Childhood Obesity in Georgia and Communicating a Healthy Society

Apathy concerning the epidemic of childhood obesity is crumbling under the weight of public outcry over a new ad campaign by Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta: the Stop Childhood Obesity campaign depicts the health and emotional problems brought on by the disease. It was recently launched in Georgia because, according to Linda Matzigkeit at Children’s Healthcare, “We felt like we needed a very arresting, abrupt campaign that said: Hey, Georgia! Wake up. This is a problem.” According to Children’s Healthcare, Georgia ranks second in the nation with the highest rate of childhood obesity. Many critics believe the ads do nothing but make fat kids feel worse about themselves and lead them to withdraw even more into bad eating and activity habits. I believe the campaign will be a success for two reasons. Firstly, it shows kids that they should take ownership of their body and lifestyle and seek their parents support in getting to a healthy weight. As an obese Middle-schooler myself, I was the one who approached my Mom about joining Weight Watchers. I’m sure more kids would take the same kind of action if they were inspired to do so. Perhaps this ad campaign can do that. Secondly, I believe in this campaign because it gives parents a much needed electric shock, waking them up to address the problem and take responsibility for the health of their family.

Marsha Davis, who researches child obesity prevention at the University of Georgia said, “If we want to get attention [and] say obesity is a problem, maybe [the campaign] will be effective. In terms of the social stigma about weight — it might actually make people feel worse about that…We need to fight obesity, not obese people.” I disagree, the fact is human behavior is causing obesity and we need people to realize that they’re killing themselves with poor nutrition and lack of exercise. We need to recognize childhood obesity as an issue and not continue to sweep it under the rug. Just like Isabelle Caro, the anorexic super model, used a billboard to bring attention to her disease brought on by human behavior, so too will Georgia’s obesity ad campaign.

Critics like Marsha Davis fear the Obesity campaign makes children feel worse about themselves. She wrongly assumes that the fear of not belonging, poor health, and low self-esteem, all caused by obesity, are not effective motivators to change human behavior.  The objective of the campaign is not to make Georgians aware of an obesity epidemic, that’s old news; the goal is to get people to do something about it –for children to seek support and for parents to regiment their family’s lifestyle. There is no better way to do this than with a campaign executed to shock everyone out of their stupor and take responsibility for their behaviors.

Through policies designed to increase economic development, the government has encouraged big businesses to propagate unhealthy foods and lifestyles. In turn, these businesses have used the power of advertising to create a Culture of Obesity in this country. Perhaps Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta’s campaign can shift the momentum just a bit by using the power of advertising for good.

How to Create a Personal Brand

The problem with personal branding experts is that they don’t know what a brand is. They can rattle off tactics of how to get noticed: social media, QR codes, designed resumes, websites, etc; but they can’t explain what a personal brand is or how to develop one.

Creating a brand is hard because brands are intangible. A slogan, logo, avatar, website or Twitter feed is not a brand; they are physical manifestations of a brand.

How do you create a brand if it is abstract?

Simple. Find out what your purpose is.

A brand is the reason behind why you exist. It is the higher calling that inspires your actions. It is a promise lived with conviction, connection, and consistency.

Below is the format I used to create my personal brand promise, my blueprint for why I matter in the world and how I should behave.

Brand Purpose

Brand Mission (my higher calling)

Solve problems by understanding people

Brand Positioning (the way I want my audience to think about me)

To marketing professionals, Thom Pulliam is the innovative thinker who makes brands interesting and relevant to consumers.

Brand Personality (the style by which I communicate and how I would like to be perceived)

Connected, sharp, clever, amusing

Brand Affiliation (the way my audience feels about themselves when interacting with my brand)

Forward thinking, adroit, daring marketers

A brand promise should feel true to its owner and be as differentiated from the competition as possible. Once you craft your personal brand promise, use it to guide the way you execute your brand. It should be the litmus test for everything you consider doing.

Brand promises are meant to be kept internal and used to inspire the identity and communications of your brand, they are not intended to serve as verbatim external marketing communications.

Bad Business, FroYo in December

The Frozen Yogurt trend has finally penetrated the deep south. I was first introduced to the sweet stuff in New York this summer at places like Pinkberry and Red Mango. When I returned to Athens, GA for fall semester I couldn’t help but notice two new stores: Yoguri downtown and Yoforia at 5 Points. It was as if a tasty part of the city had followed me home!

But, now I’m on Winter break in the fringes of Atlanta’s suburban wasteland of Gwinnett county. Every where I turn I see a new FroYo place dotting the strip malls of Snellville, Grayson and Loganville.  And, they’re not places I’ve ever heard of either. They’re all mom and pop operations who think that selling frozen treats in winter is a solid business plan.

If I were to open a FroYo shop I would do it in early spring. Introduce it to the community early on and build up a base of consumers during the hot Georgia summer months. Then, come November, disappear.  Capitalize on demand 7 months of the year, operate as a pop up store and close when the temperature drops.