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. 2023 Jan-Dec:60:469580221146046.
doi: 10.1177/00469580221146046.

Say Yes! COVID Test: A Health Communication Campaign to Encourage Use of Rapid, At-Home Antigen Testing in Underserved and Historically Marginalized Communities

Lindsay Singler  1 , Gina Uhlenbrauck  1 , Giselle Corbie-Smith  2 , Al Richmond  3 , Amy Hattem  4 , Kristen Linney  1 , Michael Cohen-Wolkowiez  1
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Say Yes! COVID Test: A Health Communication Campaign to Encourage Use of Rapid, At-Home Antigen Testing in Underserved and Historically Marginalized Communities

Lindsay Singler et al. Inquiry. 2023 Jan-Dec.

Abstract

This paper describes a robust health communication campaign that supported Say Yes! COVID Test, the first National Institutes of Health (NIH)-sponsored initiative promoting community-wide, at-home, rapid antigen testing for severe acute respiratory syndrome-coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), the cause of the COVID-19 pandemic. The primary goals of the health communication campaign were to promote awareness of the program among local residents, facilitate test kit distribution, and encourage frequent test kit use. To plan and implement the campaign, the team applied principles of social marketing. The populations of focus were adult residents of selected communities in North Carolina (Greenville, Pitt County) and Tennessee (Chattanooga, Hamilton County), with an emphasis on underserved and historically marginalized populations. Following an accelerated planning phase, the campaign included digital, out-of-home, television, and radio advertising, in addition to public relations and organic social media. Collectively, this campaign coupled with our grassroots community engagement efforts facilitated the distribution of 66 035 test kits across both communities, or more than 1.6 million at-home tests. Facebook ads were the most successful in driving online test kit orders (7.9% conversion rate in Pitt County; 8.1% conversion rate in Chattanooga), although employing a variety of marketing channels enabled reach across multiple subpopulations. Market research data indicated high program awareness but low uptake in testing. Lessons learned from campaign planning and implementation can inform future public health initiatives, including selecting the appropriate marketing mix to facilitate awareness, and collaborating with community partners and local health departments to ensure successful program execution.

Keywords: COVID-19; at-home rapid antigen testing; digital advertising; geotargeting; health communication; health equity; social marketing.

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Conflict of interest statement

The author(s) declared the following potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article: LS receives research support through her institution, the DCRI. GCS receives support through the National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences [UL1 TR002489] and National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute [K24 HL 105493–06]. MCW receives support for research from the NIH [1 U24-MD016258], National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases [HHSN272201500006I, HHSN272201300017I, 1 K24-AI143971], NICHD [HHSN275201000003I], US Food and Drug Administration [5 U18-FD006298], and industry for drug development in adults and children. The remaining authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1.
Figure 1.
Messaging evolution over the course of the program.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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