Translation from Hebrew: “Another tip and I’m in India”
- I have mixed feelings about Israel’s latest anti-drug commercial, which features an Israeli teen saying goodbye to his family in a video styled after a suicide bomber’s last testament. It’s certainly shocking and would grab attention, but I haven’t decided whether it’s in poor taste or an effective approach. I would love to know whether they tested it with teens. Its in-your-face aesthetic is nearly diametrically opposite of the US Office of National Drug Control Policy’s current campaign (in which a cartoon dog tells its pot-smoking owner “You disappoint me.”) In any case, it will definitely get people talking. What do you think, Israeli readers?
- The New York Times had a fascinating slideshow with photos of people next to pictures of their online avatars. My favorite was this man
boywho is hooked up to various medical devices with his very sleek and strong armored Star Wars Galaxies avatar. It’s just another reminder of how freeing virtual worlds can be for people with disabilities, who can have superhuman abilities and still be no different from everyone else online.
- Vigilante bike activists in Toronto have taken matters into their own hands, with the city two years behind schedule in installing bike lanes on busy streets. Armed with hot pink spray paint, the Other Urban Repair Squad is painting in its own ad hoc bike lanes around the city, which the city then removes. The transportation department claims it will complete 30 km of the 1,000 km bicycle network planned by the end of the year, but in the meantime why don’t they just work with these activist groups to get it done quickly and efficiently?
- Nokia and Vodafone have launched a wiki-based website for NGOs to share ideas on how to use mobile communications for social change. The site, www.shareideas.org, includes case studies and how-to’s that can be expanded by other organizations over time.
- There’s a lot of social marketing going on down under in Australia and New Zealand. The New Zealand Herald ran a thoughtful story on social marketing, calling us “behavior engineers.” Sounds nice and scientific – maybe I’ll put that on my business card.
- Via MarketingVox, Google just launched a public policy blog, which will cover US legislation and regulation issues related to its business. Their intention is to open a window into their policy positions and advocacy strategies to get input and ideas from their users. Andrew McLaughlin, Google’s director of public policy and government affairs, says they want to do public policy advocacy “in a Googley way.” It will be interesting to see whether other companies follow suit to make their lobbying activities more transparent. Or should I say “Googley”?
- New York City will be trying a new approach to bring residents out of poverty — bribing them. Piloting a program that has been used effectively in countries like Brazil and Mexico, poor residents will be rewarded with cash for engaging in good behaviors. For example, possible rewards include $25 for attending parent-teacher conferences, $25 per month for a child who maintains a 95 percent school attendance record, $400 for graduating high school, $100 for each family member who sees the dentist every six months and $150 a month for adults who work full time. While it makes sense to use the incentive that will best get people to act, it goes against everything I’ve learned as a parent about the effectiveness of bribes. If the external rewards stop coming, will people continue their positive behavior, or will the program have to go on indefinitely? And if people continue to be paid for years and years, is that okay and worth it if we get the behaviors we want from them?
- Craig Lefebvre reports from the Social Marketing in Public Health conference in Clearwater Beach, FL, including sharing the slides from his presentation on mobile marketing. There are a couple more social marketing conferences coming up. At the end of August, I’ll be speaking on a panel at the CDC’s first National Conference on Health Communication, Marketing and Media. And in September, the UK’s National Social Marketing Centre will be offering its second National Social Marketing Conference in Oxford.
- Finally, I just wanted to share my favorite new online tool. Jott is a free service that lets you call a number from your mobile phone, leave a voice message, and have it transcribed and sent to your own or someone else’s e-mail. I have it preprogrammed in my cell phone, so whenever I’m driving and suddenly remember something for my to-do list or have a flash of brilliance, I can just leave myself a message and have it waiting in my email when I return to my computer. It’s a lot safer than fishing around for a pen and paper to write myself a note in the car. (Sorry, it’s only in the US and Canada now.)
Photo Credit: miss pupik
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. 
The Israeli anti-drug authority is considered by many as an example of a governmental authority who’s lack of minimal understanding and is disconnected from the reality.
I think there are two problems.
1. Their policy is not to rate and educate about the different drugs avilable at the market. Instead they prefer to consider them all as equal.
2. They try to intimidate the youth by over exaggerating facts and showing horrific examples.
The obvious result is that the teenagers are confused. They hear how dangerous it is while watching their friends using it without instant visible impact ( like exploding ). They also don’t distinguish between light drugs to Heroine ( for example ) and the results are severe.
Loved the NYT slideshow – thanks for the link. The “boy” would seem to be about 33, though.
mbn18 – Your points could, unfortunately, be made about many anti-drug campaigns. Fear appeals are popular, but not always effective.
Diane – Oops – you’re right. I didn’t look at the birth year closely and it was hard to tell without a clear view of his face. I will fix that above.