Integrated Marketing Communication for Behavioral Impact (IMC/COMBI) in Health and Social Development

Applications are due by Sept. 6, 2019.

download the course description and application

This 6 day course focuses on strategic communication planning for behavioral impact in health and social development. Behavioral results are the primary end-goals of health and social development programs. The course stresses that behavioral impact comes with the critical support of effective communication programs purposefully planned for behavioral results, and not directed just at awareness creation, advocacy, or public education.

The private sector experience in successfully using  Integrated Marketing Communication (IMC) for consumer behavioral results points to an approach for achieving behavioral objectives in health and social development. WHO has been applying this approach to various health issues (including emergencies and outbreaks) over the past 14 years and refers to it as “COMBI”, Communication-for-Behavioral-Impact.

UNICEF has applied the approach, within the framework of its “Communication for Development” (C4D) concept, to juvenile justice, safe motherhood, HIV/AIDS, promotion of iodized salt, immunization, child protection, child nutrition, early childhood development, and children and violence. UNFPA has applied it to HIV/AIDS prevention and reproductive health. UNDP has used it with gender issues.  
IMC/COMBI is not about producing posters, t-shirts, and pamphlets. It applies in an integrated, synchronized way the disciplines of marketing (including village-level marketing traditions), public relations and advocacy, administrative mobilization, advertising, counseling, personal selling, community mobilization, health education, mass communication, folk media, social media, and market research -- dedicated to the ultimate behavioral outcome desired.

The course is intended for health and social development professionals who have the responsibility for designing, supervising, or managing health education, health promotion, communication for development (C4D), and other information-education-communication (IEC) programs to achieve specific behavioral results in health and social development. Prior communication experience is not required for this Institute.

Participants will learn how to apply the 10-Step process of IMC/COMBI in the strategic planning of communication programs for behavioral results. Participants will cover the following topics – COMBI Foundational Principles; Behavior Adoption; Basic Communication Principles; Role of Communication in Behavioral Impact; Marketing Principles from Integrated Marketing Communication (IMC) for Bridging the Knowledge/Action Gap; Integrated, Synchronized Communication Action Areas for IMC/COMBI -- Administrative Mobilization, Public Relations and Mass Media, Advocacy, Pandemic/Risk Communication, Community Mobilization and Group Communication, Advertising and Social Media; Personal Selling/Interpersonal Communication/Counseling); Marketing Research and Behavioral Impact Evaluation; Communication for Development (C4D); and Sexual Health Communication and Sexual Attitudes Re-Assessment.

This all culminates in an IMC/COMBI Practicum: In small planning groups, each participant will work on the design of an IMC/COMBI plan for a specific behavioral objective in a health or other social development field.

Location: Barbados
Dates: Sept. 23 - 28, 2019

Arrival/Departure: Participants should expect to arrive on Sunday, September 22nd and depart on Sunday, September 29

Institute Dates: Classes will begin on Monday, September 23 and end on Saturday, September 28.

​The duration of this course is 6 days. Sessions will be held every day, from 8:30am to 5:30pm. Working groups are expected to work after regular course hours. 

Tuition 
US $995
No scholarships are available at this time

Who Should Apply?
Health and social development professionals who have the responsibility for designing, supervising, or managing health education and other IEC/social mobilization programs to achieve specific behavioral goals. Prior communication training is not required for this Institute.

Accommodations/Meals
Accommodation and meals will be the responsibility of individual participants or their sponsors. CAMSA and COMBI will offer some advice on suitable accommodations near the conference center once acceptance to the course has been granted.

Communication dedicated to the ultimate behavioral outcome desired

How to apply

Please send your completed application to everold@combiinstitute.org
​by September 6th, 2019