---
title: "Social Marketing in Mass Media and Society"
description: "Social marketing uses media and persuasion techniques to change behavior for social good, like public health, recycling, and safety campaigns in Mass Media and Society."
canonical: "https://fiveable.me/mass-media-society/key-terms/social-marketing"
type: "key-term"
subject: "Mass Media and Society"
unit: "Unit 1"
---

# Social Marketing in Mass Media and Society

## Definition

Social marketing is the use of marketing tools to encourage behaviors that benefit society instead of selling a product. In Mass Media and Society, it shows how ads, campaigns, and digital media try to shape public behavior.

## What It Is

Social marketing in Mass Media and Society is the use of advertising and communication strategies to change behavior for a social benefit, not to make a profit. Instead of selling sneakers, phones, or snacks, a campaign might try to get people to quit smoking, recycle more, get vaccinated, or buckle seat belts.

The idea borrows from commercial marketing, but it changes the goal. A regular ad campaign wants attention and sales. Social marketing wants action, and that action usually means a measurable behavior change. That is why these campaigns are built around a specific audience, a specific problem, and a specific desired response.

A social marketing campaign does not just say, "Do the right thing." It studies who the audience is, what they already believe, what barriers stop them from changing, and what message is most likely to stick. A public health campaign aimed at teenagers may use short video clips, peer voices, and social media platforms, while a campaign for older adults might rely more on TV, radio, or community outreach. The medium matters because different audiences respond to different channels.

This term also connects to the way mass media shapes social norms. Repeated messages can make a behavior seem normal, expected, or embarrassing to ignore. For example, anti-smoking ads often do more than share facts. They try to make smoking look less appealing, more harmful, and less socially acceptable.

Social marketing is not the same as propaganda, even though both use persuasive techniques. Propaganda usually pushes a political or ideological agenda, often with little concern for nuance. Social marketing is usually framed as public interest communication, and it often uses research, audience testing, and behavior goals to make the message more effective. In this course, that distinction matters because you are not just asking, "What is the message?" You are also asking, "Who is it for, what behavior is it trying to change, and how does the media format shape the result?"

## Why It Matters

Social marketing shows how mass media can move beyond entertainment and information into direct social influence. In Mass Media and Society, it is one of the clearest examples of media being used as a tool for public action, not just audience reach.

This term matters because it connects message design to real-world outcomes. A campaign about vaccination, drunk driving, or environmental conservation only works if the audience notices it, trusts it enough, and changes behavior. That means you can analyze not just the topic of the campaign, but the choices behind it: tone, visuals, repetition, platform, and audience targeting.

It also helps you spot the difference between persuasion that sells a product and persuasion that tries to change a social pattern. A soda ad and a seat belt campaign may both use celebrity endorsements, emotional appeals, or catchy slogans, but the success measure is different. One wants a purchase. The other wants a public behavior shift.

In class discussions, social marketing is a useful lens for talking about media ethics too. You can ask whether a campaign is respectful, manipulative, effective, or tailored to the wrong audience. That kind of analysis fits directly with media literacy, because you are looking at how media messages shape beliefs and actions.

## Connections

### Public Service Campaigns

Public service campaigns are the practical format where social marketing often shows up. They are the ads, posters, videos, and announcements designed to inform or persuade people about safety, health, or civic behavior. Social marketing is the strategy behind them, while public service campaigns are the public-facing result.

### Behavior Change

Behavior change is the main goal of social marketing. In this course, you look at whether a campaign only raises awareness or actually pushes people to act differently. That distinction matters because a message can be memorable without changing habits, and social marketing is judged by the action it produces.

### Social Norms

Social norms are the shared ideas about what is normal or acceptable in a group. Social marketing often tries to shift norms by making a behavior seem common, desirable, or socially expected. Anti-smoking and safe-driving messages often work by changing what people think everyone else is doing.

### [edutainment](/mass-media-society/key-terms/edutainment)

Edutainment blends education and entertainment, which makes it a useful format for social marketing. A message wrapped in humor, drama, or a short story can hold attention better than a blunt warning. In media analysis, you can ask whether the entertaining part strengthens the message or distracts from it.

## On the AP Exam

A quiz or short-answer question might show you an ad, PSA, or campaign clip and ask what kind of media strategy it uses. Your job is to identify that it is trying to change behavior for social good, then explain the audience, message, and medium. If the prompt includes a public health or safety campaign, you should trace how the campaign uses repetition, emotion, or platform choice to shape behavior.

In an essay or class discussion, you may compare social marketing with commercial advertising or propaganda. The strongest answer names the goal, the target audience, and the expected outcome, not just the topic. If you can explain why a message works on one group better than another, you are using the term the way this course expects.

## Social Marketing vs propaganda

Social marketing and propaganda both use persuasive media, but they are not the same. Social marketing is usually aimed at a social benefit, like health or safety, and it often relies on research and audience targeting. Propaganda is more about shaping opinion for a political or ideological purpose, often with a stronger bias and less concern for balanced messaging.

## Key Takeaways

- Social marketing uses media and persuasion techniques to change behavior for social good, not to sell a product.
- In Mass Media and Society, it usually shows up in public health, safety, environmental, or community campaigns.
- These campaigns work best when they are designed for a specific audience instead of a general crowd.
- You can analyze social marketing by looking at message tone, platform choice, social norms, and the behavior the campaign wants to change.
- It is different from commercial advertising because the success measure is social impact, not profit.

## FAQs

### What is social marketing in Mass Media and Society?

Social marketing is the use of media and advertising techniques to encourage behaviors that help society. In this course, that often means campaigns about health, safety, recycling, or other public issues. The goal is behavior change, not product sales.

### How is social marketing different from advertising?

Advertising usually tries to sell a product, service, or brand. Social marketing uses similar tools, like slogans, visuals, and audience targeting, but the goal is a social outcome such as quitting smoking or using seat belts. The techniques may look alike, but the purpose is different.

### What is an example of social marketing?

An anti-smoking campaign is a classic example. It might use TV ads, social media clips, posters, or school outreach to make smoking seem less appealing and more harmful. The message is designed to influence behavior, not to promote a company.

### Why do social marketing campaigns target specific audiences?

Different groups respond to different messages and media platforms. A campaign for teens may work better on short-form video and peer-centered messaging, while a campaign for adults may use TV, radio, or community messaging. Audience targeting makes the message more likely to lead to action.

## Related Study Guides

- [1.3 Functions and roles of mass media in society](/mass-media-society/unit-1/functions-roles-mass-media-society/study-guide/YAgWoNZLxCnLIYVV)

## About This Document

Canonical Fiveable pages are available as Markdown at the same path plus `.md`.

- [llms.txt](https://fiveable.me/llms.txt): index of Fiveable's sections and URL patterns
- [llms-full.txt](https://fiveable.me/llms-full.txt): complete subject and unit listing
- [MCP server](https://fiveable.me/mcp): call Fiveable as tools instead of fetching pages (`https://fiveable.me/api/mcp`)
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