Czech Statistical Bureau targets census ads at believers and minorities

The Czech Statistical Bureau (Český statistický úřad – ČSÚ) is launching an information campaign to promote the 2011 Census of People, Houses and Apartments. In addition to running advertising banners on the internet, the campaign will include eight different television ads. Due to budget cuts, spending on the campaign was cut from CZK 113 million to CZK 25 million. ČSÚ chair Iva Ritschelová launched the campaign at a press conference yesterday.

Statisticians say the campaign is important because people need to understand the importance of the census and complete the forms. The data gathered will serve in years to come as background information for a whole series of research projects and decisions. “The census is the most extensive, most complicated investigation known to statistics, and the task of the ČSÚ is to acquire the most precise data possible. We are investing into this campaign so people will have as much information as possible about the fact that the census is coming up, how it works, and what the data acquired are used for,” says ČSÚ chair Iva Ritschelová. “The purpose of the campaign is to convince people to complete the census forms carefully so we can gather data that are complete and as precise as possible.“

The creative design and production of the internet banners and television ads were prepared for the ČSÚ by the McCann Erickson advertising agency, which won a public tender to develop and implement the communications and information campaign for the census in 2009. The final cost of the total preparation and production of eight television ads and the creation of all internet banners was CZK 5.76 million.

Each of the eight 20-second television ads targets a different group, from senior citizens to members of national minorities, religious believers, workers in the trades, business owners, or young families with children. The basic message of each ad is “The Future Counts”.

The ads will run from 1 February until 30 March on Czech Television (ČT1, ČT2, ČT24), TV Prima (Prima, Prima COOL) and TV Barrandov. This combination of television stations will provide the ČŠÚ with the best coverage for the ads and the best media indicators given the size of the budget.

“We are doing our best to make sure each ad reaches its intended viewer, speaks to that viewer and shows why it will be good to fill out the census form as carefully as possible,” explains David Čermák, a representative for McCann Erickson. “The broadcast times and content of the ads is set up to reach a minimum of 80 % of the over-15 population.” ČSÚ will pay CK 12.6 million to purchase television time.

The easiest, fastest, least labor-intensive way to complete the forms will be online, and the ČSÚ’s aim is to direct as many people as possible to complete the forms on the internet. In addition to classic ad banners, the bureau has prepared a Pay Per Click campaign to run on search engines such as Google and Sklick. An informational video on the census and the television ads for it will be available at Stream.cz and on a special YouTube channel. The census will have its own profile on Facebook, its own Twitter account in February, and census banners will also run on the ICQ chat service. The purchase of on-line media space cost the ČSÚ CZK 12.2 million.