 Trying
to demonstrate the relationship between public service
advertising and public awareness is very difficult, and
it is rare that any organization pursues it. First, there
are so many mass communications initiatives that can and
do contribute to public perceptions towards any given
social issue. Secondly, in order to track changes in attitudes,
typically you must employ baseline research and tracking
studies to measure change over time, which can be costly.
As an example, in the past 27 years we have distributed
over 700 national PSA campaigns. In this time there has
been only one client which spent the time and money to
track public attitudes towards its primary issue - human
disabilities – the National Easter Seal Society.
Sandy Gordon, Senior VP, Corporate Communications for Easter
Seals at the time, had this to say about the role of marketing
for non-profits:
“While advertising, marketing and
public relations provide a basis for building and enhancing
an organization's image, promotional campaigns are often
short-term and easily forgotten - unless they are based
on issues of public concern. Carefully crafted, multi-media public service campaigns
can be extremely effective tools for publicizing issues
and positioning a non-profit as a resource or industry
leader among its target audiences. Issues-oriented campaigns
are also invaluable in solidifying long-term relationships
with corporations and other agency sponsors,” she
observed.
In 1990, the Society embarked on a national public education
campaign which had several different objectives. The short
term business goal was "to encourage contributions,"
but the longer and more important goal was to reposition
Easter Seals as a respected advocate for people with disabilities.
 To
get baseline data, the Society employed a Gallup poll
which indicated that while almost 90 percent of the general
public recognized the Easter Seals name, among this same
group, only a third could identify what the organization
did.
With this knowledge, the Society’s ad agency, Camphell-Mithun-Esty,
designed a series of annual fundraising and public education
campaigns that focused on public attitudes towards people
with disabilities. To make the messages real, the most
universal barriers to independence for people with disabilities
were identified, and used for general public service and
advocacy campaigns. These were:
- Public prejudices and negative attitudes toward
people with disabilities
- Access to employment opportunities
- Accessible housing, transportation, public facilities,
and telecommunications systems.
Implicit in the creative work was the understanding that
people with disabilities would be portrayed as everyday
people living , independent lives, with support from Easter
Seals.
According to Ms. Gordon, “This creative approach
was a deliberate and significant departure from many organizations'
fundraising appeals to people's pity for ‘victims,’
or portrayals of ‘brave,’ ‘inspirational,’
and ‘courageous’ individuals,” she said.
Over a five-year period, Easter Seals created a body of
public service and advocacy campaigns focused on important
disability issues, including TV, radio and print PSAs.
Easter Seals' original "Friends Who Care" campaign
included PSAs that point out how name-calling hurts, and
how kids with disabilities are stigmatized.
A curriculum was also developed to augment the media materials
and distributed to some 20,000 elementary schools through
a $350,000 grant from Ronald McDonald Children's Charities.
The goal was to assist teachers and administrators in
their efforts to integrate children with disabilities
in their classrooms and school systems. These campaign
materials were recognized by Media Access as a special
merit award winner.
Next, Easter Seals launched a multi-media campaign designed
to point out the subtle and not-so-subtle ways in which
disabled Americans are discriminated against in everyday
activities. "Awareness is the First Step Towards
Change" was released to the electronic and print
media as part of Easter Seals' overall effort to promote
the implementation of newly legislated civil rights for
disabled Americans.
When former President George Bush signed the Americans
with Disabilities Act (ADA) into law on July 26, 1990,
it was a landmark day for Easter Seals and the coalition
of disability groups that had worked to develop legal
guarantees of basic civil rights for more than 43 million
Americans with disabilities.
With the ADA, Easter Seals has an unprecedented opportunity
to sharpen the focus of its multi-media public service
and advocacy campaigns. The civil rights covered by the
ADA - equal opportunity for employment, accessible public
accommodations and public transportation systems - were
issues that Easter Seals' national network of affiliates
have worked for many years to address.
Easter Seals then launched a national campaign highlighting
the issues addressed in the Americans with Disabilities
Act. Advocacy and fundraising campaigns were merged to
create a year long series of TV, radio and print PSAs.
The campaign, "Because Public Transportation
is for Everyone" thanks the general public for
making accessible public transportation possible for all
citizens.
Their next campaign, "The ADA: It Took an Act
of Congress" pointed out how the employment,
public access and telecommunications provisions of the
law will benefit everyone as we integrate people with
disabilities into the mainstream.
Next, a campaign, titled: "All of Us Have the
Ability to Make a Difference," conveyed the
message that all Americans, including those with disabilities,
have an obligation to vote, volunteer and speak out.
The Easter Seals PSA campaigns also provide corporate
sponsors with an opportunity to showcase the advocacy
and issues-oriented projects they have supported. Each
year, one or more corporate sponsors underwrite a public
education program.
Enesco Corporation, a giftwares firm, sponsored both
the "Friends Who Care" and "First
Step" attitudes campaigns, as well as underwriting
a 15-minute videotape on the ADA called "Nobody
is Burning Wheelchairs."
Other corporations have tailored issues-oriented campaigns
to dovetail with their own markets. For example:
Eddie Bauer, the upscale retail clothing chain, sponsored
a campaign that provides a guide to campaign opportunities
for children with disabilities. Amway Corporation worked to create a checklist for
parents that identifies possible developmental delays
in young children. Century 21 Real Estate Corporation has underwritten
an accessible housing campaign.
Focusing on disability issues and providing resource
information for corporate sponsors have proved successful
for Easter Seals from a financial standpoint as well.
Corporate sponsor gifts have increased by almost ten
percent each year over a ten year period.
After a six year period of running annual PSA campaigns,
Easter Seals commissioned an image study. Louis Harris
and Associates conducted quantitative and qualitative
research to measure public recognition of the Easter
Seal name, mission and overall effectiveness at achieving
its mission.
To summarize, “Easter Seals' multi-media, issues-oriented
advocacy campaigns were introduced shortly after the
original Gallup poll, and clearly, if one looks at the
1990 Harris survey, these campaigns have had a significant
impact in creating and enhancing a greater public awareness
of Easter Seals' mission and services,” concluded
Sandy Gordon. For the full case history, go to: http://www.psaresearch.com/casD101.html.
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