Social Marketing Campaign 2001

Breastfeed With Pride

INFANTS, TODDLERS & CHILDREN

University of Connecticut
Department of Nutritional Sciences
The Cooperative Extension System

Hispanic Health Council, Inc.

Rafael Pérez-Escamilla, PhD (UConn)
Principal Investigator
e-mail: rperez@canr.cag.uconn.edu

Grace Damio, MS (HHC)
Co-Principal Investigator
e-mail: grace@hispanichealth.com

Anir González, MSW (HHC)
FNP-IT Program Coordinator
e-mail: anir@hispanichealth.com

BREASTFEEDING

The focus of this year's social marketing campaign was breastfeeding promotion. Approximately 200,000 Latinas and Latinos living in Connecticut and South Western Massachusetts have been reached through this campaign.

LAUNCHING OF THE BREASTFEEDING
SOCIAL MARKETING CAMPAIGN

On April 17, 2001 approximately 50 community supporters gathered at the Hispanic Health Council to celebrate the launching of the Breastfeeding Social Marketing Campaign. At this time, the bus billboards, newspaper ads, TV PSA's, and breastfeeding fotonovela were unveiled. This ceremony received press coverage from local newspapers and television stations, including the Hartford Courant, WFSB Channel 3 News, and Telemundo.

This campaign represents a partnership between the University of Connecticut Family Nutrition Program, the Hispanic Health Council and Hartford Hospital in Hartford, CT. Financial support from Hartford Hospital complemented the funds earmarked for the social marketing campaign by FNP-IT. This significant financial support from Hartford Hospital made it possible to display ads inside the buses for 12 weeks, double the number of radio and TV PSA's, and extend the time during which the exterior bus ads ran by 4 weeks.

BUS BILLBOARDS

For 16 weeks, 30 Connecticut Transit buses circulated throughout the Greater Hartford area displaying 'Breastfeed with Pride' billboards on the side of the bus. These billboard messages were developed by FNP-IT staff and featured a photo of a young Latina mother breastfeeding her infant on a park bench, accompanied by her supportive partner and mother. The ad reads: 'Breastfeed with Pride: At all times, in all places' along with a Spanish subtitle. This ad was developed based on extensive formative research conducted with community members.

BUS SIGNS

For 12 weeks, 30 Connecticut Transit buses circulated with a smaller version of the bus billboard displayed on the interior of the bus. These interior bus signs, which were targeted at mass transit users, featured the same image and message as that displayed on the exterior of the bus but added more specific information.

RADIO PSAs

200 Spanish radio PSA's were broadcast by Latino 1230. This popular Latino radio station reaches a predominantly Hispanic audience in the greater Hartford area, with coverage extending to New Britain, CT and Springfield, MA. The PSA was professionally created by a local marketing agency, with input from the FNP-IT staff. It features a conversation between 2 grandmothers, where one convinces her skeptical friend of the benefits of her pregnant daughter breastfeeding her baby.

FOTONOVELA

A breastfeeding fotonovela, entitled 'The Power of Love of & Support: A Romantic Breastfeeding Story' was published in separate English and Spanish versions. This fotonovela was developed in-house and features photos of program staff members portraying two young couples discussing their decision to breastfeed. A total of 2,200 copies of the fotonovela were published. Fotonovelas were distributed to community members through health fairs, peer counseling programs and prenatal clinic waiting rooms. In addition, fotonovelas were mailed nationwide to all 50 states, to community nutritionists who requested a single copy to review for possible future purchase.

NEWSPAPER ADS

Four 1/4 page newspaper ads were published in Spanish in 'El Extra News'. This popular Latino newspaper is distributed twice monthly throughout the Greater Hartford area, and the cities of New Britain, Waterbury, Willimantic, New Haven, and Bridgeport. These newspaper ads featured the same image and logo as that used on the bus billboards, and provided additional text explaining the benefits of breastfeeding.

"Cuidando Su Salud en el Megatongoneo" (Take Care of Your Health in the Megatongoneo - Name of the Radio Show).

Starting the first week of September 2001, the program, as a result of a partnership with MEGA Communication (910 am), has had a weekly 3 to 4 minutes segment in which the staff of FNP-IT has and will continue presenting nutrition, food safety and other related topics to Latino communities that are located between Springfield, MA and New Haven, CT, and between Colchester and Waterbury.

TELEVISION PSAs

Over 7 weeks, 144 TV ads were broadcasted in prime time by the Latino station Telemundo. The TV PSA used one of the English-speaking 'Best Start' breastfeeding promotional messages, with a tag for the local sponsors. This PSA was selected by members of the Hispanic community during our formative research, as the most appropriate TV PSA.