Social marketing has been identified as a promising practice for reducing inequities in health.  It is defined as “the systematic application of marketing alongside other concepts and techniques, to achieve specific behavioural goals, for a social good”.  Social marketing was selected by the Winnipeg Regional Health Authority (WRHA) as a strategy to improve the health of pregnant women living in inner city neighbourhoods.

The Partners in Inner-city Integrated Prenatal Care (PIIPC) project was the WRHA’s response to research that identified social inequalities in the use of prenatal care services among Manitoba women.  The project is based on a multidisciplinary approach that includes three inter-related initiatives to reduce inequities related to access and use of prenatal services in the Winnipeg Health Region. 

One of the three inter-related PIIPC initiatives is a social marketing campaign, called « This Way to a Healthier Baby ».  This program focuses on improving the availability of prenatal services in specific inner city communities by both improving access and promoting the importance of continuous prenatal care.  

According to Lynda Tjaden (Director Population & Public Health, WRHA), the success of their social marketing campaign can be credited to the following factors:

• Identification of specific audiences.  The primary audience for this campaign was women of childbearing age in underserved community areas, with a secondary audience of family, friends and peers of these women. A third audience was health care providers in the Winnipeg Region.
• Clearly articulated goals. These included increasing knowledge of the importance of prenatal care, and decreasing the perception of barriers to care.
• Key messages that are easy to understand.  Key messages included the importance of early and regular care during pregnancy, availability of free care sites close to home or work, and possible eligibility for prenatal income benefits and transportation support.
• Creative communication. The look and feel of the campaign and its suite of products were developed by a local communications company working closely with an interdisciplinary team of care providers.  The communication products included: a pregnancy passport, customized posters for inner city bus shelters that map the route to the nearest prenatal care location, a dedicated information phone line (204-942-BABY) and website: www.thiswaytoahealthybaby.com, and a variety of posters and radio advertisements with simple messages.
• Community consultation. The communication messages and products were focus tested and validated with two groups of pregnant women living in the inner city. 

The PIIPC Project is a good example of using social marketing to increase the use of equity-focused health services.

Please visit the NCCDH Resource Library for related materials, including:

• A practitioner’s guide for advancing health equity: Community strategies for preventing chronic disease, CDC 2013
• Early child development: A powerful equalizer, WHO 2007

We would like to hear from you!  What have your successes been in using social marketing as a practice to improve health equity?  What resources do you find helpful?  Please send your ideas and examples to Lesley Dyck, Knowledge Translation Specialist.

With thanks to Helena Wall and Lynda Tjaden for their help in preparing this story.  For more information on the work of Manitoba Health and the Winnipeg Regional Health Authority, please visit our database of health equity champions .