Social media project #Hashtag makes you healthy

1. Social media project#Hashtag makes you healthy by Yue Yang

2. Project Purpose & Description • The main purpose is to raise awareness and create engagement among young adults regarding health issues caused by obesity and overweight, through digital channels. • Problem: Increase of overweight and obesity in Australia. According to the Australian Health Survey, in 2011-2012, 63% of the Australian population aged 18 and over are overweight or obese, with 35% overweight and 28% obese. Therefore, the targeted group is directly concerned by the phenomenon, which has been increasing since 1995 (57%). There is a need for urgent action in order to stop and reverse the trend. Call out link: https://mygloco15blog.wordpress.com/2015/10/22/getfitordietrying-call-out/

3. Key strategies • Key strategies for participant group was to differentiate general contents to more personal and emotional ones. Both types of message should be conveyed via Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, and Instagram, which are the most used in Australia and among young adults. • Key strategies for working group was to use different platforms for the two group categories. Due to different features of communication, separating platforms strategies for each group was more adapted. Instagram, Facebook and face-to-face allow longer and deeper conversations than Twitter. • The strategies were focused on engaging with the participant and working groups respectively with proper language and content, as well as sharing and posting relevant messages regarding the topic. For the target audience, it was important to have content that helps them to achieve a sense of balance in their personal/work life. Concerning the working group, more general contents about health issues were relevant.

4. Participant group & strategies Participant Group: - Young adults aged 18-30 living in Australia - Might be students, young professionals or young parents - Have hectic lives due to work or/and family constraints or studies - Like to eat junk food due to busy days and laziness - Easily be drown into alcohol and cigarette as a way out of stress - Part of the generation Y, heavy users of internet and social media Strategies • Use of storytelling via videos or written stories in order to trigger the emotional appeals from the target audience • Use of #hashtags as an engagement tool in order to gather the audience around a common idea of topic • Share and use examples, experiences, ideas, pictures/videos of everyday people’sphysical changes or messages of support. Interaction and a mutual support between individuals creates a social push that helps make them accountable • Use of educational and funny videos and images encourage chatter among young generations • Use of #hashtags as an engagement tool in order to gather the audience around a relevant topic • Post relevant content news about health issues due to overweight, obesity, unhealthy food habits... • Share what organizations or local government in the obesity and healthcare fields do and post • Partner up with influencers, NGOs and local government who have a large number of followers and share relevant content Personal and inspirational content General content

5. Examples of contents sharing An example of an emotional and inspirational story on YouTube concerning an incredible body and mental transformation. The video has touched the audience and gathered more than 23 millions views. This type of content can create awareness and conscientiousness among the audience. Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZrasQOojFyo Here is an example of how #HASHTAGS can create a huge community around healthy lifestyle, sport addiction and physical activities. Pictures used on Instagram are a good way to convey trendy and appealing messages that young adults might be sensitive to. The #betterforit was created by Nike for its last campaign targeting young women. Source: https://instagram.com/explore/tags/betterforit/

6. Working group & strategies Working Group: - Fitness centres & trainers: know how to motivate clients by setting goals and are essential in assessing their progression while ensuring their wellness - Non-profit organisations engaged in obesity and health issues: have a wider impact on the audience in terms of reputation and image, they usually have this legitimacy when it comes to informing and creating awareness - Local government: helps to coordinate health programs and works with communities to create opportunities to eat well and be active Strategies • Face to face conversation with experienced fitness trainers in the use of social media to engage with target audience • Use of direct messaging on Instagram and Facebook with appropriate language • Read and use their posted content on social media in order to engage relevant discussion • Setting my profile available to public before engaging in discussion • Use of direct messaging, hashtags and posts on adequate platforms such as mail, Twitter or Facebook, with adequate language and content • Search for LinkedIn groups and communities of practice related to health and obesity fields, then request for joining • Share relevant content in order to engage discussions on various platforms and eventually extend the network Group 1 Fitness centres & trainers Group 2 NPOs & Local government F2F

7. Evidence of network dialogue Fitness Australia is a NPO that works towards a fitter and healthier Australia. Their marketing department hasn’t replied to my request NGOs Australian Department of Health PlusFitness trainer Fitness First I tried to join 3 groups or communities of practices on LinkedIn but none has accepted my requests. OAC: Their mission is to elevate and empower those affected by obesity through education, advocacy and support.

8. Case analysis with reference to the project • In order to engage with your audience, there is a need to post relevant content everyday and during a long period. This task is uneasy and time consuming. It is a long period where you experiment different types of content in order to see which work for who. So it is a constant test of the reactions and sensitivity of the target audience. • A strong digital persona was also important. Indeed, a serious and convincing profile has more chance to get people engage in a discussion and trigger their interests. As stated in the FYA case, it is like a branding strategy used in marketing. A good persona associated with relevant content work to enhance the brand image and value, and therefore attract more audience. Therefore, I had to improve my personal profiles so working group would take me seriously. • Adequate language and content on different platforms was essential in order to engage with different groups. And messages conveyed on different accounts from different social network platforms should “talk” to each other. • The FYA case study also helped to understand the importance of storytelling when it comes to engage the audience with health issues due to overweight and obesity. There is way more engagement when a real true moving story is delivered. People need an example to follow and believe they also can change. They identify themselves to the story. It touches the audience emotionally. Hence this new concept has become trendy in digital engagement, but also in marketing strategy.

9. Key learning/insights • Facebook, Instagram and twitter were the most suited for this project. Despite the fact that YouTube convey videos better than any other platforms, it is difficult to have a long time support. Usually one video does the buzz and then there is a decrease of its impact. Thus it is essential to use all the platforms together and coordinate the message with a unified delivery process. • Facebook has been the most relevant platform to engage with working group. I believe it is due to the fact that a profile on Facebook is a lot more complete than on Twitter or Instagram, therefore engaging with the working group individuals or organizations is easier. Additionally, Facebook allows a better targeting of the audience thanks to the information available on individuals. • The quality of the content matters more than the quantity. After creating a community around a topic, it is easier to use hashtags that followers can identify or be sensitive to. The cycle can be summarize by: Content  followers  hashtags  specific content with hashtags  followers • Engaging discussions with working or participant group was not easy. Especially with local government where there were few more steps in order to get information from it. NPOs and health professionals such as fitness trainers were the most accessible and responsive regarding my requests. So it would be interesting to base the project on those groups in the future. • There is no one clear-cut engagement strategy for one type of audience. Even though the target audience is determined ahead, due to personalities, characteristics, social behaviour, gender, age, individuals have different sensitivity to the type of content posted. Therefore, it is essential to experiment several types of content in order to get an better understanding of what your audience is interested in. This can also lead to sub-segments of the target audience.