Quit Smoking 52 Times a Year. How Monday Messaging Can Improve Engagement

Background:  The guidance smokers receive on when to quit smoking varies broadly, with some advising to “quit today” and others focusing on a personally significant or annual occasion. The presentation will discuss Quit & Stay Quit Monday (QSQM), a free smoking cessation campaign that leverages the power of Mondays using online communication tools to engage individuals on Monday, the day when they are most receptive to health-focused messaging. We’ll discuss updated data, primarily from digital media, that points to Monday as an effective quit date, and also review how Monday can be used as a built-in weekly cue to regularly engage quitters.

Program background:  In context of the QSQM campaign, presenters will provide an overview of research conducted by The Monday Campaigns and the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health on weekly patterns in quit smoking behavior and engagement with tobacco cessation resources. Updated data will be shared,including digital analytics that track engagement with a national tobacco cessation website’s content and social media that incorporate the Monday concept, both in their creative messaging and periodicity. Additional data from two previous studies will also be discussed.

Evaluation Methods and Results:  Data from different studies conducted showed differences when Monday messaging is applied: an +8% difference in website use (Louisiana); an +8% improvement in quit rates (Mississippi); and improved self-efficacy (Maryland). These studies are examples that show improved interest and engagement in quitting smoking information at the beginning of the week. Tobacco cessation programs can leverage this pattern by 1) recommending Monday as a quit, recommit and re-quit day; 2) leveraging Monday mindset when composing messages and creative information; 3) focusing resources on the day of the week when smokers are receptive to quitting; 4) taking advantage of repetitive Monday cycles to help people stay quit every week.  Presenters will also share examples from organizations who have adopted the QSQM campaign assets in different settings,as well as individual stories from those who have used Monday to help them quit and stay quit. Presenters will then review free Quit & Stay Quit Monday marketing resources available to tobacco cessation groups.

Conclusions:  The Monday Campaigns has continued to attract audiences by producing Monday-focused messaging, in an effort to encourage a more consistent commitment to quit smoking. Online interactions with original content delivered through social, digital and video media, as well as quitline and in-person sessions, can demonstrate how consumers respond to Monday messaging and this weekly cue, creating regular opportunities for public health marketers to engage audiences when they’re most receptive to health messaging. 

Implications for research and/or practice:  With an improved understanding of the weekly/Monday patterns in digital engagement, as shown in online search patterns, online media analytics and weekly patterns of engagement with a national tobacco cessation organization, there’s an opportunity to enhance smoking cessation programs through different channels, including quitlines, digital and social media and in-person groups.  Further, with the QSQM campaign, free implementation strategies and turnkey resources that enhance digital engagement are available to incorporate Monday/weekly messages within smoking cessation programs, which provide further support for improving their outcomes.