CHALLENGE

Chlamydia, the most common sexually transmitted infection in England, is particularly prevalent in young people. Yet only 20 percent of local authorities met the annual detection targets set by Public Health England. Testing rates were particularly low among young adults aged 16-24. BD challenged APCO to develop a campaign to reverse this trend.

SOLUTION

APCO created a pilot campaign with East Riding of Yorkshire—an area with particularly low testing rates—and its sexual health care service, Conifer. Targeting young people aged 16-24, we created a digital strategy using humour and pop culture to raise awareness of chlamydia screening. Partnering with former Love Island contestant, Dr. Alex George, an NHS doctor who frequently covers health and wellbeing topics on his social media profiles with over 1.3m followers on Instagram, we created a content calendar coinciding with both the end of Love Island and Sexual Health Awareness Month. We adapted common Love Island phrases to address sexual health with funny and engaging content, always emphasising the importance of getting tested and linking to testing sites.

RESULTS

The campaign smashed expectations, with over 775k impressions and 25k video views in the first months. On Instagram, our posts were shared a total of 125 times, and we increased the account’s following by 140 percent. Following the launch of the campaign, East Riding saw test requests increase more than 2.5 times compared to pre-campaign levels. The number increased further the following month, showing the staying power of the outreach. Based on the success of this campaign, BD is working with Public Health England to replicate this success in other areas of the country.