Television public service announcements as outreach for potential clients

Public service announcements (PSAs) aired by local radio or television stations may be useful to human service agencies as a mechanism to reach potential clients during periods of low service demand. To examine the usefulness of PSAs for this purpose, a series of PSAs were videotaped for three aging-service agencies and aired by a television station during a 6-week period. The three agencies recorded the incoming demand for services received each day before and during the intervention period. The data were tested by a multiple-group interrupted time-series analysis. The results of the analysis indicated that for all three agencies the PSAs were effective for increasing the number of service inquiries received from nonclients over the telephone numbers publicized in the PSAs. At one of the agencies, the number of new clients increased significantly when the PSAs were broadcasted.