Detect Cancer Earlier Marketing Campaign: Evaluation Report 2024/2025

11. Campaign Evaluation

Phase Three

Pre and post campaign evaluation research was carried out online by an independent research agency.

Questions were asked of adults aged 40+ in the C2DE social grades, sourced from online research panels. The pre-wave sample size was 596 people; post-wave 522 people. The data was weighted by age, social grade and region to ensure that the results were representative of the target audience and consistent between waves.

Fieldwork dates were as follows: Pre wave: 31 July until 10 August 2024; Post wave: 2 until 14 September 2024.

Summary

Among the target audience, four out of five of the campaign SMART objectives were met or exceeded, illustrating excellent awareness of the campaign and action being taken as a result of it.

SMART objectives set, and results achieved versus targets are provided below.

*pp stands for percentage points.

While the objective ‘to increase the proportion of the target audience who disagree that they wouldn’t want to find out if they had cancer, because they would be worried about the impact on their family’, was missed, changing entrenched attitudes and beliefs such as fear around cancer will take time and repeated exposure to positive messaging. This indicates a need to continue efforts to shift these long-held attitudes.

Further results:

• Three in five (59%) of those spontaneously aware of any advertising/publicity on getting checked early for cancer described something potentially linked to the campaign.
• TV/ video was the primary driver of recognition when prompted, with 56% saying they had seen the 40 second film on TV, catch-up TV or video-on-demand. Out of home advertising was recognised by 37%, social media by 36% and the STV ad break takeover by 34%.
• There was good multi-channel recognition: almost half (47%) of the total sample recognised 2+ channels, and more than one third (35%) recognised 3+.
• The campaign message was clear and well understood; the main message take-out was ‘get checked/get checked early’, mentioned by more than two thirds (68%).
• The campaign achieved high levels of engagement: the engagement metric (RUSTIC-M^[6]) was 84% (unchanged since the last time the campaign ran).
• The campaign drove reported action among recognisers, exceeding the target. The most common actions, from a prompted list, were deciding to take up any screening tests offered (35%) and deciding to contact their GP practice if unusual/persistent changes to health were noticed in future (34%).
• The campaign successfully communicated the key benefits of detecting cancer early: recognisers were more likely to identify all three of the benefits of early detection highlighted in the campaign (26% vs 23% of non-recognisers); and increases were also seen at the post wave.

Other key metrics (including paid-for-media and website)

• Paid-for media: Paid-for media reached 91.1% of the target audience of C2DE adults 40+, giving them nine opportunities to see or hear the campaign on average, with 72.6% having the opportunity to see or hear the campaign three or more times.
• Community roadshow: 64 hours of field activity in shopping centres resulted in 1,205 deep engagements (three or more minutes) and 2,020 light engagements (less than three minutes). This resulted in a total of 3,225 engagements, exceeding the target for engagements by 139%.
• Website: There were 3,684 active users^[7] of the website during the campaign period (496% increase compared with May 2024^[8] when there was no campaign live) and 3,211 visits to the symptom checker tool on the website (3,468% increase from May 2024), with 68% of all website visitors engaging with it^[9].

Phase four

Evaluation research was not used to evaluate phase four, due to the smaller scale of activity. SMART objectives set, and results achieved versus targets are provided below. All five of the campaign SMART objectives were exceeded.

Further detail has been provided below.

• Paid media: Paid media reached 71.7% of the target audience of C2DE adults 40+, giving them 4.6 opportunities to see or hear the campaign on average, with 41.6% having the opportunity to see or hear the campaign three or more times.
• Community roadshow: 120 hours of field activity in Asda stores resulted in 1,920 deep engagements (three or more minutes) and 3,330 light engagements (less than three minutes). This resulted in a total of 5,250 engagements, exceeding the target for engagements by 95%.
• Website: There were 4,137 active users of the website during the campaign period (320% increase compared with previous month^[10] when there was no campaign live). There was a 12% increase in active users of the website when compared with the previous campaign period (August 2024). There were 2,767 visits to the symptom checker tool on the website (1,158% increase from February 2025), with 52% of all website visitors engaging with it^[11].