Study of Pilot Campaign for EX® Smoking Cessation Program Proves Brand to be a Trusted Resource for Smokers Who want to Quit
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Study of Pilot Campaign for EX® Smoking Cessation Program Proves Brand to be a Trusted Resource for Smokers Who want to Quit
9/22/2009
New Data Published in September Issue of Social Marketing Quarterly
WASHINGTON, D.C. — The national quit smoking program, EX®, was created following a comprehensive pilot program conducted in four U.S. markets in 2006-2007. New research released in this month’s Social Marketing Quarterly and conducted by the American Legacy Foundation® demonstrates how the campaign resonates with smokers.
The study examined receptivity to the EX brand across three different racial/ethnic populations from three of the pilot market cities: Grand Rapids, Mich., where 435 White smokers were surveyed, Baltimore, studying 301 African-American smokers and San Antonio, analyzing 271 Hispanic/Latino smokers. The majority of respondents felt that EX was a trusted and empathetic brand. For instance:
- The analysis found that 69 percent of the White audience agreed that EX provided helpful information that could be utilized in a future quit attempt.
- Eighty percent of African-Americans and 65 percent of Hispanics found the same to be true.
- Seventy-four percent of Whites, 83 percent of African-American and, and 67 percent of Hispanics/ Latinos agreed or strongly agreed with the statement “The EX brand made me feel as if there was help out there for smokers like me.”
Smokers who were contemplating quitting or were more motivated to quit were significantly more receptive to the EX brand than those who had not yet reached that point in their quit process or were less motivated to quit smoking. This important distinction demonstrated that receptivity was higher among the intended target audience (those already thinking about quitting)—a success attributed to the use of market segmentation by the program’s creators.
Formative research conducted prior to the campaign development found that smokers desired a quit smoking resource that was empathetic to their struggles to quit and from the voice of other smokers. Thus, the campaign was created in this light, encouraging smokers to “re-learn their lives without cigarettes.” The results outlined in this paper describe how qualitative testing and market segmentation can be used to effectively design a brand that is highly receptive among a target audience.
The overall campaign strategy centered on creating knowledge, attitude, and behavior change among smokers who were considering quitting and employed specific message strategies and market segmentation to reach that goal. An earlier phase of EX advertising was designed to drive smokers to 1-800-Quit-Now, the national toll-free portal number that connects callers to their state quit lines. Based on unpublished data, these earlier ads increased call volume five to 11-fold across the three pilot cities.
The strategies and results from the pilot program informed the development of a national quit smoking campaign, also under the EX brand, that launched in early 2008 and is poised for a second wave of advertising to air this fall.
EX is a national public health campaign presented by the National Alliance for Tobacco Cessation (NATC), a collaboration of the nation’s leading public health organizations and 16 states. The campaign builds smokers’ confidence in quitting smoking by guiding them to useful resources that foster successful quit attempts. The EX approach is peer to peer and focuses on re-learning life without cigarettes, targeting the activities that prompt smokers to light up at the same times every day.
The campaign includes television, radio, online, out-of-home advertising and a state-of-the-art, interactive Web site (http://www.becomeanex.org) with tips and tools for quitting including personalized quit plans, and a virtual community where smokers can share stories and strategies about their experiences quitting. Founding members of the NATC include the American Cancer Society, the American Heart Association, the National Cancer Institute, the American Legacy Foundation, The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, C-Change, the Association of State and Territorial Health Officials (ASTHO), The Rapides Foundation and clinical partner, the Mayo Clinic. Founding members also include the following states: Arizona, Arkansas, Connecticut, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisiana, Missouri, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, Washington, Wyoming, as well as the District of Columbia.
The American Legacy Foundation® is dedicated to building a world where young people reject tobacco and anyone can quit. Located in Washington, D.C., the foundation develops programs that address the health effects of tobacco use, especially among vulnerable populations disproportionately affected by the toll of tobacco, through grants, technical assistance and training, partnerships, youth activism, and counter-marketing and grassroots marketing campaigns. The foundation’s programs include truth®, a national youth smoking prevention campaign that has been cited as contributing to significant declines in youth smoking; EX®, an innovative public health program designed to speak to smokers in their own language and change the way they approach quitting; research initiatives exploring the causes, consequences and approaches to reducing tobacco use; and a nationally-renowned program of outreach to priority populations. The American Legacy Foundation was created as a result of the November 1998 Master Settlement Agreement (MSA) reached between attorneys general from 46 states, five U.S. territories and the tobacco industry. Visit http://www.americanlegacy.org/.
The American Legacy Foundation® is equipped with a VideoLink ReadyCam™ television studio system, providing you with faster, easier access to the nation’s leading tobacco prevention and cessation experts. From this in-house broadcast studio, Legacy can offer immediate access to its experts to comment on breaking news, new research publications, or any news related to youth smoking prevention, adult quit smoking programs, or any issue related to smoking. The studio is connected directly to the Vyvx fiber network and is always available for live or pre-taped interviews. To arrange an interview using the ReadyCam, please contact Julia Cartwright at 202-454-5596.
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Contact: Julia Cartwright, 202-454-5596, jcartwright@americanlegacy.org