₹50,000 for a Dengue Campaign
You are a PR trainee with the district health society in Nadia. The chief medical officer of health gives you ₹50,000 and three weeks for a dengue campaign. One ward has reported 14 cases in a fortnight; schools reopen in 10 days; officials say 60% of larval breeding sites are stored-water containers. A local influencer with 18,000 followers offers three posts for ₹15,000 but refuses to add '#ad', saying it will 'kill reach'. The local daily quotes ₹8,000 for a 4x6 cm advertisement; cable TV asks ₹5,000 a week for a scroll. ASHA workers can hold mohalla meetings for ₹500 each. You have no designer and no paid survey firm. The society's own WhatsApp group has 400 members. The CMO wants a one-page note by tomorrow.
1. Prepare a three-week budget of ₹50,000 with at least four lines and justify each line against the campaign objective.
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Objective: in three weeks, reach households in the affected ward with two actions - remove stored water and get fever testing. The budget should buy behaviour, not just reach.
- ₹8,000: one 4x6 cm ad in the local daily, timed to school reopening. Local print still reaches shopkeepers and parents.
- ₹10,000: two weeks of cable scroll in the ward. Cheap repetition in the local language.
- ₹10,000: 2,000 handbills with a container checklist, distributed by ASHA workers. Measurable by stock and household receipt.
- ₹8,000: 16 ASHA-led meetings at ₹500 each. Highest trust, closest to the 14-case ward.
- ₹6,000: school assembly kits - posters, a five-minute script and attendance sheets.
- ₹8,000: contingency and evaluation - printing, transport, volunteer refreshments and a simple survey.
Justify every line against the two behaviours. Do not spend 30% of the budget on one influencer's reach when 16 meetings cost less and reach the ward directly.
2. Do you accept the influencer's offer? Explain using advertising ethics and Indian rules.
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Refuse the undisclosed deal. The ASCI's influencer advertising guidelines require a prominent disclosure such as #ad or 'sponsored'. The Consumer Protection Act, 2019 and the Central Consumer Protection Authority treat misleading endorsements as unfair trade practices. A government health campaign is held to a higher standard: if it pays for promotion and hides it, it undermines the message.
Options: (a) decline; (b) offer a smaller fee only with #ad and a written brief; (c) ask the influencer to do a free public-service post with no brand claim. Given a ₹50,000 total budget, ₹15,000 for three posts is poor value against 16 ASHA meetings. Put the money into the ward and keep the influencer as an unpaid amplifier only if disclosure is clear.
3. How will you measure whether the campaign worked without a paid survey firm?
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Use a simple pre/post design with existing staff. Before the campaign, ASHA workers record 50 household checklist observations in the affected ward: containers with larvae, water storage practices, and knowledge of fever testing. Repeat after three weeks. Add fever-camp footfall, school absenteeism, handbill stock, meeting attendance, and responses in the 400-member WhatsApp group. Compare with the previous fortnight's 14 cases. Report outputs (meetings held, handbills distributed) separately from early outcomes (larval reduction, testing uptake). Do not claim causation from likes or reach. A one-page table with before/after numbers is enough for the CMO.