The task was to get all young women, but primarily women born between 1994 and 2001, vaccinated against HPV within three years to prevent cervical cancer and other types of cancers.

Problematically, previous campaign efforts showed vaccination rates were nowhere near the levels needed to make this goal in time, even though the information was easily accessible online and in several languages.

A new approach was needed — one that looked different and worked in a less traditional manner. Studies show young women are more likely to take advice from their peers than community service campaigns, so we needed to make a shift.

Building a “secret” campaign

We treated the whole subject like one big secret — the world’s worst-kept secret — and turned it into a regional campaign that ran from October 2023 to January 2024.

At first, we acted like we were sharing secret information with them and them only via display ads on news Web sites, print ads in local newspapers, and social media posts targeted to young people in the region. This approach made people look twice and actually read the information for once.

The next part of the campaign was when we let them know it was OK to spread the word to stop the spread of the virus. Share the secret, let this information loose among friends and loved ones, and tell the main target group to book an appointment to get vaccinated.

Our final part of the campaign was to admit: The secret is out! By now, we should “all” know how, why, and where to get vaccinated against HPV.

Boosting vaccination rates

Clicks, likes, and impressions aside, the campaign resulted in a 20% jump in booked and given vaccinations during the time period, which was the highest increase out of all regions in Sweden. After the campaign concluded, over one-third of the target group had taken the vaccine.

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