Warning:

This document is being maintained for historical purposes, but is now out of date. To view current guidelines please visit:

• HIV/AIDS Guidelines and Recommendations   at http://www.cdc.gov/hiv/guidelines/index.html

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               Guidelines For Effective Public Information Programs

Commit adequate time, effort, and resources to communication planning and 
pretesting.

Review existing market research on the target audience to understand what will 
motivate them.  (Conduct new research only when necessary.)

Make sure that messages and materials appear where the target audience will pay
attention to them.  
  
Produce/tag existing public service announcements (PSAs) that are of high production
quality, community-specific, marketed to stations, and targeted to audiences likely to
see them when public service air time is available (such as "fringe" viewing times).

Combine PSAs with news and other uses of the mass media to increase exposure to
prevention issues. 

Use a combination of the mass media and community channels that will reach the 
target audience.

Work collaboratively with other organizations and/or community sectors that have
complementary strengths.  Begin to coordinate as early as possible in program 
planning.

Use a two-pronged communication strategy to focus both on what an individual should 
do and on factors that help enable individual change such as peer approval and
community support.

Track progress and identify when and what kind of changes are needed in public
information activities.

Set reasonable, short-term public information objectives to reach the long-term goal.
Then, commit to public information as one program component over the long term. 
(Remember that "one-shot" public information campaigns are unlikely to leave a 
lasting effect, and that progress toward prevention goals is incremental.)

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