There’s a misconception by many people that being a Big Brother requires a large time commitment and this is often cited as the reason men choose not to volunteer. This new series of advertisement by Big Brothers of Greater Vancouver – all of them less than ten seconds long – is designed to tackle these misconceptions. Following the launch of the ads, visits to the volunteer page on the organization’s website increased 64 per cent, and volunteer applications rose as well. Intrigued by the advertisements, I too visited the volunteer website. In relations to the sweet and short ads, the volunteer positions also specify time commitment and activities, thus the applicants would know what to expect.

The campaign is tailor-made for social media, where attention spans are limited and ads have to make an impact quick in order to get people to look at them. These concise ads show that being a big brother could be as simple as teaching a young boy to use appropriate language, answering his question of whether “rodeo clown” is a viable career choice, or encouraging him to choose books over technology.

In addition to these advertisements, Big Brothers of Greater Vancouver launched a social media campaign using the new hash tag #bigbroments. The ideas encourages Big Brothers volunteers, participants and sponsors to share heartwarming Big/Little Brothers moments.

Big Brothers’ marketing strategy allows the audience to connect with the charity on a more personal level by capturing heartwarming moments of mentorship. The short ads communicate the charity’s vision of providing guidance in every child’s life. Unlike traditional advertisements, this series raises awareness through its memorably concise style. It successfully encourages people to add value to their lives by taking a small part of their busy day to help others.

Link to Big Brothers: http://www.bigbrothersvancouver.com

Read the original telegraph article here: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/health/healthnews/10425137/Online-alcohol-marketing-encourages-culture-of-intoxication-in-young-people-study-suggests.html

Through the platform of social media, alcohol brands have become an integral part of young people’s lifestyle, reinforcing the widespread culture of intoxication. For instance, alcohol companies (including Corona, Heineken, Smirnoff and Jack Daniels) are using Twitter to attract a young and potentially underage audience, prompting calls for stricter regulation of social media.

Here’s a photo Corona published via its public Twitter account of 8752 followers. Posts like above associate drinking with positive themes by reinforcing that drinking is about fun, socialising and pleasure. Alcohol brands primarily targets young audience. These cumulative exposure might encourage underage viewers to engage in risky drinking behaviors.

According to Brian Vandenberg, Victorian Cancer Council senior policy adviser, young people are bombarded with positive images of alcohol which encourages them to start drinking at an earlier age. The younger people start drinking, the more likely they are to drink at risky levels, and have alcohol problems later in life, including the cancer risks

Furthermore, social media is not the only poorly regulated platform utilized by alcohol brands. Other “below the line” marketing strategies include sponsorship of football shirts and festivals. While young people may not always recognize these marketing strategies, it is indisputable that the government should reevaluate its current framework of regulation.

On the other hand, the current health promotion has been outmoded. In my opinion, while corporate practices and online alcohol marketing strategy need to be examined, the health organization should also take advantage of the same channel of communication to establish safer drinking initiatives.