Advertising is an effective method of informing people of the dangers of smoking, and of making them aware of the help available if they want to quit. But there are many different types of advertisement, and many different audiences. These reports look at particular campaigns and their effectiveness.

• Graphic Warnings - Do they Work?
• It's about whānau - Targetted Media Campaigns
• The Adrian Campaign - hard-hitting ads, graphic pack warnings
• The Tipping Point - Quitting Motivations and Barriers

Graphic Warnings - Do They Work?

Graphic warnings on tobacco products were introduced in New Zealand on 28 February 2008 and retailers had up to six months to comply. The warnings cover 30% of the front and 90% of the back of the packaging. Each warning label contains a picture depicting health effect(s) caused by smoking, and is enhanced by a warning message printed in both English and te reo Māori. Another positive aspect of the new warnings is a supportive cessation message included on the back of the packaging with the quitline number.
The results indicate that the average number of new monthly registrations increased from 1517 before the introduction of the new warnings to 1729. Furthermore, from January 2008 onwards, there was a continuous increase in the percentage of new callers obtaining the quitline number from tobacco product packaging.

It's about whānau - Targetted Media Campaigns

This paper assesses the effects among Māori smokers and their whānau (the traditional Māori family unit) of a campaign called It's about whanau which was designed to support Māori smokers to quit smoking. Seventy-eight per cent of smokers and 73% of whānau were able to recall the campaign one year following its launch.
The television commercials (TVCs) were consistently rated very believable or very relevant by over half of the smokers who had seen them. More than half of smokers (54%) stated that the campaign had made them more likely to quit. This nationwide mass media cessation campaign developed to deliver a cessation message to indigenous people was received positively by Māori smokers and their whānau and played a role in prompting quit attempts.

The Adrian Campaign - hard-hitting ads, graphic pack warnings

The Pack Warnings television campaign was designed to compliment the introduction of pictorial health warnings on cigarette and tobacco packets in New Zealand. The Pack Warnings TVC campaign (the Adrian ad) was launched at the beginning of June 2008. The objectives of the Pack Warnings Ad Impact Evaluation were to determine the extent to which the Adrian ad reach the intended audiences; the extent to which the intended audiences understand the messages from the Adrian ad; the extent to which the intended audiences perceive the Adrian ad messages are credible; and the extent to which the intended audiences take action as a result of seeing the Adrian ad (e.g. calling Quitline, quitting smoking, discussing quitting smoking with a health professional).

The Tipping Point - Quitting Motivations and Barriers

This research provides insights and information about quitting that could be used in future media and communications campaigns, and wider strategy and initiative development. The 'tipping point' model was used as the foundation for the research analysis. At the tipping point, the downsides of smoking and/or the benefits of quitting outweigh the benefits of smoking, and/or the downsides of quitting.