Smoking has been a public scourge for generations in Thailand. For the past 20 years, the Thai Health Promotion Foundation has operated and aggressively promoted free hotline, “1600 Quitline” to help smokers kick the habit. Despite the high investment, the number of calls remained considerably low. Smokers either ignored the campaigns or didn't give the key message much thought. The campaigns failed to create attention that led to long-term behavioral change.

Instead of using scare tactics or emotional cues to convince smokers to call 1600 Quitline, the Smoking Kid campaign employed a new approach called “Inside-Out Reflection.” The smokers found themselves in a situation in which their own voice served as the warning message, thus creating a "self-awakening" moment. Online media was used as a direct channel to communicate with smokers on a personal level.

With a budget of just $5,000 and no media spending, Smoking Kid had an enormous impact that touched smokers and non-smokers alike. The campaign not only became the most effective ever for the THPF, but also generated massive buzz around the world. Smokers far beyond Thailand's borders experienced their own "inside-out reflection" moment, sparking a global conversation and providing inspiration to many looking to give up smoking once and for all.

We created 3-step communication platforms, beginning with direct experiences, turning into a social trend.

Step 1: Experiment

We designed the experiment to happen at the most critical moment - during the act of smoking to create a ‘self-awakening’ moment, forcing them to reflect on their behavior.

Super: Step 2: Online

We recreated the same intimate experience for a wide audience of smokers online. The clip reached more than millions views in first 3 days and hit 5 million in 10 days and still rising. Sparked online conversations in over 30 countries with tens of thousands of comments from viewers all over the world

Step 3: Contagion

We brought the conversations back into the offline world. VDO Clip was picked up by many Thais mass media outlets. Moreover, media outlets around the globe recognized Smoking kid as a model campaign

Spurring action for Thai smokers

The campaign was able to create a measurable behaviour change. The number of completed calls went from an average of 7,057 per month from January to May, to 11461 in June, an increase of 62%. This marked a new high and outperformed all of THPF's previous anti-smoking campaigns over the past 20 years.

Moreover, after the launching period on July, the average number of monthly calls through November was 9321, up 32% from pre-launching levels. This sustained higher number of calls meant that other media advertising the 1600 Quitline was no longer invisible to smokers.

Far Outperforming Previous Campaigns

• Cost of investment per call was substantially reduced from an average of $1.5 million to $5,000 (only required production cost with zero media cost)

• With no media spending, the campaign eventually generated incredibly high earned media valued at $USD 3.2 million within one month.

Influencing smokers both locally and globally with a universal message

The video became a viral sensation and helped to spark a worldwide conversation. Some journalists, industry analysts and netizens were calling it the "most effective anti-smoking ad ever." The video was viewed more than a million times within the first three days and more than 5 million times within 10 days.

Scores of local and international media outlets reported on the video. This included Al Jazeera, Reuters, Financial Times, New York Daily News, Adweek, Arab News, Chicago Tribune, Deccan Chronicle from India, and Philstar from the Philippines. The clip was shared in 30 countries, and was mentioned in more than 20,000 posts on social media and blogs.