The VIF® Method
The VIF® Method
Social marketing and collective impact at the heart of towns and cities
To develop each of its themes, the « Vivons en Forme » programme relies on an original methodology that combines social marketing and collective impact. The process systematically includes a preliminary stage of small-scale testing (Living Lab), to be optimised before deploying actions and tools on a larger scale, across the entire network of VIF® towns and cities.
SOCIAL MARKETING TO FACILITATE AND ENCOURAGE BEHAVIOUR CHANGE
Social marketing is defined as « the application of marketing techniques developed in the commercial sector to solve social problems through behavioural change ».
The social marketing approach can be summarized in three steps:
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- Study the brakes and levers of adherence to the behaviours we want to encourage in an identified group of individuals: study their habits, their consumption and all the elements that make up their social norm in a given field.
- Define intervention levers and messages that are relevant and mobilising for the target audience.
- Identify channels for disseminating these messages, as well as the appropriate communications media to facilitate the targeted behavior change.
The VIF method is based on this process:
- Studying behavior in the field, in particular with education, psychology and health professionals who study or work with the target populations.
- Define communication channels and techniques:
- Training and support for the implementation of actions
- Toolkit development
- Press Relations
- Presentations at congresses and conferences
- Define communication channels and techniques to stakeholders: develop partnerships, use of social media, etc.
Having an impact on the daily lives of target populations is essential, and directly involving all stakeholders to make them actors of change is a guarantee of long-term success.
INVOLVING LOCAL ACTORS
The « Vivons en Forme » programme is deployed on two levels:
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At a national level, the FLVS association develops and coordinates the « Vivons en Forme » programme in close collaboration with a multidisciplinary committee of experts, as well as with partner structures and specialized external service providers.
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At a local level, the involvement of local players ensures the effectiveness and sustainability of the actions undertaken.
TOWNS AND CITIES AT THE HEART OF THE PROGRAM
The « Vivons en Forme » programme relies heavily on city dynamics and community mobilisation to implement effective, sustainable health prevention initiatives. It is the towns that initiate and coordinate the program at local level, enriching the process with their own experience and creativity. Successful deployment of the program depends on the political will and commitment of local actors to the project:
- The mayor and his or her municipal team, who make a minimum 3-year commitment, provide the impetus for long-term mobilisation.
- A dedicated project manager is appointed by the mayor: a local orchestra conductor, he or she acts as the link between national coordination, elected representatives and local actors. His or her role is to mobilise local actors to encourage them to set up actions in the town or city.
- A local steering committee is set up, bringing together elected representatives, the project manager, municipal services and local actors (healthcare professionals, associations, economic actors), to organise meetings and implement actions across the board. All the town’s departments are involved: health, school affairs, catering, early childhood, town planning, community life, etc. It is the cross-functional, multi-sectoral involvement of local actors that enables a gradual change in the environment to have a lasting impact on the population.
