
· international media relations
Planning
You cannot start an awareness campaign without a strategy to guide you through it and a budget to pay for it. A strategy should define your target audience, your objectives, your messages, your activities and budget. You should develop the strategy with your colleagues and partners; getting them involved is the best way of gaining their support. The strategy needs to identify the best ways to raise awareness, to have an impact and to be cost effective.
Execution
Together with the advertising agency, you will agree a plan of action and a budget. This will be the basis of your work and your reference throughout all of the campaign. You need to make a feasible plan, because you will find yourself juggling 10 or more activities, involving so many resources, that you really can’t afford to drop any balls.
Here are a few examples of typical activities:
· Publishing: design, write, print and distribute various materials (see our case study about brochures here)
· TV campaign: produce a TV spot (from storyboard to video clip), media buying (placing it on TV), monitoring the impact
· Radio spots, a very cost effective way to communicate
· Events: conferences, seminars, talks
· Media relations: getting articles published in the media
· Website: this should be a central platform for a PAC, where all materials can be found
· Distribution of materials: a very important part of your PAC because it ensures that your printed materials reach your target audience (make sure you plan this activity correctly, assign enough money and people to it as it often gets neglected.)
The areas where we can add value to the above list is in publishing -- writing, editing, graphic design -- media relations and websites. And also project management and coordination.
The decision making process in implementing a PAC is a constitutional monarchy. While a core team of people, as well as the stakeholders, should offer their opinions, the final decision should belong to one person alone; the project manager. Otherwise, much time will be wasted, momentum will be lost and the PAC would risk failing.
Budgeting is also something you need to get right. And there are so many things you need to budget for. You need a very clear eye, to make sure you didn’t miss anything important (such as distribution). Most campaigns have a person in charge of budgeting and buying (asking for offers, choosing from suppliers, contracts and payments, quality control).
The key factor in the execution phase is supporting the project manager and key staff.
Evaluation
So, after month of hard work, did you meet your objectives? Did the money invested pay off? Was it worth it? Did the target audience learn what you wanted them to?
There are various ways in measuring the impact of a campaign, for example:
· Media monitoring: how many times were you in the media?
· GRPs (Gross Rating Points: the percentage of the target audience reached by an advertisement): how many people saw your TV spot?
· Media analysis: how much impact did the media exposure have?
· Omnibus polls: how many people knew the message at the end of your campaign compared to the beginning?
· Sales monitoring throughout the campaign
No matter how good they seem, all campaigns have their weak points. Identify them and find solutions for your next project. Talk to the member of your team, how did they feel about working on the project, what went wrong, what was a success?
And finally, incorporate all this information into an evaluation report that doesn’t only show graphs and number, but also provides a useful analysis of the results and puts it into context. An awareness campaign is usually followed by a "reminding" campaign, a loyalty campaign, a follow up campaign, and the evaluation report will form the basis for these.
Resources
Child rights PACs:
The Children's Home is not a home (Casa de copii nu e acasa), link to an interview in Romanian with Saatchi creative director Bogdan Manea
Children's Rights are Law (Drepturile copiilor sunt lege)
You too can be a better parent (Şi tu poţi fi un părinte mai bun), link to the latest PAC run by the National Authority for the Protection of Child Rights, in Romanian
PAC for CNA 2008:
Don't let the TV educate your child (Nu-ţi lăsa copilul educat de televizor)
Brochure for the kids
PAC for Roma rights 2008:
The SPER campaign,link to the campaign site, in Romanian
Blog:
Get on your bike and see Romania
Another major asset that Romania has regarding cycling is its sleeper trains.
In my experience the cultural, ecological, hiking and biking types tend to love Romania.
Confessions of a Small Business Director
Why no Romanian documentary about 1989?
Romania should withstand the international adoptions pressure
Romania should continue to stand firm in the face of this intense lobby for international adoption.
There are thousands of grant funds in the world and there is one golden rule valid for all of them.