MY QUITBUDDY

TitleMY QUITBUDDY
BrandAUSTRALIAN NATIONAL PREVENTIVE HEALTH AGENCY
Product / ServiceSMOKING CESSATION
CategoryA02. Mobile Applications and other Downloadable Tools
EntrantUM Sydney, AUSTRALIA
Entrant Company UM Sydney, AUSTRALIA
Media Agency UM Sydney, AUSTRALIA

Credits

Name Company Position
James Filmer Um Australia Chief Innovation Officer

Brief Explanation

Background Smoking is the largest preventable cause of death and disease in Australia killing 15,000 people every year. Whilst 96% of Australians are aware of its harmful consequences, and the vast majority have tried to quit at least once in the past, only 4% to 7% of quit attempts are successful without medicines or other help. To help the Australian National Preventive Health Agency (ANPHA) reduce the prevalence of smoking in Australia we decided to use media not just to provoke people into quitting, but to nurture them through every part of their quit attempt. Development My QuitBuddy is an innovative iPhone and Android app that combines a careful blend of motivational functionality to nurture people through their quit attempt. Rational-orientated functionality focuses on the health benefits. Emotional functionality leverages the positive influence of friends and family. Social functionality connects people going through the same journey. And gamification functionality breaks down the herculean task of quitting into a series of attainable achievements. Rational •Live counters. See every day, hour and minute achieved smoke-free, corresponding milligrams of chemicals avoided, and dollars saved. •Visual health. Witness recovery through a human body infographic visually healing over time. •Danger times. Set key times for My QuitBuddy to get in touch e.g. Friday night work drinks. Emotional •My goals. Record personal goals in pictures, words or audio messages e.g. “You can do it Daddy!”. Social •Community notes. Share progress and quit tips with others on the same journey. •Buddy Up. Nominate friends and family to call in times of need. Gamification •Distractions. Keep fingers occupied through distraction tips and the ‘Fruit Sorter’ mini game. •Recovery levels. Unlock ‘recovery levels’ e.g. “After 2 weeks tobacco has faded from your fingers”. •Personal best. If a lifetime of being smoke-free is too distant a goal, aim for a new ‘high score’. Results My QuitBuddy’s unique approach to anti-tobacco advertising generated over $750k of equivalent media value. It’s been featured on 5,000 lifestyle sites and attracted extensive TV coverage. Take-up has been astounding with 200,000 downloads across iPhone and Android –7% of all Australian smokers. 4,800,000 sessions have been registered –an incredible 5 years’ of cumulative support time. Its value is demonstrated by the 4.5 star iTunes rating. Just select ‘Most Recent’ to see the difference being made to people’s lives. Most importantly, 39% of users are managing to stay quit –a staggering 800% increase on standard success rates.

Links

Entry URL