Social Squared: Applying Behavior Change Theory in Social Media Campaign Planning

Background:  Behavior Change theory should underlie all health communications campaign planning.  However, all too often communication professionals decide they should have a Facebook page or Pinterest account because everyone else has one or because it’s the “latest thing,” instead of having solid theory-based reasoning for engaging on a particular social or digital platform.  

Program background:  To solve this problem, Ogilvy Washington (Ogilvy) developed a framework, called the Social Squared framework, to help guide health communicators as they make program decisions in digital and social media.  When developing this framework, we identified behavior change theories or constructs of theories to apply to digital media and create a methodology for ensuring that the theory components are integrated into health communication programs in a way that will drive behavior change results.

Evaluation Methods and Results:  To create this planning framework, we conducted an analysis of behavior change theory and tenants of the theory that were applicable to the way people engage with digital media.  We identified 10-15 theoretical constructs that are most applicable to digital and social media.  For example, Cues to Action, from the Health Belief Model, is a construct that works well in social media, which can deliver cues via text or visual updates on a variety of platforms like Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr, and Pinterest. Then, we overlaid the traditional communications planning process, bringing with audience research, strategy, and tactics.  We analyzed current case studies to ensure that the framework had practical implications and could be applied to real-life case studies.  As a result, we have used this framework to drive theory-based social and digital planning for health communication programs.

Conclusions:  Ogilvy designed the Social Squared framework to bring together the three key aspects of an effective behavior change program in social media: behavior change theory-based strategies, audience insight, and digital solutions. Every program has a strategy that is informed by research, traditional and digital media, and behavior change theory.  Then, we factor insights about our audiences online and offline behavior to ensure our programs capitalize on a set of behaviors and platforms that our audience is inclined to do or use in their everyday lives.  Finally, we bring in the appropriate digital solutions, the platforms, products and services offered by Ogilvy.  When a health communications professional marries these three facets together, they can build communication programs that are based in theory and move the behavior-change needle.

Implications for research and/or practice:  In this session, we will explain the Social Squared framework and how Ogilvy uses the framework to create digital behavior change programs.  To illustrate how the framework applies to a real campaign, we will use The Heart Truth campaign’s #MyHeart28 Challenge.  We will show how integrated behavior change theory constructs, audience research, behavior and insights, digital platforms, and content continue to prompt people to make meaningful behavior change during American Heart Month.