Social Marketing Ideas

A lot of things went through my mind as I was reading the selection about social marketing, not the least of which was that it seems like a lot of work. Now that's not to say that it isn't doable or that I'm not up for the challenge of getting others to change their behavior for the sake of the environment, because I certainly am, but I was relatively ignorant of the many considerations involved. My social marketing ideas prior to reading that article were much more simplified, but I'm convinced that a social marketing strategy that takes all of those things into account will be much better suited to its purpose. What I definitely realized is that a great deal of planning is involved. To be successful in getting people to change their behavior you can't haphazardly throw a campaign together; it takes forethought in many different arenas.

I found one point the selection made to be particularly interesting/useful. It said to know the target audience and to understand that you are not the target audience. This is something that for me, at least, can be very easy to forget. When trying to convince people to adopt a new behavior, it's crucial to remember that they are not me and therefore, that they probably aren't and won't be as riled up about the environment and its current state as I am. I need to figure out the right way to convince them of the legitimacy of our cause, realizing that they may not be swayed by the same information as me; it may need to be even more compelling and obvious. At the same time, it is also important to consider, as the text discusses, how realistic our expectations of what we can achieve are. With all sorts of special interest groups, it seems to me that if you get a bunch of excited and overzealous kids thinking about how they are going to get others to change, they will quickly come up with ideas, but they may overshoot the mark. We can't change the world in one fell swoop, but rather, as the text suggests, we must use the "installment plan". If we advocate for a succession of small reasonable changes for our target audience to adopt, I think we will be a great deal more successful than if we advance the idea that everyone should become hunters and gatherers.

Another thing the article got me thinking about was the benefit to the target audience for adopting new eco-friendly behaviors. While this is an obvious consideration, I can't say that I know the answer. For me, personally, a benefit of adopting such behaviors is the feeling of knowing I am being conscientious and taking responsibility for myself and how I affect the Earth. This, for me, is rewarding and I feel good about myself as a result. However, I don't think everyone would be convinced by this; it's not easy to stir an environmental passion in the hearts of everyone.

So what will we need to offer them in exchange for changing their behavior? In some instances there are price benefits, say a 10 cent reduction in price for bringing your own mug to Diesel, but 10 cents to most people is just a dime. There will need to be another incentive, and I think there is a lot to be said for the argument pertaining to the future of the Earth and the condition it will be in for future generations if we continue with our destructive ways. I can't imagine many people will want to live in a world with severe weather problems, mountains of trash, and dwindling resources, and this is where I think we need to convince them. For our own sake, as we age with this Earth, and for that of future generations, change is necessary and must be immediate.