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Background:
In February 1993 the Health Promotion Agency launched a campaign to provide public information on sexual health to the student population in Northern Ireland. This campaign involved the placing of A4 posters with short, direct messages on various aspects of sexual health, in toilet cubicles and washrooms of further education colleges and universities.
By targeting venues that have a particular customer profile, information can be directed to a tightly defined audience making this form of advertising valuable in reaching specific groups. Since information can be read in complete privacy this form of advertising is especially effective for messages of a potentially sensitive and highly personal nature such as sexual health.
Following a positive evaluation of this campaign it was agreed that it would be helpful if the information could be made accessible to a much broader spectrum of young people. The campaign therefore shifted from further and higher education colleges to pubs and nightclubs. Framed posters were installed in more than 50 pubs and nightclubs which were known to be frequented by 18–30 year olds. University campuses were also included in this campaign.
The campaign evaluation carried out in 1997 was extremely positive. The findings indicated that 60% of the sample was aware of the campaign.
This figure rose to 69% when those questioned were prompted by seeing the campaign posters. Two thirds of those who had seen the posters had read them fully and the main messages were perceived to be 'use condoms' and 'diseases can be caught from unprotected sex'. Around one third said that as a result of the campaign they were more aware of and better informed about safer sex, HIV and AIDS and were more likely to use condoms.
However, the evaluation found that there was a need to change the posters more regularly. As a result a new series of posters was developed following pretesting with the target audience and installed in pubs, nightclubs and university students' unions in 1997. |
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The campaign:
In December 2000 a new series of posters
together with a short information leaflet
was launched under the slogan 'Never underestimate peace of
mind'. The set of seven posters highlighted a range of sexual
health issues such as condom use, contraception, sexually
transmitted infections and sexual health services available
to young people in Northern Ireland.
The credit-card
sized leaflets were placed in a dispenser attached to the
poster sites, so that young people could take them away to
read. The leaflet contained information about safer sex, sexually
transmitted infections, contraception as well as a list of
useful contacts.
Responding to
previous campaign evaluations, which identified the need to
change the messages regularly, a new series of posters was
developed and launched in June 2002. Fourteen different posters
have been designed to address a wide range of sexual health
issues. Four have been designed to highlight specific infections,
namely chlamydia, gonorrhoea, syphilis and HIV. The syphilis
poster is in response to a recent rise in the number of people
diagnosed with this infection. The HIV poster was produced
in support of World AIDS Day on 1 December 2002 to remind
young people that HIV hasn't gone away. Two leaflets
were also produced for distribution via dispensers next to
the posters. One deals with safer sex and contraception and
the other with syphilis.
In May 2004 the campaign was further developed with the introduction of ten new posters. The posters were extensively researched among 18–30 year olds. They provide information about STIs, including chlamydia, gonorrhoea, syphilis and HIV, and safer sex, by using frank and sometimes humorous images and language. The posters were displayed in over 75 pubs, clubs and university campus toilets along with the leaflets that were developed in 2002. |
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Evaluation:
An evaluation of the campaign run in December 2000 found that 61% of respondents were aware of the advertising/information campaign relating to sexual health. Those aware of the campaign were asked what they could remember about it. Responses included 'safer sex' (40%), 'STDs/STIs' (22%), and 'chlamydia' (2%). When all respondents interviewed about the sexual health campaign were shown the campaign posters, more than two thirds (67%) stated that they were aware of them.
Sixty four percent of respondents also stated they would now be more likely to use a condom. Overall the respondents were very positive about the sexual health poster campaign. The majority agreed that 'the posters act as a reminder of the risks associated with having unprotected sex' (64%) and that 'the posters are a good way of giving us sexual health information' (54%), and 70% thought that 'locating posters inside toilets in pubs and clubs was a good idea'.
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