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November 14, 2007, 10:35 AM ET
Social Marketer Responds To Critics
A Boston Globe article critical of social marketing — charity efforts to advertise and sell mosquito nets and other health products — is being questioned by a leading advocate of the practice on his blog.
The newspaper cited two recent studies that say that whilet social marketers believe in charging a minimal cost to show the products’ value, the fees actually lower the number of needy people who use the beneficial items.
But R. Craig Lefebvre, chief technical officer at Population Services International, a Washington group that is a strong proponent of social marketing, writes that the article deals with abstract issues, not practical ones.
If nonprofit groups were to forgo the income they receive as part of social marketing, “I wonder where all the resources will come from and what the trade-offs would be,” he writes on his blog, On Social Marketing and Social Change. “We should be talking about realities, not ideologies, and seeking practical and sustainable approaches to improving the health and social conditions of poor and vulnerable peoples.”
And while the Globe article mentions Population Services International’s success in distributing condoms in Africa, Mr. Lefebvre wonders how fair a shake social marketing received.
“While the balanced part of the piece does include some proponents calling for complementarity in strategies, the media advocate in me realizes that when your opponent gets the first and last word in, the reporter’s mind was made up.”
What do you think? Is social marketing a worthwhile practice to help needy people? Or should health products be provided free? Click on the comments link below this post to share your thoughts.
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