Honesty, Provocation, Condoms and Comedy: Multi-Tonal Communications in HIV/STD Awareness through New Content Channels

Background:  Mississippi has the ninth-highest HIV diagnosis rate in the USA. HIV is disproportionately high for men who have sex with men (MSM). Young adults aged 20-29 account for 45 percent of newly diagnosed cases. The burden is highest among black males aged 20-24.  Mississippi is socially conservative. Many sexual proclivities are stigmatized and STD/HIV matters are not readily discussed. This is magnified within African-American communities relative to MSM individuals.

Program background: The Mississippi State Department of Health (MSDH) and Maris, West & Baker (MWB) collaborated to develop a multi-tonal approach promoting HIV/STD awareness. Program goals:

• Increase HIV testing among at-risk populations.
• Decrease stigma surrounding sexual proclivities and HIV positive individuals.
• Dispel myths about HIV/STDs, especially among adolescents.
• Promote usage of sexual health tools.

Executions to achieve goals: The yourPSH (Personal Sexual Health) mobile application was developed and made available via iTunes and Google Play stores. The app listed locations offering free HIV testing, allowed users to order free condoms, contained an STD risk tracker, and other resources.  MSDH and MWB also implemented multi-layer content and media strategies aligned with program goals: • 30-second television commercials depicting HIV-positive individuals living productive lives. Call to action: Get tested and download yourPSH app.

• Provocative 30-second television commercials depicting at-risk behavior (casual sex, gay/bisexual sexual encounters, etc.). These commercials aired after 9 P.M. on networks targeting young adults. Call to action: Get tested and download your PSH app.

• A humorous series of YouTube-style videos personifying “STDs” as a hyper-realistic aged wrestler. He played comic relief alongside a doctor who dispelled myths about STDs and HIV. The “STD Smackdown” campaign ran as pre-roll videos targeting teens and young adults. Call to action: Download yourPSH app. 

• A 30-minute standup comedy routine tackling STD/HIV issues and sexual stigmas. The routine has been performed in front of live audiences at two venues, with another two scheduled in coming months. The shows have been recorded and are being edited into an HIV Awareness video.  • Promotional coasters were distributed to prominent gay bars across the state. Call to action: Download the app. • A print ad campaign was ran in a prominent alternative lifestyle publication. Call to action: Download the app.

Evaluation Methods and Results:  Since efforts launched in 2012, the number of people in Mississippi estimated to have undiagnosed HIV has fallen by 30% (from an estimated 2,000 before the campaign to an estimated 1,400 today).  The yourPSH app has been downloaded by 2,313 individuals.

Conclusions:  STD/HIV awareness and prevention messaging can be optimized by using unorthodox and multi-tonal marketing. Positive messages encourage at-risk individuals to get tested and/or HIV-positive individuals to seek treatment. Provocative messages encourage individuals to become educated on prevention practices. Humor works to dispel myths and remove stigma surrounding discussion of frank sexual topics within target communities.

Implications for research and/or practice:  Tailoring the tone of HIV/STD awareness messaging based on cultural sensibilities and psychographics of target audiences is important. A “one-size-fits-all” approach proves less effective than highly targeted and audience-relevant themed ones.