How does social change happen?  What does it take to go from a society where smoking was part of the fabric of our culture and widely accepted to being referred to as an “addiction” and a health risk?  Chances are it was more than just a good advertising campaign.  Creating social change begins with behavior change and changing behavior takes time and uses multiple strategies.  This strategic marketing approach to creating social change by encouraging desired behavior(s) is referred to as social marketing.

The Ad Council of Rochester currently works with non-profits and collaborations to develop strategic social marketing plans that seek to change behavior among a variety of target audiences.  Engagements are varied depending on the scope of work and level of support that is needed.  Deliverables from a social marketing engagement can range from the development of a written plan to ongoing support with implementation.

Recent social marketing engagements have included children’s mental health, underage drinking, anxiety among college-age youth, encouraging adults to engage youth in small talk (Small Talk Big Difference campaign), and reaching the boomer population to mentor youth.