A Case Study of Two Successful Social Marketing Interventions to Promote 1% Low-Fat Milk Consumption

Abstract

This article presents a case study of two effective interventions promoting 1% low-fat milk consumption. Developed after extensive formative research and use of the 4Ps marketing mix, the first intervention in 2012, 1% Low-Fat Milk Has Perks!, was a multilevel intervention implemented in the Oklahoma City media market (OKCMM), which covers most of the western portion of the state of Oklahoma. The program evaluation was based on a quasi-experimental comparison-group design that compared milk sales in the OKCMM with the Tulsa media market (TMM) supplemented by a pre- and post-intervention telephone survey of Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program recipients. The program evaluation revealed that 1% milk sales significantly increased 15% from before to after the intervention ended in the OKCMM compared to a smaller increase in the TMM. In 2014, the second intervention, Choose 1% Milk: A Healthy Family Choice, was implemented statewide using three experimental conditions. The intervention resulted in a 42.9% statewide increase in 1% milk sales from before to after the intervention ended. In this article, we describe the use of the marketing mix in the planning, implementation, and summative evaluation of both interventions, including strategic decisions that provide insight into efforts to influence behavior at the population level.