Out of Home advertising is increasingly useful nowadays. Its benefits are not just experienced in the corporate sector, but also in the public sector. The public health contributions of billboard advertising was widely observed when the Australian Government Department of Health partnered with the outdoor industry in the early part of the year.

The Outdoor Media Association has received a lot of praise and compliment from various groups and industries as it showed its commitment in promoting public awareness about current issues and events affecting our daily lives. Disregarding any billboard prices or costs associated with the health promotion campaign, the OMA willingly allocated a maximum of $3 million annually for this movement.

What Is the National Health Wellbeing Policy?

The OMA has actively supported Australia’s National Health Wellbeing Policy which aimed to address the alarming rate of obesity and overweight in the country. The initiative was conceptualised and kickstarted with the aim of lessening the exposure of Australians to unhealthy food and beverages.

Instead of featuring discretionary products on its billboards and other outdoor promotional materials, the association launches advertisements that inspire the residents to pump the vegetables and other healthy foods to their snacks and regular meals. The OMA also ensures to lessen the appearance of discretionary beverage and food promotional materials near schools.

Public and Government Response to OMA Campaign

Our household is one of the many families in Sydney who were inspired by the support shown by OMA for the public health campaign. The OOH advertising campaign, named “Add an extra handful of veggies, ran for almost a month and has successfully reached millions of Australians.

Several known public personalities have expressed their gratitude to the efforts and commitment shown by OMA in the initiative. In an interview, Australian Minister for Health Hon Greg Hunt MP mentioned how happy the government is with its partnership with the association. He praised the OMA for successfully leveraging their expertise in the OOH industry to push a positive health difference to all the Australian households.

How did the public respond to the campaign? The OMA has immediately conducted a survey to assess the public’s response to its Add an extra handful of veggies initiative. Below are the top results that the association found from the survey.

  • The OMA initiative is memorable as 50% of respondents remembered the campaign.
  • The campaign has nearly reached the home run for parents. Survey results showed that the campaign encouraged over 85% of parent respondents to add vegetables to their families’ meals while there are 80% who were inspired to ensure that they make better food choices for their kids.

People spread the good news. According to the survey, 65% of the respondents who remembered the OMA initiative shared the information with others.