Eric Mattson at MarketingMonger takes the reins this week as the host of the Carnival of Marketing. While you’re there, check out some of the podcasts he’s posted as part of his quest to conduct 1,000 interviews with marketers and other interesting people. I’m scheduled to be interviewed in June and will let you know when that podcast is available.
I especially liked the post by Jack Yoest reminding us that something as low-tech and relatively inexpensive as a printed calendar can be a very effective marketing tool. He runs the numbers for us:
Assume a cost of $3.00 per calendar. For every 100 calendars sent to a client:
An estimated 50% of the calendars will be hung up on the end-users’ wall.
A calendar is viewed five times per day per person.
A calendar is viewed by 1.5 persons per day.
A calendar is hung in an office open 5 days per week,
50 weeks per year.I’ll the math, if you don’t mind.
100 X .5 X 5 X 1.5 X 5 X 50 = 93,750
If you would allow me a +/- 10% variance, the campaign could have 100,000 impressions for $300. (Marketers always round up.) Or .003 cents per impression. Cost would be a penny for three viewings. Cheap eyeballs.
Calendars have the potential for both raising awareness and reinforcing those daily behaviors that we’re often trying to promote in social marketing. With attractive graphics portraying your issue each month (or why not one of those chunky daily calendars?), you can portray the benefits of adopting your healthy or socially beneficial behaviors. You can provide monthly or daily tips to keep your audience motivated, help them remember to do what they are supposed to do, or help them think about the issue in a new way. Even if they get so used to seeing the calendar that they start tuning it out, they will get a new infusion of your message when they have to turn the page each month. And when they are ready to take action, they’ll know exactly where to find your organization’s contact information. A client of mine combined their annual report with a 12-month calendar that started from the back page of the publication, killing the proverbial two birds (which is ironic given that they are an environmental organization!). Now’s the time to start thinking about how you will get your message out in 2007 — start collecting ideas, tips and days/weeks/months on which relevant observances are held (e.g., May is Asthma & Allergy Awareness Month, this is Schizophrenia Awareness Week, and Thursday May 25 will be National Missing Children’s Day).
Nedra helps nonprofits and public agencies create positive change on health and social issues through social marketing and transmedia storytelling strategies at Weinreich Communications since founding the company in 1995. She helps organizations make a difference for the populations they serve by strategically designing programs that draw on state-of-the-art behavior change techniques, digital media approaches and the power of stories. 
