Marketing physical activity: lessons learned from a statewide media campaign

Steps taken to create, implement, and initially assess a statewide physical activity social marketing campaign targeted to 18-to 30-year-olds are presented. Included is a summary demonstration of the application of the associative group analysis in formative market research and message development. Initial postcampaign questionnaire (n = 363) results indicated that 39.1% of respondents had seen the television ad, of which 31.2% indicated they intended to be more active, and 62.5% of respondents had been exposed to either the television or outdoor media ads. Lessons learned through the social marketing process including media channel effectiveness, message development and assessment, and marketing firm relationships are provided.