2016 has already proven innovative for PR efforts by some agencies. The #perfectlyimperfect campaign sponsored by FCB Health, RX Mosaic Health, and Teva Women’s Health was used to help women in the 18-34 age range stress less about “being perfect.” The campaign also offered information on emergency contraception –- because even with contraception women can be perfectly imperfect.
The campaign included a media tour using spokeswomen from MTV’s Girl, Dr. Diana Ramos (a women’s health expert and OB/GYN), and fairs on four college campuses with panel discussions and photo/video booths. The campaign proved highly successful with 100% positive engagement, 1,500 student participants who reached out to 850K people on their social media accounts, and more than 1 million visits to the website.
Snapchat
Another highly successful PR campaign this year was sponsored by Digitas Health LifeBrands and the Bubble Foundation using the hashtag #wearyellowforseth. The request used social media to ask people to wear yellow clothes on the day of the second bone marrow transplant for a five-year-old boy named Seth. This approach was particularly successful on Snapchat, garnering 26 million views, 250K photos, videos, and song uploads, as well as 188 million uses of the unique hashtag.
This campaign showed how a good cause can be combined with companies in the healthcare sector to reach and involve millions of viewers for a one-day event. Along with all that good will for the company, think what that level of support must mean to the family of a young boy struggling to regain his health.
What Can Be Learned
So, looking at the examples above, what lessons can an organization implement toward better using social media for PR purposes? Understanding the issues that matter to your target demographic is vital, as well as knowing ways to effectively reach them. With the Perfectly Imperfect campaign, it was focused on women between the ages of 18-34 and contraception, especially emergency contraception. Some would refer to that as the “morning after” approach. Recognizing that women, especially in that age range, feel a need to be perfect in all things and beat themselves up when they aren’t is the basis for the campaign. Using the same style campaign for men of the same age would not be nearly as effective since they don’t usually feel compelled toward perfection in the same way.
In the first campaign, they also used experts and influencers to assist their efforts. But in both, they found a memorable, unique hashtag and a cause to tie it to, making the campaign more memorable and effective. It may seem like a simple thing, but creating a unique hashtag that fits your campaign and is also going to catch on with your target group is not always easy. If you can do it, then you’ve got an excellent start.