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Assignment Twelve:
Public Service Announcements

Amazingly enough, in just a few weeks of operation, your broadcasting empire is so successful that people are begging you to run their commercials and Public Service Announcements. You have so many listeners that you have already started a television station with the same format! In addition, because of the high demand for your station's unique approach, you have already spun off an advertising and marketing agency to develop commercials and PSAs to run on these two stations.

In this assignment, the director of creative services for this new and up-and-coming ad agency has given you the task of creating an effective marketing campaign for a non-profit organization. Both your TV and radio PSA have to have a central focus that can be effectively utilized by both electronic media formats. You should make arrangements to communicate with your team as you go about doing each component of this project, since part of your grade will be based on coordination.

Your radio station's format will guide your creative decisions when you plan this PSA campaign, in terms of it being more or less formal and its appeal to a specific demographic base.

Each one of these Public Service Announcements (PSAs) has a slightly different goal, although the purpose of this kind of promotion can overlap. For example, an organization needs to have an established image and a demonstrated need before it can ask for contributions or have a "call to action" to get people to do something. This is especially true with newer or possibly controversial organizations.

The links are provided to research the organization, so your campaign is based on legitimate information. Your marketing concept can be entirely original; any facts upon which your campaign is based must be true. (For example, for a Blood Donor ad, you couldn't say "2 million people in the United States die every year, because hospitals have run out of blood," because that is not true--although it would be dramatic!)

You group project should contain:

One--A statement explaining your campaign detailing: Which of the persuasive appeals are you are using? What market you are trying to reach? What techniques are you predominately using? The Straight Sell? Humor? Dramatization? Testimonial? Music? Image or Pictures? Slogan or Catch-phrase? An easily-identifiable logo?
Two--A radio script (one minute or less)
Three--A TV script (one minute or less)
Four--A TV storyboard. (If you have only three people in your group, you do not have to do the storyboard.)

You can divide up the work anyway you want in your group. Please indicate on each piece which individual did the primary work on it.

To Establish an Image

Organization: National Rifle Association

Goal: To establish the image of the NRA as an everyday, "down-home" kind of organization that the average American can embrace.

Target Audience: Teenagers and adults of all ethnic and socio-economic groups.

Resource: http://www.nra.org

To Establish an Image

Organization: The Syracuse Chamber of Commerce

Goal: To establish Central New York as an up-and-coming place to live.

Target Audience: Affluent people and business owners in downstate New York and in other parts of the United States.

Resource: http://www.cny.com/

To Establish an Image

Organization: Iceland Travel Net

Goal: To establish the image of Iceland as a top tourist destination for today's traveler.

Target Audience: Adults with disposable income.

Resource: http://www.icetourist.is/

To Establish an Image

Organization: Time Square Business Improvement District

Goal: To establish the image of Times Square as a "cleaned-up," safe, family-centered tourist stop.

Target Audience: Families throughout the Northeast who are contemplated travel and vacations.

Resource: http://www.timessquarebid.org/

To Establish an Image

Organization: The U.S. Army

Goal: To establish the image of the Army as a hip, exciting military organization, playing off the current interest in "reality" television.

Target Audience: Young men and women of military age.

Resource: http://goarmy.com/nfindex.jsp

To Establish an Image

Organization: Syracuse Swing Dance Society

Goal: To establish the image of swing dancing as a fun, up-and-coming activity for people of all ages (even "old" ones past 50) in the Syracuse area.

Target Audience: Teenagers, adults and senior citizens of all socio-economic groups.

Resource: http://syrswingdance.org/

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To Raise Awareness

Organization: ReconsiDer

Goal: To highlight problems caused by mandatory prison sentences imposed by the "War on Drugs."

Target Audience: Teenagers and adults, community leaders and educators.

Resource: http://www.reconsider.org/

To Raise Awareness

Organization: International Campaign to Ban Land Mines

Goal: To highlight problems caused by land mines throughout the world

Target Audience: Teenagers and adults, community leaders and educators.

Resource: http://www.icbl.org/

To Raise Awareness

Organization: The Freedom Forum

Goal: To promote awareness of the Freedom Forum's ongoing memorial, "Journalists in Peril," honoring reporters who have died covering the news in danger spots around the globe.

Target Audience: Citizens of all ages.

Resource: http://www.freedomforum.org/about/

To Raise Awareness

Organization: Circle of Life Foundation

Goal: To highlight the risk to Old Growth forests from the logging industry, as epitomized by founder Julia Butterfly Hill, who lived in a redwood tree for 738 days.

Target Audience: All age groups.

Resource: http://www.circleoflife.org/

To Raise Awareness

Organization: Renaissance Transgender Association

Goal: To increase understanding and acceptance of transgender individuals in the United States.

Target Audience: All genders, ethnic and racial groups.

Resource: http://www.ren.org/

To Raise Awareness

Organization: ECLT Foundation

Goal: To contribute to the elimination of the use of children in tobacco-growing plantations in many nations around the world.

Target Audience: People of all ages and socioeconomic groups in the U.S.

Resource: http://www.eclt.org/

To Raise Awareness

Organization: Half the Sky Foundation

Goal: To increase awareness of the plight of unwanted female children in orphanages in China.

Target Audience: All Americans, particularly adoptive parents.

Resource: http://www.halfthesky.org

To Raise Awareness

Organization: Ricky Martin Foundation

Goal: To increase awareness of the extent of human trafficking around the world, particularly children forced into pornography, prostitution and slavery.

Target Audience: People of all ages and socioeconomic groups in the U.S.

Resource: http://www.rickymartinfoundation.org/

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To Sell an Idea

Organization: Parents and Friends of Lesbians and Gays

Goal: To promote the idea that lesbians and gays are worthy human beings and should be accepted by all other people.

Target Audience: Everyone, although PSAs would probably run only during adult programming.

Resource: http://www.pflag.org/

To Sell an Idea

Organization: Church and School of Wicca

Goal: To promote the idea that the Wiccan Religion is non-threatening and non-Satanist.

Target Audience: Children, teenagers and adults of all religions.

Resource: http://www.wicca.org/

To Sell an Idea

Organization: National Association of Resale and Thrift Shops

Goal: To educate Americans about the importance of resale and thrift shops to local economies.

Target Audience: Both business people and consumers from all walks of life.

Resource: http://www.narts.org/index.htm

To Sell an Idea

Organization: Creationism.org

Goal: To promote the idea that creation by God supports every one of the laws and principles of science.

Target Audience: Children, teenagers and adults of all religions.

Resource: http://www.creationism.org/

To Sell an Idea

Organization: True Love Waits

Goal: To promote a commitment to sexual abstinence before marriage.

Target Audience: Middle, high school and college-aged young people.

Resource: http://www.truelovewaits.com/

To Sell an Idea

Organization: Islamic Society of North America

Goal: To convince people that Muslims in America did not condone the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorists attacks.

Target Audience: Non-Muslims; people of all other religions.

Resource: http://www.isna.net/

To Sell an Idea

Organization: Young Politicians of America

Goal: To convince high school and college students in Central New York to become involved with the political process.

Target Audience: High school and college students.

Resource: http://www.ypa.org/

To Sell an Idea

Organization: Living Foods.com

Goal: To educate the world about the power of the living and raw vegetarian food diet.

Target Audience: People of all ages, particularly those concerned with health and fitness.

Resource: http://www.living-foods.com/welcome.html

To Sell An Idea

Organization: OSHO--the Self-Sufficient Meditator

Goal: To spread the teachings of Osho (formerly known as Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh), whose philosophy incorporates teachings of Jesus, Buddha, Tantra, western mystics, and Zen.

Target Audience: All people interested in having a fulfilled life, without dependence on outside authority.

Resource: http://www.osho.com/

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To Raise Funds

Organization: The Fresh Air Fund

Goal: To raise $25,000 by the end of the month to establish a Fresh Air Fund "Friendly Town" camp in your community .

Target Audience: Middle school students and up, people with disposable income who donate to charities.

Resource: http://www.freshair.org/

To Raise Funds

Organization: The John Birch Society

Goal: To raise $1,000 to provide free CD-ROMS of its publication The New American to local school districts.

Target Audience: Conservative, patriotic Americans who favor the Judeo-Christian way of life.

Resource: http://www.jbs.org/

To Raise Funds

Organization: The Harriet Tubman Home

Goal: To persuade people to donate money to help the renovation and development of the Harriet Tubman Home.

Target Audience: Historians and educators interested in African-American history.

Resource: http://www.nyhistory.com/harriettubman/

To Raise Funds

Organization: Milton J. Rubenstein Museum of Science and Technology (MOST) in Syracuse

Goal: To persuade people to donate money to help prevent the MOST from closing its doors, due to serious financial problems.

Target Audience: Residents of Central New York, particularly families.

Resource: http://www.most.org/

To Raise Funds

Organization: Open Hand Theatre International Mask and Puppet Museum

Goal: To persuade people to donate money as part of a $400,000 capital campaign for the museum building on North Salina Street in Syracuse

Target Audience: Residents of Central New York, particularly families.

Resource: http:www.openhandtheater.org

To Raise Funds

Organization: New Leash on Life

Goal: To raise money for the thousands of animals left homeless by Hurricane Katrina.

Target Audience: People interested in pets and animals.

Resource: http://www.nlol.org/katrina.asp

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