Media Relations Plan

A. Overview

Glycemic index (GI) is the indexing that compares the glycemic response of a certain amount of carbohydrate source with a standard food with the same amount consumed by the same subject. The lower value of the glycemic index means the slower a carbohydrate source is absorbed and it will maintain the stability of blood glucose levels which has beneficial effects for people with diabetes (Jenkins et al., 2002). In the long run, the consumption of low GI products is also beneficial in preventing other types of obesity-induced diseases such as type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease (Schwingshackl & Hoffmann, 2013). Responding to that, the Glycemic Index (GI) Foundation commits to provide scientific-based information and tools required for improving Australian health through the low GI eating principle.

GI foundation as a world-leading not-for-profit organisation has two excellent programs. The first one is the GI Symbol, a food labelling program to help consumers make healthier choices, especially for those who need to manage diabetes, prevent weight gain, and reduce the risk of type 2 diabetes (Glycemic Index Foundation, n.d.). Another one is CSIRO Total Wellbeing Diet online, a scientific-based diet program developed in collaboration with CSIRO and Digital Wellness.

Despite the fact that the trend in dietary glycaemic index (dGI) among children and adolescents has decreased from 1995 to 2012, we want this to continue(Yeung et al., 2018). Besides, November 14th is known as World Diabetes Day which can be a good moment for the GI foundation to remind people about the importance of the Low GI eating principle.

The goals of this media relation plan are as follows:

1. Increase awareness about the importance of low GI eating principles among Australians.

2. Continue building and retaining the brand of GI Foundation and its products in the post-COVID-19 era.

To achieve these goals, a three-month media relations campaign will be run through Newspapers, Lifestyle magazines, TV, and Radio. A food photo contest on social media will be run to attract people's attention.

B. Media Relation Objective

1. Increase the awareness about the importance of low GI eating principle among the target audience by 30% by the end of the campaign period.

2. Increase the number of CSIRO total wellbeing diet members by 25% by the end of the campaign period.

3. More than 500 people join a food photo contest to commemorate the World Diabetes Day

4. Increase the number of companies seeking low GI certification by 25% by the end of the campaign period.2

C. Key Messages

1. Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus is a serious illness that may cause complications by the emerging of other related diseases.

2. Consuming low GI products will reduce the risk of type-2 DM and cardiovascular disease in the long run.

3. The low GI eating principle implemented in the CSIRO total wellbeing diet is beneficial for managing body weight.

4. Food labelled as a Low GI product has been scientifically tested and the Low GI label can be a tool for consumers to make a healthier choices.

5. The organisation will keep their commitment to do research about GI and provide scientific based information and tools required to improve the overall health.

D. Target Audience

The main target of this campaign is adult Australians, both male and female, from 20 – 40 years old. This population is chosen as the main target regarding the fact that the age of onset of Type-2 Diabetes Mellitus is falling into <40 years old (Mujtaba, 2007). This population is also considered to be mature enough to decide their lifestyle and have the ability to change their own behaviour. Food Company will also become the campaign target. If they know that the dietary glycemic index is decreased among Australian youth, which is most possibly due to the increased awareness of understanding the GI principle (Yeung et al., 2018), they might see the potential demands of low GI products. Thus, they will feel the need for a low GI symbol in their product.

E. Media Materials Required

To support this campaign, we will produce some media materials including :

1. Backgrounder

Backgrounder will be provided along with the media releases to give a short introduction about the organisation, for example, the visions, missions, short history, activities, and impacts. It will also include the facts and studies related to the glyemic index to show that the organisation’s programs are scientific-based.

2. Media Release

There will be at least three different media releases, one for each phase. The media release will contain information about the current study of Low GI eating habits and their impact on health, the success story of CSIRO Total Wellbeing Diet members, the food photo contest to commemorate World Diabetes Day, and the statement from the organisation about their commitment to provide scientifically based information and tools required to improve the overall health.

3. Media Pitch Email

Media pitch email will be sent to potential journalists along with a backgrounder, media release, and video or other supporting materials needed. There will be different media pitch emails depending on the media release that will be delivered.

4. Spokesperson Briefing Document

This document will be made for the spokespersons to prepare for their appearance on television and radio. It contains information about the show they will attend, how the interview will be, the key messages they need to deliver, and the potential questions along with the recommended answers.3

Potential spokesperson :

a. Prof. Grant Brinkworth

As the nutrition and health research leader, will talk about the benefit of low GI eating principle and current interesting findings about it.

b. Kayleen

As a member of CSIRO Total Wellbeing Diet, will tell her story of losing weight by implementing the low GI eating principle.

c. Kathy Usic

As the CEO of Glycemic Index Foundation, will talk about the commitment of the organisation in providing information and tools to improve overall health.

5. Video

The video is about Kayleen’s success story in implementing the Low GI Diet Principle for weight loss through the CSIRO Total Wellbeing Diet.

F. Media Strategy

The campaign will be actioned for 3 months, starting from 2nd October – 31st December 2022, and will be divided into 3 phases as follows:

1. Phase 1 (2 – 30 October)

Material to be released: Backgrounder, media release, media pitching email

Angle: Introduction of Low GI eating principle, the benefits, and the way to start.

Media target: Newspaper (e.g. The Australian, News.com.au, etc), Wellbeing Magazine

2. Phase 2 (31 October – 4 December)

Material to be released: backgrounder, media release, media pitching email, video, spokesperson briefing document

Angle: Success story of Kayleen in losing weight by implementing low GI eating principle through CSIRO

Total Wellbeing Diet. There will also massive-sounding about Low GI food photo contest to commemorate the World Diabetes Day.

Spokesperson: Prof. Grant Brinkworth, Kayleen, Kathy Usic

Media target: Lifestyle TV program, with a special show on November 14th to commemorate the World Diabetes Day

3. Phase 3 (5 - 31 December)

Material to be released: Backgrounder, media release, media pitching email, spokesperson briefing document

Angle: Impacts and commitment of the organisation to do research about GI and provide scientific-based information and tools required to improve overall health.

Spokesperson: Prof. Grant Brinkworth, Kayleen, Kathy Usic

Media target: Lifestyle radio program

G. Methods of Evaluation

Media relations team will evaluate the campaign during the last week of December to see if it is a success or not. The campaign is a success if all of the objectives are achieved. For that, the team will collect and analyse the data from the 2nd October – 31 December 2022.

A pre and post-test using a quick online survey will be conducted to evaluate the awareness level about the importance of low glycemic index eating habits among Australians. The survey target will be Australians from 20 to 40 years old as they are the target of the campaign. It will be held a week before and after the campaign. The data will be analysed to see if there is any increase in the awareness level and does the increase meets our target, which is 30%.

The media relation team will also look at the number of CSIRO Total Wellbeing Diet members. They will compare the number of participants in the 3rd quarter (July – September) and 4th quarter (October – December) of 2022. The analysis will be conducted to see if the number of members increase and does the increase meets our target, which is 25%.

The team will calculate the number of participants who joined the food photo contest to commemorate World Diabetes Day and see if there are more than 500 people join the contest.

Another data that will be assessed is the number of food companies who are interested in getting Low GI Symbols in their product. The team will compare the data from different timeframes that is the 3rd and 4th quarter of 2022 to see if there any increase and does the increase meet our target, which is 25%.5

Reference

Glycemic Index Foundation. (n.d.). Our Mission | GI Foundation. Retrieved 2 September 2022, from https://www.gisymbol.com/our-mission/

Jenkins, D. J. A., Kendall, C. W. C., Augustin, L. S. A., Franceschi, S., Hamidi, M., Marchie, A., Jenkins, A. L. & Axelsen, M. (2002). Glycemic index: Overview of implications in health and disease. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 76(1), 266–273. https://doi.org/10.1093/ajcn/76.1.266s

Mujtaba, A. (2007). Diabetes An Old Disease, a New Insight Edited (Vol. 67, Issue 6). www.landesbioscience.com

Schwingshackl, L. & Hoffmann, G. (2013). Long-term effects of low glycemic index/load vs. high glycemic index/load diets on parameters of obesity and obesity-associated risks: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Nutrition, Metabolism and Cardiovascular Diseases, 23(8), 699–706. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.numecd.2013.04.008

Yeung, C. H. C., Kusnadi, D. T. L., Barclay, A. W., Brand-Miller, J. C. & Louie, J. C. Y. (2018). The decreasing trend in dietary glycaemic index and glycaemic load in Australian children and adolescents between 1995 and 2012. Nutrients, 10(9). https://doi.org/10.3390/nu10091312