The Context

To support the launch of the early childhood development (ECD) parenting programme, Thrive By Five, in Uzbekistan, MAGENTA, in close collaboration with the Minderoo Foundation and M&C Saatchi, led the design, development and launch of a multi-channel campaign for Besh Qadam. Besh Qadam, translating to ‘five steps’, is the Uzbek Thrive By Five one-stop-shop mobile phone app where parents can find tools, tips, information and games on ECD best-practice for their children’s development. The campaign encouraged parents in Uzbekistan to download the app and contribute to positive parenting best-practices, through five priority behaviours with the overarching strategy: Little Moments, Big Difference. The global platform is underpinned by four key objectives:

• Open caregivers’ eyes to the importance of the early years

• Connect a diverse set of behaviours that all affect and contribute to ECD

• Make behaviours feel desirable and more doable

• Talk to different types of caregivers

In order to achieve the meaningful and ambitious objectives, MAGENTA led a series of audience insights gather workshops, tailored and translated the app content, design and developed campaign content for online, print and out-of-home channels and launched the campaign in October 2022.

Social and Behavioural Insights

Insights Gathering Objectives

MAGENTA led four insights gathering workshops. The overall objective of the workshops was to gather insights on the knowledge, attitudes and practices of ECD in Uzbekistan, as well as understanding the and ways in which Uzbek audiences consume media and information. The workshops focused on the following questions and topics:

• What are the target audiences this campaign should target? Who are the caregivers in Uzbekistan?

• What are the barriers to ECD behaviour change in Uzbekistan?

• What are the ECD nuances in Uzbekistan?

• What behaviours resonate with the Uzbek audience and should be prioritized for this campaign (play, talk, community, connect, healthy home)?

Insights Gathering Findings

ECD in Uzbekistan: Parents and caregivers of young children have not had access to information on ECD thus creating a gap in knowledge among key audiences for children and their development. The biggest barrier to ECD best practice and overall behaviour change is access to reliable, evidence-based information, as well as the general public’s belief that children only need healthy food, clean clothes and rest to develop and thrive.

Key Audiences: Urban populations are generally better positioned in comparison their rural counterparts, and the campaign should target mothers and grandmothers primarily, as the key caregivers, with a particular focus on mothers as the primary caregivers in the household.

Key Channels:

• ONLINE: Telegram, WhatsApp, Instagram, Google, Media outlet platforms

• OFFLINE: Print coverage

• OUT-OF-HOME: Public transportation spots: buses and metro carriage monitors, bus wraps, and bus stations to target commuters in urban areas, particularly the capital.

  • The Women’s Committee, or the Mahalla, is an urban division in Uzbek communities, operating as autonomous social institutions built around family and Islamic values.

  • Pre-schools, targeting mothers and caregivers

Campaign Approach: Overall

To In Uzbekistan, the campaign targeted mothers and grandmothers primarily, as the key caregivers, with a particular focus on mothers as the primary caregivers in the household. MAGENTA’s creative campaign approach ensured the content and key messages were accessible, playful and informative take when it comes to ECD in Uzbekistan, and how ECD is an essential part of families and lives. By empowering parents with the key behaviours (play, talk, connect, community and healthy home), this campaign opened caregivers’ eyes to the importance of early years, and most importantly, made these behaviours feel desirable and doable.

Campaign Approach: The Framework

Digital Materials (in Uzbek & Russian)

• 3 animations

• 1 30-second App Demo Video

• 10 Static Images

• 2 Ted Talk cut-downs

Print materials

• 5 T-shirts

• 250 Tote Bags

• 1 Event Banner

• Flyers (10,000; 2,000 in Russian, 8,000 in Uzbek)

• Posters (1,000; 200 in Russian, 800 in Uzbek)

• Bus wrap

• Roll-up banner

• Booklet (7 pages; online)

Campaign Channels & Content: Online

• 11 pieces of online coverage in both Uzbek and Russian were secured from launch and throughout the campaign timeline on key national outlets.

Campaign Channels & Content: Engaging Influencers

• MAGENTA engaged eight Telegram influencers/channels and three Instagram influencers to post and promote Besh Qadam content throughout the campaign

Campaign Channels & Content: Google promotion & Instagram Boosting

• As part of the campaign strategy and media buying plan, MAGENTA included 4-weeks of google promotion and Instagram boosting in Russian & Uzbek

Results

• Total reach/impressions: 1,357,498

• Conversion rate for google promo (# people who installed the app/# of clicks on ad): 17% vs. global conversion rate average of 4.4%

Campaign Channels & Content: Out-of-Home; Transportation

Campaign Launch Park Event

• Video ads shown on 2 monitors in 53 buses, 16 times per day, for 2 months.

• Video ads shown 13 times per day on 800 monitors in subway cars for 2 months.

• Ads at 13 bus stops in Tashkent, displayed for 50 minutes each day for 2 months.

Namangan, Uzbekistan

• 2nd most popular city the country.

• Ads placed on back of 10 municipal buses for 2 months.

Campaign Channels & Content: Out-of-home; Park Event, Mahallas & Pre-schools

Campaign Launch Park Event

• Location: Tashkent’s Central Park

• Supported by: Uzbekistan’s Ministry of Labour

• AttendAgenda: Introduction to Besh Qadam & games for caregivers & children

• ees: Caregivers and Children

Namangan, Uzbekistan

• Disseminated 10,000 flyers & 1,000 posters around Mahallas and pre-schools throughout Uzbekistan

• Posters and flyers included a smart QR code directing people to the app

App Downloads

• Total number of downloads in Uzbekistan (as of Jan 7th 2023): 7,167

• Since launch (Park Event: 12th October): 7,134

• During campaign implementation (12th October – 20th Dec): 6,907

• Total downloads: 96.4%