In 2009, I had written about the Denver Water Conservation campaign. The campaign urged Denver residents to water their lawns for 2 minutes less. Ah, the problems of a first-world country, a commenter noted. In India, sadly, basic amenities are not available to millions. So this may seem odd to us – we are still in the mode of urging people to conserve electricity and save water. We can’t afford to worry about our lawns.
There’s a new campaign out for Denver Water continuing with an appeal to use less water (so the 2-minutes less campaign did not work?). I found it striking for its simplicity of message and clever use of media.
In direct marketing programmes for ‘donations’ there is a belief that one needs to be specific about the donation you seek – its better to ask for $10 or $50 instead of simply asking for ‘some’ donation. In advertising too many have propounded the benefit of being specific (iPod was advertised as ‘1000 songs in your pocket’ not just ‘a revolutionary music device that will change your lifestyle’). Communication meant to change behaviour vs. change attitude is another topic for debate. I thought the 2009 campaign was more specific in nature asking for a measurable action, whereas the latest one hopes to change attitudes. Which one works best? Any learnings or observations here?
