HLTH 634

BRIEF MARKETING PLAN OUTLINE

1. Executive Overview A. Eat Well, Play Hard, Live Long 1. The Eat Well, Play Hard, Live Long program is a health promotion program developed by the Virginia Department of Health that addresses childhood and adolescent health and focuses on obesity prevention. 2. The proposed program has been developed by the Virginia Department of Health, but also works in cooperation with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and has acquired the support of local healthcare professionals to carry out program objectives. B. Approximately 17% (12.5 million) children and adolescents aged 2-19 years are obese.1 Furthermore, since 1980 the obesity prevalence among children and adolescents has nearly tripled.1 As these numbers continue to rise, there is clear evidence than a health intervention is necessary to prevent the further decline of our youths health. 1. The main populations at risk are children and adolescents ranging from two to nineteen years of age. 2. More and more children and adolescents are being defined as overweight or obese. Overweight is defined as a BMI equal to or greater than the 85th percentile and lower than the 95th percentile for children of the same age and sex.1 Similarly, obesity is defined as a BMI equal to or greater than the 95th percentile for children of the same age and sex.1 Health risks associated with childhood obesity long-term include an increased risk of conditions such as heart disease, diabetes, and some cancers.1 C. The intended intervention will primarily take place in the school setting. Healthcare professionals, teachers, and other school staff members will implement a program that gives students the ability to become more educated on healthy lifestyle choices. 1. The main goal of the intended program is to provide young students with the proper education and tools so that they can ultimately make healthier diet choices and become more physically active. The program will focus on diet and exercise education and teaching students how engaging in good health habits will keep them healthy later in life. It is important to emphasize how decisions made now will affect each one of them later in life. Activities will include mandatory monthly assemblies along with an individual dietary analysis. Each child will be required to complete a weeklong food log/diary and then a dietician will analyze and discuss the diet log with each individual child. In order to help children become healthier, the program will focus on health education through the implementation of educational seminars and classroom activities. 2. According to the Healthy People 2020 objectives, 16.1% of children and adolescents aged 2-19 years were obese between 2005-2008.2 3. The goal is to increase health knowledge and awareness among our nations youth.
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a. The short-term goal of this program is to spread health awareness and to make children aware of the negative health outcomes associated with being overweight or obese. b. The long-term goal of this program is to decrease the percentage of obese children from 16.1% to 14.5% by the year 2020. The Customers (Market Review) A. The intended primary target audience includes all school-aged individuals ranging from two to nineteen years of age that reside in the state of Virginia. 1. Behavioral The consumption of healthier foods such as fruits and vegetables. Decreased consumption of sugary drinks and fast food. Increased participation in physical activity and sports. Decreased usage of electronics and videogames. The program will target all individuals to ensure that all members of the target audience are exposed to the same information. 2. CulturalDecreased availability of unhealthy foods in schools and homes. Increased focus on good health in the home environment. More emphasis will be placed on whole foods rather than sugary, processed foods. There are significant racial and ethnic disparities in obesity prevalence among U.S. children and adolescents. In 20072008, Hispanic boys, aged 2 to 19 years, were significantly more likely to be obese than non-Hispanic white boys, and non-Hispanic black girls were significantly more likely to be obese than non-Hispanic white girls.1(CDC) 3. Demographic The program should decrease the disparity that exists between children of different socioeconomic backgrounds. The CDC estimates that one of seven low-income, preschool-aged children is obese.1 4. Physical The program targets all school-aged children between two and nineteen years of age. 5. PsychographicThe program will target all individuals with the hopes that children will become more enthusiastic about their health. By becoming passionate about health, the children will develop a better body image and outlook on life. B. The intended secondary audience includes all parents or primary caregivers of young school-aged children. Parents play an extremely important role in the effectiveness of the program and the ability to develop a healthy home environment for young children. The Product (Product Review) A. Health education in schools 1. Health education is any combination of learning experiences designed to help individuals and communities improve their health, by increasing their knowledge or influencing their attitudes.3(WHO) 2. The product offers children the ability to gain valuable health information related to obesity prevention. 3. Other programs have been established that aim to accomplish a similar goal; however, the programs have been unsuccessful. This proposed program attempts to overcome some of the same obstacles by not only
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engaging school staff members, but by also engaging parents and other family members as well. B. As stated previously, this program will not only consists of mandatory educational assemblies and seminars, but will also engage each student by having them complete a dietary log. Completing this log will allow each student to understand his or her diet on a personal level. It is important to engage each student on a personal level to ensure the success of the program. Strategies A. Position 1. It is important to portray the development of a healthy and active lifestyle. 2. One unique selling point of this program is that it promotes children to play. All children enjoy playing, whether it is in organized sports or in the backyard. This program promotes recess in schools and being active. B. Product 1. Each child will gain the ability to meet one on one with a healthcare professional and dietician to review specific dietary habits. Additionally, each child will have access to a school counselor or psychologist if they feel that they need additional support for any reason. 2. Child and adolescent health is extremely important in the future of our nations health. In order to break this vicious health cycle in the United States, it is important to address young individuals. Bettering the health of our nations youth will hopefully break this cycle and lead to the development of a healthier country. C. Price 1. The estimated cost of the Eat Well, Play Hard, Live Long program is five million dollars. 2. The benefits of the program clearly outweigh the cost of the program long-term. By adopting a healthier lifestyle it is likely that people will spend less money on healthcare expenses. D. Promotion 1. In order to promote the program it is important that healthcare professionals address parents with the hopes that as parents they would feel the need to provide a health living environment for their children. 2. The Eat Well, Play Hard, Live Long program will be primarily promoted in the school setting. This will be done by conducting regular monthly assemblies, by addressing a random health fact of the day on the morning announcements, by handing out informational flyers for children to take home to their parents, by enforcing mandatory recess time each day, and by posting informational flyers around the school. Budget A. The total cost of the program will be roughly five million dollars and the total duration of the program will last two years. It is projected that the program will utilize roughly three million during the first year and two million the following year. The first year is considered to be phase one of the program and will account for the implementation cost, whereas the second phase of the program will focus on maintaining the current program.
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a. Advertising/Marketing costs = 30% ($1.5 million) b. Cost of supplies = 10% ($500,000) c. Salary compensation for healthcare professionals = 15% ($750,000) d. Cost of space = 15% ($750,000) e. Training = 20% ($ 1 million) f. Research = 10% ($500,000) B. The majority of the budget will focus on marketing and advertising, followed by training costs. Getting the message out to the public is the most important part of the program because it exposes the target population to valuable health information. The hope is that exposure will motivate individuals to make necessary life changes. Training also plays an extremely important role in the success of the program. It is important to provide students with access to qualified healthcare professionals so that they can gain a better understanding of good health and risk factors related to obesity prevention. Additionally, it is important to make sure all information dispersed is consistent and that all teachers and staff members are provided with the same training.

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Resources 1. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Overweight and Obesity. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. http://www.cdc.gov/obesity/data/childhood.html. Accessed August 7, 2013. Healthy People 2020. Nutrition and Weight Status. The United States Department of Health and Human Services. http://www.healthypeople.gov/2020/topicsobjectives2020/objectiveslist.aspx?topicId=29. Accessed August 7, 2013. World Health Organization. Health Education. World Health Organization. http://www.who.int/topics/health_education/en/. Accessed August 7, 2013.

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