Paid vs PSA
One of the ongoing questions in the world of public service advertising has always been…..if you buy media time and space, can you also solicit PSAs, and will the media use PSAs, knowing they are getting paid for their time and space? The short answer is yes…but the longer answer requires much more explanation.
There was a time when buying time and space would poison the well among the media who wanted to donate their scarce inventory to only those non-profits which could not afford to buy the time. Then along came an organization called ONDCP, which stands for the Office of National Drug Control Policy.
Limited space in this backgrounder does not permit us to go into the details of the ONDCP’s mission, but you can go to: http://www.mediacampaign.org/faqs.html#ma2 for a detailed description of their mission and goals.
In 2000, the FCC sent inquiries to five major television networks about ONDCP's practice of offering millions of additional advertising dollars to networks that embedded anti-drug messages in their programming. Congressional hearings were held and the FCC ruled that the networks should have identified the Office of National Drug Control Policy as the sponsor of the television programs. In the spring of 1998, the ONDCP began to develop an accounting system to decide which network shows would be valued and for how much. Receiving advance copies of scripts, they assigned financial value to each show's anti-drug message. Then they would suggest ways that the networks could increase the payments they would get.
Running the campaign for the ONDCP was Alan Levitt, who estimated that between 1998 and 2000 the networks received nearly $25 million in benefits.14
Using public funds appropriated by Congress, a unique feature of the ONDCP Campaign is a “Media Match” component, wherein for every ad purchased by ONDCP, the media outlet must provide a match ad for free, and to date the campaign’s Media Match program has generated $1.22 billion in incremental media value since its inception.15
Many broadcast stations adopted a policy of accepting the paid funds from ONDCP and thus the former policy of either accepting paid funds or relying solely on PSAs was overturned in favor of “hybrid” placements.
The Military Services
Historically, the military services have used PSAs to support their paid efforts in an attempt to recruit more qualified applicants to our armed forces. Some military services such as the Marine Corps tend to use the same creative for both paid and PSAs. Other services such as Air Force have a bifurcated strategy, creating separate messages for each different approach.
As noted above, PSAs have not only been an effective mechanism to extend the reach of other marketing efforts for our military; they also have helped to generate leads, because PSA messages tend to be more credible. Also, since the time and space is free, the cost benefit of PSAs tends to be significant. For a case history on how PSAs have been used to supportmilitary recruiting, go to:
http://www.goodwillcommunications.com/gc_support_client_corner-frameset.asp?page=gc_support_client_corner-military.asp
Animal Protection - PSAs & PETA
One of the most controversial non-profits is PETA - People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, the largest animal rights organization in the world. PETA uses famous celebreties in many of its PSAs and other forms of communication. They are also well known for their in-your-face tactics to protest the use of animal fur in clothing.
It is important for all PSA producers to understand that while throwing paint on someone wearing fur may be good streat theater, that type of approach, when used as a PSA is never going to get on the air. First, it is too controversial and more importantly could dissuade local retailers from advertising on stations, which is their lifeblood. In the case of PETA, they tend to use their more controversial approaches in print ads and videos posted to popular internet sites such as Yahoo and You Tube. http://www.peta.org/mediacenter/ads/default.aspxThe NCSA Program
Another hybrid arrangement is known as the “NCSA” program which stands for Non-Commercial Sustaining Agreement. In this arrangement, funds are paid to state broadcast associations which can use the funds for any of their programs such as youth scholarships for students in their communities. On behalf of the “sponsor,” the state broadcast association then negotiates PSA placements that typically result in much better reach and frequency than what would result from strictly PSA placements and bonus spots are often part of the arrangement. The Army National Guard and U.S. Coast Guard both have used this approach.
The “Total Station Project”
The other major development in innovative media approaches combining PSAs and other forms of programming is referred to as the Total Station Project. In this model, the Community Affairs Department at broadcast TV stations adopt a public service theme, and via working with other departments at the station coordinate PSAs with station editorials, heavily promoted public affairs programs, talk show appearances by the campaign spokesman, remote broadcasts at special events and features in local news broadcasts.
The Entertainment Industries Council employs a slightly different model via its Picture This program whereby they bring together local broadcasters, elected officials and other stakeholders from the community to address topical social issues.
These can be extremely effective approaches because they provide a win-win opportunity for both the stations and the other stakeholders working with them to address important social problems.
Impact of Videos and Social Media
One more fairly recent development is the use of video clips to convey various types of messages. The number of videos posted to You Tube and other mainstream sites is astronomical and many of these are messages in the public interest. However, instead of lavish productions created by advertising agencies, they are being churned out by creative people with low-cost cameras and editing software, then posted for free on the Internet. PSA contests and crowd sourcing are also new tools being used by non-profits to engage their audiences in their issues and campaigns. Most social media sites have special interest sections where people who want to promote or support certain causes can gather to share success stories, donate, build bigger communities, etc.
Given the hundreds of PSA campaigns that are in circulation at any given time and the dozens of sponsoring organizations, it is not possible to mention all the great campaigns being produced year in and year out on behalf of great causes.
However, on our Social Marketing Resources site we are attempting to make it easier for interested parties to get more information on specific issues, provide details on what organizations are doing campaigns on what issues, and providing as many resources as possible. This is our contribution to the field which has been a very meaningful endeavor for us and the organizations we have worked for.
As for the future for PSAs, it remains bright because PSAs are proven to be a very viable mass communication technique, and the media clearly understand they play a vital role in making their communities – and thus our nation at large – a better place in which to live and work. However, as we have always stated in the past – PSAs are not a panacea. Organizations need to use a variety of mass communication techniques to address constantly shifting audiences and a media landscape becoming more complex by the day.
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