1. The goal of the RED campaign is to team up with organizations and create products in which the proceeds go towards AIDS treatment and lead us to an AIDS free generation by 2015.

2. The 8 P’s of Social Marketing


Product: The products offered by the (RED) campaign range from T-shirts sold at GAP to Beats headphones, watches, Fatboy bags, bottlecap belts, Tous bracelets, and Apple products. All products sold for the (RED) campaign are in the signature red color, and often include a (RED) logo. Portions of this product will go to the (RED) campaign, which will help combat AIDs in Africa.

Price: Prices of the products range from a $5 bracelet, a $25 T-shirt or $200 headphones to $1,650 rings.

Place: (RED) really is a nationwide campaign, with ads all over storefronts, (most notably GAP) billboards, TV ads, celebrity campaigns, magazine ads, youtube videos, etc. The focus is advertisements in the marketplace, or places such as cities and shopping malls, where people want to buy their products.

Promotion: The most notable form of promotion in the (RED) campaign is the use of advertisements. (RED) advertisements were everywhere during the height of the campaign and they spent a fortune on it. They also utilized celebrity endorsements in their advertisements to gain awareness, using recognizable figures from Bono to Oprah to Anne Hathaway. They also publicized “World AIDs Day,” which is December 1st of each year, the most recent of which they turned many world landmarks (RED), including the Sydney Opera house and the Empire State Building.

Publics: The external public, the target audience, is pretty broad: consumers. Anyone who wants any variety of products can help out in the (RED) campaign, whether if it means buying a cheap bracelet, an ipod, headphones, a bag, or jewelry. The “gatekeepers” of this campaign would be the businesses they’ve enlisted to sell (RED) products, such as GAP and Apple. They have to get these businesses to cooperate, donate, and promote them in order for their ventures to be successful. Other gatekeepers are the celebrities they’ve enlisted to endorse their campaign. Internal publics include the owner of the campaign, “the ONE campaign,” their partners in Africa, and their many partners (including Coca-cola, google, and Starbucks).

Partnership: Coca-cola, Belvedere, Tourneau, Starbucks, Girl Skateboards, Bottletop, SAP, Claro and Telcel, Apple, Nanda Home, Tous, Fatboy, FEED, Shazam, Mophie, Apple, Beats by Dre, Bugaboo, and GAP.

Purse strings:

Bono and Bobby Shriver to bring the private sector back into the fight against HIV created RED. RED is part of the ONE campaign and works in partnership with the Global Fund and many corporate partners. The financial backing for advertising has mostly come from the corporate partners who use the advertising as dual purpose for the RED campaign as well as the companies themselves.

Policy:

The RED campaign encourages those in the private sector to buy specialty products with a percentage of each sale going to the fight against HIV in Africa. The campaign aims to facilitate an AIDS free generation by 2015.

3. Evaluation:

RED’s main goal is to have almost no children born with HIV by the year 2015. Red has made great strides towards that goal by building 33 testing and treatment centers in Africa that do treatment and prevention for mothers in the area.  In terms of money, according to Ron Nixon’s 2009 New York Times article, “Yet detractors say Red has fallen short. They criticize a lack of transparency at the company and its partners over how much they make from Red products, and whether they spend more money on Africa or advertising” (Nixon 2009). 




4. News/PR

Article 1: http://www.nytimes.com/2008/02/06/business/06red.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0

The New York Times published a highly controversial article about the RED campaign, featuring drastically different perspectives.   A large portion of the public questions whether the RED campaign has done more harm than good over the years, claiming RED has spent significantly more money on advertising compared to funds received.  They also felt the commercials and advertisements encourage shopping rather than prevention, in which people responded it is better to purchase a product knowing some of the proceeds will go towards a charitable cause. To counteract the negative statements, doctors in Rwanda explained that any amount of money raised is positive and furthers treatment of AIDS in Africa. The writer provided both negative and positive opinions about the campaign, ultimately leaving it up to the reader whether they want to back the RED campaign.

Article 2 (press release): http://www.joinred.com/press_releases/redrush-to-zero-campaign-launch/

The above press release went viral on Monday May 21, 2012.  The Press Release announced the first ever “RED RUSH TO ZERO campaign, which is an event to raise funding and awareness to help deliver an AIDS free Generation by 2015.  In-person and digital events will feature brands, celebrities, gamers, music fans, and consumers. 

“The world is at a historic moment in the fight against HIV/AIDS, with the opportunity to end mother-to-child transmission of HIV and take a critical step toward defeating this global pandemic,” said Deborah Dugan, CEO of (RED). “We will only get over the finish line if we create new funding opportunities and new ways to keep people engaged and energized–(RED) will do its part by bringing business, culture, sport, and empowered women together to help empower other women and their children by ensuring that the next generation is born HIV free…”

The press release proceeds to summarize in detail the events and promotions that will take place at RED RUSH TO ZERO. Throughout the event, consumers will be given the opportunity to build on the $190 million dollars raised over the years. Additionally, the press release shared the progress RED has made over the past decade in terms of raising money for AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria.  Overall, the purpose of the press release was to share with the world the event taking place and how consumers can get involved with the donation process.

Article 3: http://mediadecoder.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/04/29/product-red-steps-up-its-efforts-with-lazarus-effect/

This article features a new campaign route RED will embark on.  Rather than tearing apart the RED campaign like many other articles, the writer describes the new and innovative ways RED has planned to bring more awareness to AIDS.  RED is launching the Lazarus Effect, which is meant to narrow in on the purpose of the RED campaign.  The purpose of Lazarus Effect is that those affected with AIDS/HIV take one pill each day that costs only 40 cents.  Noticeable, dramatic, and beneficial changes have been reported.  The campaign features many celebrities, as well as a documentary about the Lazarus Effect featured on HBO. 

5. The TV commercials were the most and least effective medium for raising AIDS awareness worldwide. There were extremely effective by raising awareness of the issue, using celebrity endorsements like Bono, Oprah, and Chris Rock. Bono and Oprah were seen picking up Red products on Michigan Avenue in Chicago, Chris Rock appeared on Motorola commercials using the slogan “Use Red, nobody’s dead,” there was also a Red Room featured at the Grammy awards, and Gap partnered with the campaign and made merchandise that featured words with (RED) at the end (words such as inspired, bored, and desired). However, all of this marketing cost a total of about $100 million and only raised a mere $18 million worldwide.

The (RED) campaign's goal is to create an AIDs free generation by 2015, by partnering with different companies and corporations and celebrities to donate money to their cause. By buying a (RED) product a portion of the proceeds will go towards combating the AIDs epidemic in Africa.