 when it comes to behaviour change we know what success and lets face it failure looks like our successful work has seen countless queenslanders quit smoking influenced the behaviours of people experiencing and perpetrating domestic and family violence https newwordorder com au work dfv campaign shaped attitudes towards the covid 19 vaccination debate and encouraged safer transport and travel practice https newwordorder com au work department of transport and main roads the biggest thing weve learned from behaviour change campaigns is youre in it for the long haul people dont change their behaviour overnight especially behaviour around their big life moments it happens incrementally and although the process is long its a rewarding one a good long term behaviour change campaign is broken down into steps focusing on the giant leap of that moment in time we have been running medical mums https nwo staging nwo digital work medical mums as an annual campaign for brisbane north phn since 2016 each year the focus has shifted slightly but the core behaviour change message has remained steadfast what began with live action interviews of gp mums and an indigenous health nurse grew to include a medical dad in the third year and turned into a refreshingly different illustration with a diverse cast of characters in the fourth tackling myths and fear tactics head on in 2020 our messaging cut through covid 19 clutter and encouraged parents to continue their childrens vaccination schedules in spite of hesitancy and uncertainty around the covid 19 vaccine each year moved the conversation along a little further warranting a slightly different approach each time with behaviour change campaigns its not our job to move whole populations from 0 to 100 its to elicit in people the desire to change sustainably so they can lead themselves along the stages of change at their own pace we use nudge and switch models for our behaviour change campaigns first articulated by nobel prize winning behavioural economist richard thaler a nudge is an environmental modification that encourages people to make good decisions like the reminder your dentist sends you to schedule a dental check up nudges exponentially increase the likelihood of people making the behaviour change in that instance but it means they rely on your reminders for any ongoing change switches are simple activities or thought changers that encourage people to keep going with their determination to change allowing them to take responsibility for their behaviours metrics are a vital element of a behaviour change campaign you have to measure the influence youve had on behaviour to know if your campaign is working its just as important to track your metrics before you start the campaign as it is to track them after its complete your metrics will depend greatly on the behaviour itself i e if you want people to stop flushing junk down the toilet https nwo staging nwo digital work no 3 campaign measure how often toilets get clogged in the community if youre stuck these are some handy general measurements social media analytics to track engagements clicks on your website purchases of your products and services no matter what product you sell service you deliver or behaviour you change your audience is always going to be human beings which means the result will never be perfection perfect complete and consistent change is rarely achievable if thats your goal behaviour change campaigns arent going to feel rewarding at all but every step in the right direction is a win so keep your goals big but realistic and give people credit for the things they do achieve instead of focusing on where they fall short champion every change no matter how small champion your audience through each small step of the behaviour change process and celebrate your wins big and small learn to appreciate every bit of influence you have over helping people make better choices and youll find behaviour change campaigns are the most rewarding of all 