The 13th World Conference on Tobacco OR Health

Objective: Australia's Cancer Institute NSW tested the “transportability” of campaign material from USA to other markets by remaking the successful Californian ECHO TVC. The Excuses Campaign was the first in a series for the newly formed organisation. It aimed to tackle smokers' self-exempting beliefs by balancing their excuses with the certain consequences of continued smoking. Key messages were to acknowledge that quitting is difficult, provide a motivator to quit and support quit attempts.

Methods: Creative concept testing was used to assess the suitability of the Californian concept for adaptation to the Australian market as well as test a number of new scenarios. Continuous tracking research was used to monitor the efficiency and effectiveness of the campaign creative and media. Forty interviews with smokers were conducted every week of the three month campaign (and for some time after) to monitor the campaign as it gained momentum and then concluded.

Results: The campaign was successful in terms of achieving its advertising objectives. The advertising was seen by a very high proportion of smokers - at its peak, between 80 – 90% of smokers in NSW had seen an “ECHO” TVC. Of those who saw the advertising, three-quarters perceived it to be believable; two-thirds agreed it reminded them of the dangers of smoking; just under half found it to be very relevant, and around two-thirds were more likely to stop smoking or to think about quitting as a result. These results indicate that good creative material can be used successfully in other markets.