Public Health has struggled for years to tell its story- ironically a very worthy story- in a powerful and compelling way. We worked with CDC 10 years ago to help them tackle being misunderstood and to create and communicate their brand identity - with what we called Putting Science into Action for a Safer and Healthier America. Then Washington State's Department of Health (WDOH) engaged us to hep them overcome being "underknown and undervalued" - and therefore underfunded. The WDOH central idea? Always Working for A Safer & Healthier Washington, coupled with three identity themes. In both cases, our research showed it was not just about health, but the more emotional issue of keeping people safer, that resonated across the board. Plus action - public health is about taking action that makes a difference. Here's a one pager I wrote in Government Executive on Building a Brand Identity.

And here are three examples of relatively low budget, high production value videos that do a good job at making public health come to life and personally relevant. They all capture the "safer" aspect of public health and show the value of public health action across its many "touch points." Most importantly, they all convey a message that hits home.

The first one, from American Public Health Association's (APHA) Healthiest Nation in One Generation campaign, shows through sophisticatedly simple word graphics, one person's interactions from birth through adulthood with Public Health (including 4 mentions of Motor Vehicle Injury Prevention, but who's counting!).

This second one, is from the This is Public Health campaign of the Association of Schools of Public Health (ASPH). Along with student voices and simple red stickers, it powerfully SHOWS in fast MTV-like style, the numerous touch points of public health. 

And to tie it all together, this video by the National Association of County and City Health Officials (NACCHO), which is the national organization representing local health departments, goes from showing (again with sophisticated graphics and word art) what a world without Public Health would be, to the good we have here in America, thanks to our everyday heroes (truly!) in our local Public Health Departments. It ends by showcasing a Public Health logo, given that when public health is working best, it's mostly invisible.

Together, these videos shine a light on what may be the most important and valuable (and often invisible!) service our country provides to us: Public Health. And a professional community I am so proud to be a part of.

Old fashioned bumper stickers are the medium of choice in this war of ideology taking place in laid-back Ocean Beach (OB), in San Diego County. OB has long been known as a liberal, safe and friendly haven for the homeless.

Compare the two bumper stickers. Both welcome people to friendly OB. The brown one says "Don't feed our bums" and was made by a local smoke shop to deal not the homeless they say, but the more aggressive panhandlers: 

"It isn't about the homeless...it's about the bums, the trolls that we deal with day in and day out, they get angry at you if you don't have spare change, they urinate in your doorways, graffiti on the buildings, it's terrible." said Denise Prigmore, an employee at The Black.

Many OB residents were angered and felt that the message portrays them as intolerant. Look what was created in response, by San Diego's Regional Task Force to End Homelessness.

Ideology and personal beliefs about homelessness aside, I see all forms of separatism, prejudice, and racism as a market segmentation issue. It involves dividing based on differences and uniting into subgroups based on similarities. Even good ideas like segmentation can be put to bad use. The positive segmentation challenge here is to distinguish between the "good" homeless and those that cause unnecessary harm and damage.

Without reading the copy, what would you think this ad is selling? 

This is an image from the Breast Cancer Research Foundation's new PSA campaign. Here's their strategy:

We wanted to be honest and open. We wanted to create an image of a woman that a large number of women could identify with. And deliver a message that is as much about hope as it is about hard truths.

Cancer is ugly. Women are beautiful. We wanted the photograph to suggest all the strength, courage, vitality and radiance of a woman touched in some way by breast cancer. We wanted it to be timely and timeless.

Step 1 in communications is always getting attention. Using this kind of image does the job, and tastefully I think most donors would say. I admire BCRF's courage and clarity. Many health organizations prioritize being non-controversial and "safe" over being effective. What do you think about this ad?

The U.S. Census bureau is spending $133 million on on their 2010 campaign to get people to fill out and return their census forms. First ad I saw was during the Super Bowl and had some refreshing humor (for a government agency) and even a touch of "duh" style sarcasm. Now I'm seeing their ads in the Olympics coverage.

How do they justify high profile spending that kind of money in the current economy? They make a simple and effective ROI argument: The more people return their forms, the less money is needed for follow-up. Which means millions of dollars go back into local communities. Here's the Bureau's video overview of the campaign including a couple ad excerpts.

I'm glad to see the government using advertising this way. They appear to have a well-integrated marketing communications campaign going. Do the ads motivate you?

More to follow!