Contraceptive social marketing: lessons from experience.
Sherris Jd, B Ravenholt, Blackburn Rd, Greenberg Rh, Neeraj Kak, Porter Rw d, S Saunders · PubMed · 1985
Contraceptive social marketing (CSM) programs use commercial marketing techniques mass media and existing commercial networks to distribute promote and sell products. These programs now sell condoms pills and other contraceptives at subsidized prices through retail stores in 13 countries. A well-managed publicized and adapted program can usually reach 5-15% of all reproductive age couples; but programs in Bangladesh Colombia and Egypt reach 30% of current family planning users. The other major CSM programs having sold products for 6-16 years are in India Sri Lanka Jamaica Thailand El Salvador Nepal and Mexico. Programs were begun in the 1970s in Ghana Indonesia Kenya and Tunisia but did not continue. The Caribbean (Barbados St. Vincent and St. Lucia) Hondurus and Guatemala began sales in 1984-1985; new programs are about to begin in Costa Rica Nigeria and Peru and are planned for the Dominican Republic Ghana India Indonesia Kenya Mexico Pakistan and Panama. This article examines CSM program achievements by looking at such program elements as: 1) potential customers 2) products 3) prices 4) market research 5) distribution and 6) promotion and by discussing program management in terms of its 2 goals 1) making contraceptives more widely available and 2) recovering some program costs. The author emphasizes the lessons that have been learned about each program element and provides many examples of program successes and failures. A discussion of the marketing of oral rehydration therapy (ORT) demonstrates how social marketing techniques may be used to sell other products. The article provides cost analysis for programs in Sri Lanka Bangladesh and Egypt as well as ranking the 10 programs in terms of 1) sales 2) couple years of protection (CYP) 3) coverage estimates and 4) cost per CYP. A discussion follows of the most successful programs.