OVERVIEW

In a modern yet in some ways stereotypical culture, Sport Englands This Girl Can campaign
was simple, bold and strikingly effective. The campaign is today on the threshold of claiming
long term behaviour change in women across the U.K. which is unprecedented and of
paramount importance for the future of families and of wider society. Whilst all the objectives
and partnerships were U.K. focused, the campaign received global attention demonstrating the
effectiveness of the language used across different markets. One of very few truly data driven
campaigns, top line results include; 47 awards (including the Glass Lion: Lion for Change at
Cannes), 37million reached through the advert, 660,000 tweets and #ThisGirlCan used every
day including Christmas Day 2015. Participation numbers were staggering; 2.8 million women
exercised because of the campaign and for 1.6 million this was the first time ever.

WHAT DID THIS CAMPAIGN HAVE THAT OTHERS DIDNT?

1) AN EFFECTIVE PILOT STUDY
Selected for its similarity in demographic, Bury, Manchester, was host to the pilot for the
campaign. A strategic leaflet was created using relatable imagery and designed to simplify
how to get involved in local activities. Support from community and business partners along
with NGBs was secured in order to assist in funding, raise awareness and to change the way
sporting opportunities were presented.

Results exceeded expectations with 7,500 people getting involved and multiple sharable insights
to integrate into the planning of the national equivalent.
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Convenience, affordability and quality of the activities on offer should be front of mind.
When looking at such a wide demographic (all women 14yrs 40yrs) with no common
fitness level or standard of health, activity and inactivity are not clearly defined;
everyone should be treated as individuals with unique goals.
Language and energy can be used to change perception and culture, women who
previously thought they were just destined to be inactive, started to believe it was
possible and even fun.
Whilst women are the target, male familial support also proved very positive, as was
effective coaching and provision of resource.

2) CREATION OF THIS GIRL CAN USING OBSERVED DATA AND INSIGHTS

The I will if you will ripple effect observed in Bury led to the targeting of high footfall areas
nationally; OOH, Cinema, Bus Stops etc. The budget only allowed for 9 weeks of ATL
campaigning so heavy focus was placed on the social media plan. Over 7,000 partners were
sourced who supported the campaign and assisted with the generation of resources. Key
partnerships included M&S with bespoke clothing range, interlinking campaign with style and
allowing participants to belong, and Sport Relief, who helped to provide scale and
endorsements in the form of comedians. For effective behaviour change, there had to be as
few barriers to entry as possible, so the campaign couldnt be dependent on clubs/pre-defined
structures.

3) LOCAL AMPLIFICATION AND JOINT INVESTMENT OF TIME AND RESOURCE

As one of the England wide network of County Sports Partnerships, Active Devon are charged
with making national policy programs and investment work at a local level they recognised
the strength and relevance of the This Girl Can early on and wanted to bring it to life in a
geographically focused way.
Firstly, inspirational and real/relatable ambassadors were chosen to drive public awareness and
key imagery/ buzz words were used across P.R., newspaper articles, T.V., online videos, radio and
social media.
Secondly, two workshops were set up to equip key contacts with the tools and tips to engage
inactive women in local activities and in the This Girl Can ethos. Attendees included; teachers,
college sports coaches, leisure providers, maternity nurses etc. This train the trainer approach
proved highly valuable with 97% positive feedback.
Using these educated role models within the community, two spin off projects came into effect
early last year Just Like Me and Active Cycling Mums. The former facilitated running clubs
or activity programs within hairdresser or beautician organisations in a low pressure fun
environment, the latter promoted cycling as the primary mode of transport where possible. Both

were highly successful with significant numbers of women confident enough to take part when
previously they had defined themselves as simply inactive people,
Ultimately, Active Devon showed that localizing activation maximises the impact of national
campaigns and is necessary for complete saturation of regional markets. Investment in activity
provision at a local level provides significantly more bang for buck if integrated with a national
campaign that shares the same objectives. Finally, scheduled train the trainer workshops were
very well received and a cost-effective way to maximise reach and awareness across the area.

SUMMARY AND WHATS NEXT?

The role that data and insights from the pilot study played cannot be under-estimated and a
campaign of such scale would not have been sustainable without the support and funding from
commercial and delivery partners.
There is no shortage of research or expertise on the kind of exercise we should be doing to
combat obesity or poor health, this is popular subject matter. What sets This Girl Can apart is
effective disruption of pre-conceptions about physical activity. They changed the language
around exercise and celebrated any woman being active, not just those who fit the sporty
stereotype. The emotional gap between thinking and doing was eliminated and for 1.6 million
women, this led to their involvement in physical activity for the first time ever!
The future of the campaign is contingent on funding from Sport England which in turn is largely
dependent on tangible proof of resulting health benefits and a positive impact on society. Whilst
there is an established link between increased activity and better health, the extent and scale
remains hard to measure, you cannot isolate one defining cause.
Whilst this change in perception and behaviour was long overdue, there is still a long way to go
and with womens sport on the rise, the spotlight will turn to grassroots participation. It will be
fascinating to see how Sport England endeavour to retain the interest level and participation
numbers and what effect changes in the gender participation gap will have on brands and
their marketing activity over the next five years.

Article written by
Rosy Cooper
Account Executive
Octagon UK