In 1951, Dr. G.D. Wiebe, a research
psychologist asked: “Why can’t you sell brotherhood and rational thinking like
you can sell soap?”. This seemingly innocent yet provocative question triggered
controversy in the commercial marketing world. Marketing professionals claimed
that a concept such a “brotherhood” cannot be marketed unlike a tangible
product. Yet world renowned marketing gurus Koetler, Levy, Zaltman and others
thought otherwise and must have in stead said: “Why not?”. The controversial
idea hence gave birth to what is now known as Social Marketing- a hybrid of
social science and commercial marketing.[i]
Koetler and Zalman coined the term Social
Marketing in 1971 which refers to marketing practices in pursuit of social
rather than monetary gains. It applies marketing principles and techniques to
influence the target audience to voluntarily accept, reject, modify, or abandon
a behavior for the benefit of individuals, groups, organizations, or society as
a whole.[ii]
It aims to bring about positive change in the target audience by applying
relevant marketing tools such as market research, segmentation and
differentiation, Marketing Mix (Product, Price, Place, Promotion (4P’s), etc., to
solve various issues such as health and sanitation, environment, peace and
security, gender equality, among others. The marketing tools applied by social
marketers are not that different from the ones used by their counterparts in
the commercial sector: both are aimed at bringing about behavioral change in
the target audience.
It is quite understandable for readers to
easily confuse themselves on the difference between social and commercial
marketing precisely because of the word MARKETING. Marketing, as defined by the
American Marketing Association (AMA), refers to activities, set of institutions
and processes for creating, communicating, delivering and exchanging offerings
that have value for customers, clients, partners and society at large. However,
people often relate it with “flowery” words to promote a particular product
among consumers. This is why marketing is often shunned by many because of the
“subtle” deception that comes with it. On the other hand, social marketing can
be easily misconstrued these days as marketing using the social media
(Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Youtube, etc.) as platform. I initially thought
that social marketing solely refers to selling products through the internet. Social
marketing nowadays has been increasingly reliant on social media platforms to
promote various advocacies. Many volunteer organizations, NGOs, civil society
and people’s organizations have found remarkable success in their respective
endeavors by capitalizing on the power of this innovation.
The contrasts between social and commercial
marketing can be summed up according to its output, outcome and impact to
consumers/customers or target audience. Commercial marketers peg the success of
their marketing campaign on tangible outputs like volume of sales, brand
popularity, market share, product reach and other measurable parameters. On the
other hand, social marketers are concerned with how the outcome of their
programs will improve individual lives and uplift societal conditions. The goal
of social marketers can be said to be more noble in nature than that of their
friends from the commercial side.
Depending on whom you are talking to, social and
commercial marketing can be both easy and difficult but many practitioners
point to the former as the more difficult field than the latter. After all,
selling a desired behavior- an intangible product is not as easy as selling
something that can be seen and felt.
Social marketing is about delivering social gain. It focuses on reaching
the target audience, influencing their behaviors and satisfying the needs of
the society as a whole- the social good. On the other hand, commercial
marketing is about earning profit- the financial good, by satisfying individual
customers through physical products or services. However, there is no doubt
that both disciplines are customer-focused and needs all available and relevant
marketing tools to attain their objectives. Likewise, the results in both fields
are monitored, measured and evaluated to serve as basis for future performance
improvements.
Social Marketing, being a controversial idea
initially struggled to make it big in Western countries like the US and the UK.
In fact, the idea was first widely used far from where it was conceived- in
India, where it was adopted to implement a family planning program. However,
once it was able to break free, its potential began to be discovered by many.
Sally Dibb in her article “Up, up and away: Social Marketing Breaks Free”, said
that social marketing ideas can be applied to a vast array of problems, to
various groups of people and at different levels and scopes. It could be
applied to individuals, groups, communities, villages, and even at the national
and global arena. Social marketing is most visible in campaigns to promote
gender and development, smoke-free public places, drug and alcohol-free
communities, breastfeeding, women empowerment and many others. It can be
utilized to influence policy-makers to legislate laws that promote overall
social welfare and well-being, or influence people’s behavior on contemporary
social issues like open defecation, garbage disposal, responsible voting, sexual
health, etc.
Social Marketing is practiced mostly by
government units and agencies to effect the desired change in behavior among
their constituents. Sectoral, non-profit and development organizations have also
adopted this field to create positive social change. Local Government Units for
example may use social marketing to change the perception of its residents on
reproductive health. The Yellow Boat of Hope Foundation (YBH), an NGO on the
other hand, conducts advocacy campaigns to influence people’s attitude towards
education.
Meanwhile, Social Marketing Research (SMR)
refers to the study or investigation of the behavior, needs, attitudes,
opinions, motivations or other characteristics of individuals, a particular
sector of a community, or of an entire population to identify pertinent issues
and concerns that could influence or support the decision-making process of
service providers. Essentially, SMR gives credence to the decisions and actions
made by these entities by making available relevant empirical data. Like other
research fields, it usually begins by identifying the goals and objectives of
the study. The researcher/s (either an individual or a research group) must
have a good grasp of the client’ mission, vision and core values. They must be
cognizant of the overall intent of their client to guide them throughout the
process. They must be able to establish the goals and objectives of the study
to ensure that they are on the right track; and identify the specific information
needed to achieve the desired objectives. SMR likewise includes designing the
overall research methodology including its framework, data collection process,
and data analysis, and must be able to recognize its limitations, and its
implications to the organization. Furthermore, it must have a means to effectively
communicate its findings.[iii]
On Behavioral Change
According to the International Evaluation Group (IEG), behavior refers
to the outward manifestation of an individual’s response- an action or change
in action, to a situation. Quoting Kahneman, IEG said that response emanates
from an individual’s automatic or deliberate decision-making process. On the
other hand, behavior change, also called desired outcomes, are observable
changes such as maintenance, improvement/enhancement, and increase or decrease in
specific behaviors targeted or supported by behavior change activities. In the
context of international development, these outcomes are individual’s
behavioral responses to specific interventions such as the provision of
information and incentives or other behavioral design elements. These
interventions are referred to as behavior change activities and focus on
affecting or shaping individual decisions and decision-making process.
What is the relevance of behavioral change in development management? Again,
IEG said that to effectively deliver sustained services, service providers must
overcome not only constraints in hard resources but also limitations in
psychological resources. The latter refers to people’s mental capabilities that
allow them to reach their full potential considering the different political,
economic, social, cultural and other factors in the external environment. These
factors shape people’s behavior- they often determine how people would behave
under certain circumstances. For example, in the Philippines, people from the
countryside are more concerned about their public behavior such as the public
display of affection, compared to those who live in the metropolis like Makati.
On the other hand, those who grew up in urban areas are more conscious about
how they look, or how they dress up as compared to those who hail from the
provinces. The perception of social acceptance varies from place to place, from
ethnic group to ethnic group, and from community to community. Some tribes
value honor and pride than others. While some put more premium on their live
stocks and lands than the education of their children. This kind of diversity
makes the delivery of social services such as WASH (water, health, sanitation
and hygiene) more complicated and challenging than it seems.
A development manager must understand that development interventions cannot
be implemented at random without understanding the community and the
individuals that make it. People behave or react differently when subjected to
or provided with programs or interventions. For example, encouraging people to
avoid open defecation by building toilets for them could be positive for some,
but can be misconstrued by others as interfering with their way of living.
Sometimes, tailor-fitting or customizing programs to suit the needs of the people
or certain sectors of the community brings out better results. As such,
development managers must strive to understand the dynamics in the target
community as part of their planning process. A thorough stakeholder analysis
must be complemented by an equally comprehensive needs analysis and assessment
to correctly determine what is or are needed by whom, and why.
Social Marketing Research and Behavioral
Change in the Military
Social Marketing and Behavior Change are both
familiar disciplines in the Philippine defense and military sectors especially
the Philippine Army (PA) although there might be some variations in its
practice and application. The Civil- Military Operations (CMO) which is
comprised of Information Support Affairs, Civil Affairs and Public Affairs, is
the closest field there is when we talk about social marketing and behavior
change. CMO are planned activities undertaken independently or in coordination
with civilian entities to support the accomplishment of the PA mission. Its
primary goal is to gain popular support and weaken the enemy’s will to fight. CMO
is a vital component of PA’ operations along with Combat Operations and
Intelligence. It is characterized by activities that influence the beliefs,
emotions, behaviors, attitudes, and opinions of intended audiences to
facilitate military operations. It establishes and maintains good relations
between and among military forces and establishments, government and
non-government civil authorities, and the populace or stakeholders. The Civil
Affairs pillar in particular, are operations planned, supported and executed to
promote public trust through cooperation, collaboration and conduct of
sociological and developmental activities in order to gain popular support. It consists
of activities designed to win the hearts and minds of the people; gain their
willing cooperation, support and confidence; and induce their active
participation in the attainment of national objectives and goals.
The Armed Force of the Philippines (AFP)
Internal Peace and Security Operations Plan relies heavily on the correct
employment of CMO to facilitate the participation of all stakeholders in the
quest for long-lasting peace and sustainable development in what is called the
‘whole-of-nation” approach. It is hinged on the Filipino tradition of
“Bayanihan” or helping each other. To encourage the active support and
involvement of all stakeholders, the AFP and the entire government must be able
to understand the behaviors, attitudes, perceptions and beliefs of all sectors
of the Philippine society towards peace and development, and all underlying
issues that prevent the country from attaining it. Due to the country’s
diversity, a “one-size-fits-all” solution doesn’t simply work to hammer out
peace and usher in development. A comprehensive study- a social marketing
research is needed to understand the people’s goals and aspirations vis-à-vis
their apprehensions concerning peace, security and development. Many programs
and interventions in the past fizzled out because they failed to factor in the
different socio-political and socio-economic impacts on the target
beneficiaries and communities. Most of these interventions were directed only
at symptoms and not the root causes of the problems. They targeted only what
was visible and failed to unearth the essential ones. They addressed only the
observable manifestations of behavior and overlooked what is underneath. As a
result, the problem continues to follow a vicious cycle. The government and the
military ought to learn how to address issue using behavioral change lens- in a
more dynamic, inclusive, consistent and sustainable manner.
[i] http://samucommunications.com/why-cant-you-sell-brotherhood-and-rational-thinking-like-you-can-sell-soap/
[ii] The Future of Social Marketing by Olivier Serrat. https://www.adb.org/sites/default/files/publication/27593/future-social-marketing.pdf
[iii] https://www.amsrs.com.au/about/definition-of-market-and-social-research
