Scottish Government Communications Plan 2016-17

05 Getting It Right - Case Studies

#juniordocscot

In February 2016, the Scottish Government launched a drive to bring more junior doctors to work in Scotland.

An in-house group bringing together health sector and communications professionals set about creating a campaign which had to be low cost but high impact.

A series of video case studies were filmed, following four junior doctors training in a range of medical specialties across the country and linked by an interview with the Chief Medical Officer.

These were launched via the #juniordocscot social media campaign and were covered by the mainstream broadcast and print media, using clips and infographics produced from stills taken during the filming.

Campaign results included:

• half a million people reached on Twitter and Facebook;
• 55,000 views on Facebook;
• 1,000 Facebook shares;
• 307,000 people reached on Facebook;
• 1,200 uses of the #juniordocscot hashtag on Twitter;
• 130,000 people reached on Twitter;
• 10 million combined UK television audience;
• 138% increase in unique views of speciality recruitment pages; and
• extensive coverage on news websites including BBC and PA.

But, most significantly recruitment into Higher Specialty junior doctor training posts increased by up to 18% between 2015 and 2016.

Other than staff time, the campaign cost less than £500.

Half a million people reached on Twitter and Facebook

+18% Higher specialty junior doctor training posts recruitment

Healthier Scotland: Eat Better, Feel Better

Nearly two-thirds of adults and a third of children in Scotland are defined as overweight or obese and failure to tackle this problem could cost the taxpayer up to £3 billion by 2030, with around half a million people at risk of developing diet-related Type 2 diabetes.

The Scottish Government launched a new collaborative social marketing campaign - Eat Better, Feel Better - aimed to motivate and encourage families to eat more healthily.

The first burst of activity was in August 2015 to coincide with 'back-to-school' time, followed by another in January to March 2016 when people traditionally make New Year 'healthy eating' resolutions. Both campaigns combined TV, digital advertising and a press partnership, plus extensive PR, social media, field and partnership support through extensive collaboration with stakeholders, retailers and community groups. Additionally, radio advertisements and a radio promotion ran in January to March.

Independent research confirmed that the campaign messages reached the target audience and found that:

• 55% of those surveyed were aware of the campaign;
• 35% (over 52,000 mums) claimed to have taken action to shop, cook and eat more healthily; and
• 29% were aware of campaign-related materials in their local communities.

Furthermore:

• partner media secured, free of charge, a media equivalent of £1.7m and a return on investment of £1:£23
• over 180,000 visits to the campaign website and over 20,000 followers on Facebook.

This campaign will continue to use partnership working and digital channels as a cost-effective way to improve Scotland's eating habits and help reduce the amount of public money spent on treating dietary-related health conditions.

Fairer Scotland

Digital communications played a major role in enabling politicians and communities to consider together what a Fairer Scotland should look like in 2030 and how this could be achieved.

This collaborative approach brought together policy officials, analysts, marketing, news and digital specialists, consulting with stakeholders and community groups.

Moving away from a traditional consultation paper, the team set up dedicated digital and social media channels to encourage engagement and increase accessibility.

These channels were kept updated with a stream of creative material and resources that communities and individuals could use to take ownership of their local discussions.

Results included:

• Over 7,000 people took part in around 200 Fairer Scotland discussions, from Dumfries to Stornoway.
• Over 100,000 people visited the Fairer Scotland social media platforms.
• Around 76,000 personal Facebook feeds were reached.

100,000 People visited the Fairer Scotland social media platforms

SG2020

The SG2020 programme is about creating the organisation we want and need to meet the demands of the next decade.

The Corporate Communications Team launched a programme of activity in August 2015 to raise staff awareness of the Programme's aims and encourage their involvement.

Regular staff updates via intranet articles, digital channels and Executive Team Q&A sessions have been used to share information and prompt discussion. Staff have also been encouraged to get involved and offer feedback via PollEverywhere, local conversations and online. By January 2016, every Directorate in the organisation had taken part in discussions about how they want the Scottish Government to look in the future.

Other activity has included staff events with Ministers to demonstrate their support for the changes, including two hosted by Derek Mackay. Evaluation showed that 99% found these sessions valuable and 85% felt they had increased their understanding of the programme.

By May 2016 the following results were achieved:

• 91% of staff were aware of the SG2020 programme; and
• 61% of staff understood the aims of SG2020.

Staff awareness of SG2020 over 90%

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