ThinkNow Ad Council Creative Testing

Background

One third of Hispanic students do not graduate on time with a standard diploma, which can have a severe short- and long-term impact on their economic security and health. Over 70% of Hispanic dropouts report dropping out of school due to a lack of support from their parents, which is a result of their low levels of formal education, lack of familiarity with the American school system, and feeling unwelcome at their children’s schools.

Challenge

NGL Media needed a research partner to test creative concepts for the Ad Council’s “No One Gets a Diploma Alone” campaign. The goal of the campaign is to motivate Latino adults ages 25-35 without a high school diploma to take the first step towards getting their high school equivalency (HSE) diploma and a better future.

Solution

ThinkNow conducted a quantitative research study to measure the effectiveness of three advertising concepts developed for the “No One Gets a Diploma Alone” campaign. We measured overall appeal, believability, message recall, likes/dislikes, motivation, and impact on their interest in pursuing a high school diploma. The study consisted of a nationwide survey of n=225 Hispanics 25 to 40 years of age who do not have a high school diploma or GED and are open to going back to school to get a diploma. Because this segment of the population can be difficult to research, we utilized a combination of online and mall-intercept interviews across the country. Since a large share of this population is known to be Spanish-Dominant and/or less acculturated, the survey was offered in English and Spanish.

Results

The research revealed that the “no one gets a diploma alone” messaging has strong appeal among Latino adults. It effectively communicates that they can lean on others for things that are preventing them from taking action – i.e., transportation to/from the study center, cooking dinner, and/or caring for parents/children. The research also showed which creative concept resonated most with this audience. Since its launch in 2019, the ad campaign has been successful at motivating many US Hispanic adults without a high school diploma to pursue their high school equivalency, as well as connect them with information to get started.