Pharmacy Contraception Service (PCS)

The aim of the PCS is to offer greater choice from where people can access contraception services and free-up space in GP practices and sexual health clinics (or equivalent) to support them in meeting the demand for more complex assessments.

Pharmacies

Several pharmacies in Kent and Medway are now providing free of charge contraception services on behalf of the NHS which include:

  1. Ongoing monitoring and supply of oral contraception prescriptions for those already prescribed these medicines by their GP or sexual health clinic.
  2. Starting of oral contraception for those who are currently not prescribed these medicines.

What we did

Three posters were designed. The three posters featured the same text.

  1. Blue poster with a group of illustrated women.
  2. Pink poster with a love heart.
  3. White poster with a group of illustrated women.

A survey was created to find out if young adults (aged 18 to 25) understood the message and which design they preferred, and why.

The survey was sent to 100 people - we received 16 responses.

What we heard

Survey comments

  • "On the poster with the white background, the first thing you do is read the information".
  • "The blue poster is eye-catching and easy to read, and the image of the people makes me feel like I can trust the NHS".
  • "I like the white bolder print on the pink background with the heart. A heart always attracts, it is the sign of love, to love others and oneself".
  • "The blue poster, I had to stop and read and often people just scan past anything to lengthy, so less likely to attract someone's attention".
  • "On the white poster, the text stands out and it's quite nice to see the diversity of young women on the image".
  • "I like the blue poster because it signifies an NHS poster and the white text makes the words stand out".

A/B testing

As the survey results were small, we ran an A/B test on Meta.

This 24-hour test aimed to determine which artwork was more popular.

Both ads were run at the same time - the blue artwork reached twice as many people as the pink one.

Results

  • Survey results revealed the blue poster was slightly more popular, followed by the pink version.
  • 'NHS blue' seen as 'trusting' and associated with the NHS.
  • The white poster was perceived to have less text.
  • The A/B testing showed the blue one as reaching more people and being more engaging.

The blue version of the poster was chosen for a print order and sent to universities in Kent and Medway. The blue artwork was used for a social media paid-for digital campaign.