5 things we learned about raising awareness

Even though data-driven technologies determine our everyday life, most people aren’t interested in and don’t understand the central role of data in society. With our awareness campaign “Data Café”, we aim to make this complex topic tangible, spark a reflection and initiate discussions around the value of data and how we deal with it. A big ambition for a simple offer: “Do you want a free coffee?”. This is the hook of the campaign. We offer coffee for the price of personal data (first name, last name, gender, e-mail, date of birth, and canton). In this post we want to share our 5 key learnings after successfully implementing 22 Data Cafés and holding conversations around the topic of data protection with around 2000 people all over Switzerland.

👨‍👧‍👦 Yes, you can reach the “broader public”

Instead of trying to attract new audiences to your event / workshop / thing, dare to go to the people. You can get in contact with all kinds of target groups, if you’re on the streets, in museums, at coffee shops, at markets or at festivals. The more public your location, the broader your audience will be and vice versa. By making a unique offer (such as a free coffee in exchange for personal information), you might even attract the media attention and reach an even broader public.

🎈 Surprise people to get them talking about you

In order to get the attention of people who are not inherently interested in your topic, don’t make it about your topic. Instead, invent a hook that is interesting and easy to grasp for your target group. 

⏱ Talking and connecting to people takes time

As you can imagine, this requires a lot of time. We underestimated the effort of convincing locations (20 requests = 1 confirmation), triggering the interest of people (on the streets 1 out of 10 people react) and having a discussion (10 minutes per person).

🎀 Even if reactions are diverse, worries are similar

Don’t be surprised by the many different reactions you might witness. We have had people who were excited by our campaign or our message and people who were offended by our immoral offer. The key is to stay calm and explain your message to everyone and then you will see that their different reactions originate from the same worries they have. In our case: the issue of data protection. 

⚠️ Be on point about your call to action

You need to know exactly what you want your target group to do after your interaction. The better your target audience is narrowed down, the easier it is to have a short and feasible call to action. Don’t forget the importance of choosing a location for your campaign in accordance with your targeting decisions.

If you want to raise awareness about the value and role of data in our society as well – you can now book the Data Café. Get to know more about our offer.