Grey taps cultural roots to promote hand washing with soap cause

Vietnam - Grey has developed a national integrated behaviour change communication campaign, a pilot program of of the World Bank and Vietnam Ministry of Health, to promote hand washing with soap.

The campaign aims to send the positive public message of "washing your hands with soap for the health of your child" through the use of a traditional Vietnamese counting song. The national pilot program, carried out over two months in 50 communes has just completed. The campaign specifically targets women with children under five years of age.

"In Vietnam, people do not practice the habit of washing their hands with soap. Illnesses known to be preventable through hand washing with soap are usually blamed on the weather or uncooked food. There is also a prevalent perception that hand washing with only water is sufficient...But what the target audience does not know is the fact that microbes are invisible and thrives in water," Nguyen Kim Nga, Coordinator for the National Handwashing Initiative Water and Sanitation Program, said.

The campaign design included innovative "Social Marketing" techniques used for behavior change communication, an area of marketing that Grey Group has embraced strongly in Vietnam. An innovative combination of tactics were used for this campaign which included television, outdoor posters, direct communication, as well as traditional publicity via mass media press release and a national launch event in Hanoi at the Children’s Palace.

The campaign activity was strategically planned to take place during the harvest season where people in the fields were provided with soap samples provided by Lix/Lux and Unilever along with instructional flyers to people on the streets, roads, factories, and fields. A specially decorated vehicle, equipped with loudspeakers and a colour television featured the television spot which was also aired on national television. Everyone also received a flyer and ware given key messages directly by the
activation team, including a personal invitation to the commune-level to attend educational entertainment events.

"We set out to create an event that rural audiences would remember for a lifetime, and we did that by creating a high-energy experience surrounding and immersing adults and children alike with activities, music, dance, video, lighting and live dramatic theatrical show. Every element, every object is designed to use and repeat the
brand colours, shapes, sounds and messages,” explains Aaron Everhart, Branding Consultant and Grey Vietnam Account Director, at one of the events held deep within the remote Phu To province.

The same event was attended and observed by Eddy Perez, Washington, D.C.-based Program Executive of the World Bank Water and Sanitation Program. "The outcome of the publicity campaign was positive, as reporters found the uniquely synchronized approach and the innovative messaging platform based on Vietnamese traditions a highly newsworthy feature,” says Perez.

Extensive media attention was achieved in TV, radio and internet, reaching millions via over 50 mass-media placements. Through the direct activation events more than 30.000 people were reached directly.