Proposal for the
Water Industry Council’s
Research & Advertising Program

The Water Industry Council (WIC) proposes to develop an advertising campaign to promote water and wastewater privatization by improving the image of the industry. This campaign, by reducing fear of public and municipal labor backlash, would make it easier for municipal leaders to opt for the significant cost savings and improved service that results from privatization

The water industry would like to be able to enjoy the same level of good reputation with the public, as do such industries as milk ("Got Milk") and cotton ("The Fabric of Our Lives"). To do so will entail a long-term strategy of years of public education through regional and national advertising campaigns.

As a first step, the WIC is proposing a plan to conduct a national survey, design preliminary draft print advertisements based on the survey research, test-market the advertising with focus groups and finalize the ads for maximum impact. At that point, the WIC will consider placing limited print advertising in target regional or demographic markets, and/or approach other water organizations to help fund a more wide-spread purchase of advertising space nationwide.

This proposal requires the financial support of the WIC member companies.

OBJECTIVES

The objectives of WIC advertising program are as follows:

• To obtain immediately usable results in the form of research, development of materials, and targeted print ad placements, all on a limited budget.
• To get to a point where the words "private" and "water" are not linked in a negative way in the minds of the general public.
• To neutralize the general public so that elected officials can propose privatization without fear of a "knee-jerk" negative backlash by the public.
• To communicate that public health is at the heart of the private water community.

PLAN ELEMENTS

The WIC Advertising Program consists of four phases. At this time, WIC is seeking funding from member companies of Phases I, II and III. Although funding for Phase IV is not being sought at this time, it is presented here so that WIC member companies can have the benefit of seeing the breadth of options that become available once Phases I, II and III have been developed.

This plan is designed such that at each phase WIC would have tangible data useful to the organization’s members and the industry as a whole – polling data, materials, focus group results, actual ads in print. The idea is that at each step with have something valuable, and each piece builds on the previous piece to give us something greater than the sum of the parts.

Phase I – Polling Research

Market research is a useful tool that can be employed for both fine-tuning the message for the advertising campaign and evaluating the impact the message has on the targeted audiences. By conducting a national survey at the outset of the project, we will gain insights about pre-existing perceptions and attitudes surrounding water quality issues and can test the salience of potential communications themes and messages. This information alone can be used by member companies to shape their own public information programs.

The poll, to be conducted by the public opinion research firm of Lauer, Lalley, Victoria Inc. (LLV), will gather hard evidence that allows us to have confidence that the materials we develop will have the right message to move the right audience. The questionnaires for the survey will take about 25 minutes to administer (approximately 100 questions), and will help us learn the: public’s thoughts and concerns by:

• testing messages for effectiveness,
• identifying which audiences respond to different messages,
• testing the image the water industry now has,
• finding out the best way to present ourselves,
• exploring what messages move people to thinking more positively about the industry,
• discovering out what messages work most effectively to counter negative messages explicit or implied about the industry,
• identifying which subsection of the population is the most appropriate target, and
• learning how they respond to different message formulations.

The poll allows WIC to know that it is spending its limited dollars in the best possible way: by creating a very focused message aimed at a specific target audience, with proof that the message will strike a chord and evoke a particular response.

The survey will be based on completed interviews with 1,200 respondents nationwide. We will develop scientific random samples that will allow us to analyze specific subgroup populations based on geography and demographics. The margin of error for a 1,200-person sample is plus or minus 2.9% at the 95% confidence level. This robust sample size is standard for national surveys of this type and sufficient for garnering credibility as statistically sound.

All interviews for the survey would be administered by trained, professional callers working in a centralized and supervised phone bank facility. Several measures would be taken to make sure we obtain samples of respondents that match the demographic characteristics of the target population. First, all calls would be administered during weekday evenings and on weekends so that we reach individuals employed outside of the home as well as retirees and homemakers. Second, up to three call-backs will be attempted in order to contact hard-to-reach respondents.

The survey would be designed to produce useable information – information that will help WIC make informed strategic decisions. We envision a number of different uses for the poll results including the following:

• Provide WIC members with information that will be instrumental in shaping an advertising campaign.
• Provide insights that will help all WIC members in their efforts to position their own companies.
• Establish a benchmark against which to measure changes in public opinion in the future.
• Provide research findings that could be used by WIC to position itself with the press, potential new members or other targeted audiences.

Deliverable: Upon completion of the survey, LLV will deliver a comprehensive written report that thoroughly discusses the findings. The report will also define target audiences for WIC communications and identify messages that work best to position the WIC.

Cost: The cost of designing and conducting this survey of the general public is $50,000.

Phase II – Develop Materials

Based on an understanding of messages and relevant issues as indicated by the nationwide survey, materials that form the components of print advertising will be developed for further testing in focus groups (Phase III). While we cannot specify the content of what will be tested in the focus groups, we can describe the tools that will be employed. The main tool uses the core elements of any creative vehicle for advertising: the essential copy and image of a clear, core message. Simple, prototype print ads, bearing primary images and headlines and a minimal amount of copy, will be designed in accordance with what the survey results indicate will be most effective with specific target audiences.

Deliverable: Draft print ads and individual ad components (images, headlines, copy) designed for presentation to focus groups.

Cost: Included in Professional Fee.

Phase III – Focus Groups

The Phase II materials will be based on a substantial amount of quantitative evidence, but the only way to be confident they hit their mark is to show them to the target audience and see what does or does not work. Using the research garnered from the national survey, the public opinion research firm of Lauer, Lalley, Victoria Inc. (LLV) will conduct a series of four focus groups in Phase III to refine WIC’s message and test a variety of print ads for use in Phase IV.

The goal will be to stimulate a qualitative discussion of the issues in order to gain insights into the language, images, and attitudes that consumers react to most powerfully when thinking about water and the Water Industry. Prototype print ads, bearing primary images and headlines and a minimal amount of copy, will be individually displayed and compared for focus group participants so that they can express their reactions without becoming bogged down in tertiary detail. Images will also be tested individually, without headlines or copy, in order to see what language participants naturally associate with images central to their experience with or impressions of the water industry.

The focus groups will be held on two separate evenings (two groups per night), and will be held in particular geographic regions and/or with particular demographics based on what the poll indicates will be the best target market. The groups will be moderated by Greg Lalley of LLV, who has extensive experience in testing messages and advertising components, including written text, slogans and tag lines, visual images, and design.

Deliverable: Upon completion of the focus groups, LLV will deliver a written report that highlights the key findings from the research and details the participants’ reactions to the creative concepts. The report will include recommendations about the message elements that WIC should incorporate into its communications efforts. In addition, the communications consultants, Joe Slade White & Company and Stearns & Douglas, will collaboratively prepare a final analysis that advises which messages work most effectively and compellingly to WIC’s target audiences, and suggests possible ways of delivering that message that will create a powerful advertising campaign.

Cost: Each focus group will be conducted at a cost of $10,000, for a total cost for Phase III (including travel) of $40,000.

 

Phase IV – Advertising Avenues

At this time, the WIC is soliciting funding for Phases I – III. However, from the totality of the market research and the advertising concepts developed along the way, the WIC will have the opportunity to consider several advertising avenues in Phase IV, depending upon the will of the member companies and the strategic value of each advertising. The WIC presents options of Phase IV so that contributing companies will have the benefit of knowing the full vision of this project in its entirety.

Among the wide advertising possibilities available to the WIC at this stage, there are three presented here for consideration:

Hold Our Fire – At this point in the program, the WIC will possess the knowledge, backed by solid quantitative and qualitative data, of how to deliver a highly compelling message that will strike the right chord with our target audiences. The WIC can determine at the appropriate time whether to move forward with creative development and placement of these ads. But even if it does nothing further, member companies will have access to this valuable information, which can help refine and shape their own corporate advertising. There is no added cost for this option.

Make a Big Splash – Ideally, the WIC would like to run a sustained national advertising campaign that penetrates hearts and minds to the point where the water industry is on par with the milk ("Got Milk?") and cotton ("The Fabric of Our Lives") industries. It will take years to reach this level of public perception, but the first step begins with prominently placed print ads in major national "opinion maker" publications over an extended period of time. This option would require a major financial commitment on the scale of several hundred thousand per company.

Lay Down Our Marker – In the variety of advertising avenues that WIC could pursue in Phase IV, the "Lay Down Our Marker" option is considered First Among Equals by the WIC Media Committee that developed this proposal. Keeping the goal of a "Big Splash" national advertising campaign in mind, but recognizing that the WIC cannot fund it alone, the "Lay Down Our Marker" strategy is designed to garner financial support from other interested parties such as NAWC or the Urban Water Council by demonstrating how effective such a campaign can be.

The WIC would run a targeted flight of advertising that looks like it is aimed at the general public, but is actually placed in publications that will reach the various trade groups that we want to invite to participate in a jointly funded advertising effort. The ads will be timed to coincide with these groups’ major national conferences to help generate a "buzz" within the industry. This one flight of ads will demonstrate that the WIC is serious about moving forward with this campaign, allows them to see the visual impact in print (ads will be placed in prominent locations within the publications for maximum visibility), will establish the WIC’s reputation as an industry leader, and is backed up with hard evidence (poll and focus group research) demonstrating the campaign’s effectiveness. In this manner, each phase builds upon each other – survey research, creative concept and design, focus group research, and actual ads in print – to develop a persuasive case for why other groups should want to join the WIC in funding a large-scale advertising effort. This "Lay Down Our Marker" option would require a financial commitment in the $15,000-$20,000 range per company.

PUBLIC RELATIONS

As a corollary to this media plan, there are public relations opportunities for WIC that can be conducted at two stages: (1) after the poll, and/or (2) after the initial run of ads.

Issuing selected results of the poll can serve many purposes – it could generate news stories about public opinions about private water, which gives us the opportunity to deliver our message about quality and value; it establishes WIC as a significant organization doing valuable research on the topic; and it is a way to tantalize other companies or industry groups by letting them know we hold valuable insight into the industry that they do not, and it would behoove them to join us.

We can promote the entire ad campaign and hope to get a news story about the effort. Trade publications would likely pick up the story, but it is not unheard-of for more mainstream press to tune in as well, which gives the ads themselves extra placement mileage by appearing in publications (in news stories) other than those in which we purchased ad space.

 

TIMELINE and SUMMARY OF COSTS

March/April Conduct national survey (1200 sample, 25 minutes) $50,000

May Develop draft print advertisements Included in Professional Fee

June/July Conduct four focus groups at $10,000 apiece $40,000

Finalize advertisements

 Professional Fee $30,000

Payable in $5,000 monthly installments over a period of six months from initiation of the project.

TOTAL – Phases I, II & III $120,000

COST PER COMPANY $20,000

At this time, the WIC is looking for a financial commitment of $20,000 from each of the six companies that make up the WIC Board of Directors (American Anglian, EarthTech, OMI, Severn Trent, United Water and US Water). The WIC will pursue funding for this program from other potential stakeholder companies, such as national and large regional water/wastewater companies and substantial members of support industries. Should this additional funding become available, the WIC member companies’ contributions would be reduced accordingly.

CAPABILITIES

LLV has considerable experience conducting research in each of the following areas:

• Marketing/Customer Satisfaction. LLV conducts research to help companies and organizations develop customer profiles, evaluate customer satisfaction, test reaction to products and services, and measure demand. The research is used to shape marketing and advertising strategies.
  
• Advertising Research. LLV has broad experience in developing and testing advertising themes and messages. The company uses a variety of survey research techniques to evaluate advertising effectiveness – methods which measure reach, penetration, and retention of advertising messages. In addition, LLV has developed focus group techniques which allow rapid pre-testing of a large number of media concepts prior to production of television, radio or print advertising.
  
• Image Testing. LLV studies the public image of organizations to determine knowledge levels and attitudinal differences of key audiences and constituencies. These research efforts have been incorporated into long range plans to position organizations more strategically.
  
• Public Policy. LLV's policy research is designed to assess public attitudes toward complex policy options and to find effective ways to communicate policy approaches to the public. Our research has also focused on assessing attitudes among decision makers and opinion shapers on key public policy issues.
  
• Membership Research. LLV has designed and conducted extensive studies to determine demographic characteristics, perceptions, lifestyles and attitudes of diverse memberships. Such research is used to enhance development activities, fine-tune direct mail appeals, structure education and communications campaigns, recruit new members and improve programs and services.
  
• Political Polling. LLV specializes in the design and analysis of comprehensive research programs for candidate and initiative campaigns. Such research integrates polling, focus groups, demographic research and electoral targeting.

The firm employs four principal techniques for gathering market research and public opinion data: telephone interviews, in-person interviews, mailed questionnaires and focus group discussions. Since each has particular applications and advantages, LLV custom designs every research project to the needs of its clients. On most studies, LLV designs and executes all phases of the research project. Based on a thorough understanding of the client's needs, LLV determines the most efficient sampling strategy. LLV then prepares the interview questionnaire (or focus group outline), collects the data, analyzes the results and presents strategic recommendations for translating findings into action.

The firm's top analysts – Jim Lauer, Greg Lalley and Donna Victoria – have over 40 years of combined experience working in the research field. Each has extensive experience in study design, implementation and analysis. They have a reputation for:

PARTIAL CLIENT LIST

GREGORY B. LALLEY

Gregory Lalley is a principal and co-founder of Lauer, Lalley, Victoria Inc. (LLV), a national public opinion and marketing research firm established in 1985. He has designed and managed hundreds of opinion research projects for a wide spectrum of political, association, government and business clients. Not only has Mr. Lalley designed and analyzed surveys for numerous political candidates including the 1992 Clinton for President Campaign, he has also provided strategic research for clients as diverse as The Nature Conservancy, the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority, the New Republic magazine, the Public Broadcasting Service, the Greater Washington Board of Trade.

Mr. Lalley has extensive experience conducting focus groups and surveys for image assessment, issue and program prioritization, direct mail testing and concept testing. Mr. Lalley directed a project for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting to assess public perceptions of public TV and radio. He has been fully involved in numerous projects for the United Auto Workers in which research was used to shape multi-million dollar nationwide television and print advertising campaigns. Mr. Lalley has also worked extensively with the National Parks and Conservation Association to help integrate research findings into the organizations communications, member outreach and fund raising operations. In addition, he has worked with the American Association for the Advancement of Science, New York Public Library, the Soil Conservation Service and the National Museum of Women in the Arts.

CAPABILITIES

Ads that cut through the clutter eliminate waste. It’s that simple. This year, dozens of advertisers will waste hundreds of thousands of dollars on ads that are mediocre, badly produced, or wrong headed, and then they’ll waste millions more on media buys that are thrown together in an hour and fail to target persuadable viewers.

Our ads cut through today’s clutter of advertising and connect to viewers with the power of genuine emotion. By controlling the dialogue, our ads build momentum, and, viewed in their totality, form a coherent message strategy.

We believe every one of our ads must do the work of two. The best spots are not easy. If they were, everyone would do them.

In addition to media consulting, Joe Slade White & Company is a full service public relations consulting firm offering services to political and corporate clients. Available services include designing and implementing full scale public relations campaigns from identifying client advertising goals, performing relevant research, and designing and delivering products in such advertising media as print, direct mail, radio and television.

(Listed Alphabetically by State)

American Seafoods – Alaska

Statewide Hospital Initiative – Alaska

AT&T – California

"No on Proposition W" Initiative – California

"No on School Vouchers" Initiative – Colorado

Democratic State Senate Coordinated Campaign – Connecticut

Florida Association of Broadcasters – Florida

International Association of Fire Fighters Local 2057 – Florida

"Open Door Government" Initiative – Florida

The "Orlando Magic" N.B.A. Basketball Team – Florida

"Campaign for Sensible Transportation" Initiative – Maine

Democratic Coordinated Campaign – Michigan

Missouri Riverboat Gambling Initiative – Missouri

AFL-CIO film for Clinton-Gore – Nationwide

The League of Conservation Voters – Nationwide

Democratic Coordinated Campaign – New Jersey

AT&T– New York

Citizens Against the Constitutional Convention – New York

Hospital Workers Union 1199 – New York

The Portland Trailblazers – Oregon

Anti-Term Limits Initiative – Washington

Harborview Hospital Initiative – Washington

"No on 602" (Spending Cap) Initiative – Washington

Citizens for Seattle Streets – Washington

Regional Transit Initiative – Washington

Seattle Alliance for Education – Washington

Seattle Mariners Stadium Initiative – Washington

Seattle Seahawks Stadium Initiative – Washington

Joe Slade White – President

A native of Carroll, Iowa, Joe began his career at the age of 21, while still a senior at Georgetown University, as a member of Senator George McGovern’s 1972 Presidential Campaign traveling staff. He created a new system to distribute audio news releases by phone to radio stations that became known as radio actualities. His place on the presidential campaign’s traveling staff also earned him a spot as the youngest person on President Richard Nixon’s infamous "White House Enemies List." Following the campaign, Joe served as Senator McGovern’s Press Secretary.

At the age of 23, Joe left the Senate staff to start his own political consulting firm, first specializing in radio ads for Democratic candidates, and then adding television ads in 1980. In his first season as a television consultant, his fellow professionals in the American Association of Political Consultants (A.A.P.C.) named one of his television spots as the "Best Democratic Television Spot in the Nation." Since then, Joe Slade White has won more awards for excellence in television and radio at the A.A.P.C.’s Pollie Awards than any other media consultant. In a study based on the difficulty of consultants’ campaigns, "Campaign Magazine" called Joe Slade White and Company one of the "Four Most Effective Consulting Firms in the Country."

Jay Neel – Vice President

After his graduation from Gettysburg College, Jay began his career as a Management Intern with the Commerce Department during President Lyndon Johnson’s Administration. Following stints with the Treasury and Energy Departments, Jay culminated his Executive Branch career as Deputy Staff Director of the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights.

For the past seven years before joining the firm, Jay served as Chief of Staff to U.S. Representative Chet Edwards (D-TX) who is a member of the House of Representatives Democratic Leadership team and a member of the House Appropriations Committee. While in Representative Edwards’ office, Jay took two leaves of absence to work on U.S. Senator Chris Dodd’s 1992 re-election, as well as the Connecticut Clinton and Coordinated Campaigns, and U.S. Representative Mike Andrews’ (D-TX) run for the U.S. Senate in 1994.

STEARNS AND DOUGLAS

CAPABILITIES

JAMIE "BUSTER" DOUGLAS

As Creative Director and Senior Vice President of Campaign Performance Group from 1991 to 1997, Douglas helped the firm become one of the dominant persuasion direct mail companies in the country, winning several targeted campaigns on local, state, and federal levels and winning more than 20 "Pollie" awards for strategic and creative excellence.

From 1986 to 1990, Douglas was the managing editor of Metamorphoses, an award-winning west-coast based general interest magazine, which the Washington Post called "disarmingly thoughtful, straightforward fare…that dares to be different." Douglas wrote profiles on subjects as diverse as Larry King, Noam Chomsky, and Norman Cousins.