 | By Edna Boampong, Programme Director for Diverse and Inclusive Communications for NHS Confederation |
Edna is an award-winning leader with over 20 years’ experience in communications, behaviour change and public health initiatives.
She has worked in collaboration with Influential on several initiatives, including in 2020, designing and delivering a ground-breaking programme that explored the Covid-19 impact on ethnic minorities and deprived communities in Cheshire and Merseyside. The insights led to a campaign addressing vaccine hesitancy, which won three national awards, including a prestigious HSJ Award.
In my years of leading healthcare communications, one truth has remained constant: if you want to change behaviour, you must first understand it. Too often, campaigns launch with a predetermined idea of what needs to be said and how it should be said, without ever pausing to ask the most critical questions: Who are we talking to? What barriers stand in their way? What truly motivates them to act?
The mistake I see time and time again is an over-reliance on assumptions. It’s easy to think we already know what will work, but assumptions are the quickest way to a failed campaign. What seems like common sense to one person may not resonate with another, and a one-size-fits-all approach can do more harm than good – sometimes even exacerbating health inequalities. That’s why every successful behaviour change initiative must begin with rigorous insight and research. It’s not a luxury; it’s an investment that ultimately saves both time and resources while ensuring real impact.
Campaigns sometimes skip this crucial step due to the misconception that it will be too expensive and time-consuming. I understand this, especially when working in the public sector, where budgets are often tight, and time is limited. However, investing in the right insights upfront doesn’t just save money – it ensures resources are allocated effectively. By building a campaign based on solid data, you can avoid wasting funds on initiatives that won’t resonate or drive change. The result is a more targeted, efficient campaign that maximises impact and uses resources wisely.
Taking insight to impact
Take the Think Which Service? campaign we ran in Shropshire, which I worked on with Influential. The goal was to reduce ambulance handover delays and ensure that NHS services were being used appropriately.
By putting insight first, we identified key pain points and targeted interventions and messages accordingly. The result? Lost ambulance hours dropped from 30,000 to just over 10,000 during the campaign period, reducing estimated costs from £7.5 million to £2.5 million. That level of impact is only possible when you truly understand the audience and the levers that drive their behaviour.
One of the most powerful frameworks in behaviour change is the COM-B model, which tells us that, for any behaviour (B) to occur, a person must have the Capability (C), the Opportunity (O), and the Motivation (M) to do it. In my experience, motivation is where we need to focus.
Most people already know what’s good for them – they understand that smoking is dangerous, and that exercise is beneficial, that attending medical check-ups is important. But knowing isn’t the problem; acting on that knowledge is. The challenge is figuring out what motivation will tip the scales.
A great example of this was a national stop-smoking campaign that ran a few years ago. Instead of reiterating the well-known dangers of smoking, it showed young children mimicking their parents’ smoking habits.
Why? Because while smokers might be willing to take risks with their own health, they are far more likely to change their behaviour when they see how it impacts their children. That’s the kind of insight that turns a campaign from forgettable to transformative.
Creating a tailored message
Another critical point is focus. Trying to reach everyone dilutes impact. Too often, organisations feel the need to address an entire population when, in reality, behaviour change is most effective when efforts are concentrated on those who need it most. Not everyone is at risk, not everyone needs persuading – so why waste resources on audiences who are already where you want them to be? Precision targeting ensures messages land where they will make the biggest difference.
Beyond data and strategy, collaboration is key. The best campaigns are not created in boardrooms; they are shaped by the very people they aim to reach. Engaging communities, running focus groups, testing messages – these steps often uncover insights that no dataset ever could. The best ideas don’t come from assuming what works; they come from listening.
Staying flexible and being ready to adapt
Finally, and perhaps most importantly, go in with an open mind. Too many campaigns fail before they even begin because they start with rigid plans and fixed mindsets. True behaviour change requires curiosity, adaptability, and a willingness to be surprised. Sometimes, research will confirm what you expected, providing crucial validation. Other times, it will reveal something entirely new – something that, if embraced, can be the key to real change.
So, my advice to anyone embarking on a behaviour change campaign is this: don’t just dive in. Start by listening. Gather insights. Challenge assumptions. Focus on motivation. Engage your audience in the process. And most of all, be willing to adapt. Because when we take the time to truly understand behaviour, we don’t just create better campaigns – we create real, lasting change.
