“Is Your Man Stepping Out?” An Online Pilot Study to Evaluate Facebook Advertising Recruitment and Retention Using Smartphones to Deliver HIV Prevention Videos to African American Young Adult Women
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Abstract
Background Love, Sex, and Choices (LSC) is a popular online 12-episode soap opera video series to reduce HIV sex risk in young adult African American urban women. A video guide commentator was added to the original LSC to direct focus to critical themes.
Objectives This online pilot study was conducted to evaluate: 1) acceptability of the Guide Enhanced LSC (GELSC), and 2) feasibility of: advertising on Facebook (FB), consenting, completing an online screening interview of HIV risk in 18-29 year old women, verifying eligibility, streaming GELSC to smartphones, and retention at 30 days.
Methods FB ads targeted urban Black women in high HIV prevalence neighborhoods for 30 days on FB users’ smartphones or computers. Clicking led to the study FB page and website to consent and complete the screening interview. Those at high-risk were invited. Age and location were verified by phone. Participants had 7-day access to view the 12-GELSC episodes. A 30-day follow-up online interview assessed risk and GELSC acceptability. Gift cards were $30 and $20 at f/u. Website tracking data indicated GELSC viewing times. FB conversion tracking data showed which ads generated most clicks. FB provides aggregate demographics. Analyses were frequencies, percents, and means.
Results Over 30 days, FB ads appeared in newsfeeds of 383,873 target FB users. Of 6,537 clicks, most (n=5,393, 82.5%) were mobile users; 230 completed screening, 84 screened as high risk and were offered access to GELSC, 45 initiated viewing, 40 completed; 39 returned at follow-up. Most of the 40 (n=23, 57.5%) were African American/Black; 11 (27.5%) were Latina. Mean age= 23. A sizable number had privacy concerns before clicking the FB ad (n =17, 42.5%). All 40 felt survey results were confidential once on the study website. All 40 had unprotected sex with high-risk partners 90-days prior to baseline compared to 7 at 30 days post-intervention. 17 (43.6%) went for HIV testing. 30 identified with at least one video character. 38 felt the guide emphasized important messages. High performing ads featured couples with the headline, “Is your man stepping out?” The cost per person who completed follow-up was $38.70.
Discussion/Conclusions The Guide was highly accepted. Tracking data indicated each episode was watched. Using FB ads, it was feasible to recruit and retain at-risk young urban women, most of whom were Black, over a large geographic area, suggesting wider reach than via traditional methods. A low percent who clicked the ad completed (0.60%). With extended ad exposure, we anticipate a higher recruitment rate. Venue-based field recruitment may yield a higher concentration of at-risk participants. Online recruitment of high risk women at the rate of 10/week compared favorably to the rate of 7 /week in our previous field recruitment for a RCT. Nearly all were retained at 30-days. Online recruiting was also less costly than employing field personnel. A substantial number went for HIV testing.
Objectives This online pilot study was conducted to evaluate: 1) acceptability of the Guide Enhanced LSC (GELSC), and 2) feasibility of: advertising on Facebook (FB), consenting, completing an online screening interview of HIV risk in 18-29 year old women, verifying eligibility, streaming GELSC to smartphones, and retention at 30 days.
Methods FB ads targeted urban Black women in high HIV prevalence neighborhoods for 30 days on FB users’ smartphones or computers. Clicking led to the study FB page and website to consent and complete the screening interview. Those at high-risk were invited. Age and location were verified by phone. Participants had 7-day access to view the 12-GELSC episodes. A 30-day follow-up online interview assessed risk and GELSC acceptability. Gift cards were $30 and $20 at f/u. Website tracking data indicated GELSC viewing times. FB conversion tracking data showed which ads generated most clicks. FB provides aggregate demographics. Analyses were frequencies, percents, and means.
Results Over 30 days, FB ads appeared in newsfeeds of 383,873 target FB users. Of 6,537 clicks, most (n=5,393, 82.5%) were mobile users; 230 completed screening, 84 screened as high risk and were offered access to GELSC, 45 initiated viewing, 40 completed; 39 returned at follow-up. Most of the 40 (n=23, 57.5%) were African American/Black; 11 (27.5%) were Latina. Mean age= 23. A sizable number had privacy concerns before clicking the FB ad (n =17, 42.5%). All 40 felt survey results were confidential once on the study website. All 40 had unprotected sex with high-risk partners 90-days prior to baseline compared to 7 at 30 days post-intervention. 17 (43.6%) went for HIV testing. 30 identified with at least one video character. 38 felt the guide emphasized important messages. High performing ads featured couples with the headline, “Is your man stepping out?” The cost per person who completed follow-up was $38.70.
Discussion/Conclusions The Guide was highly accepted. Tracking data indicated each episode was watched. Using FB ads, it was feasible to recruit and retain at-risk young urban women, most of whom were Black, over a large geographic area, suggesting wider reach than via traditional methods. A low percent who clicked the ad completed (0.60%). With extended ad exposure, we anticipate a higher recruitment rate. Venue-based field recruitment may yield a higher concentration of at-risk participants. Online recruitment of high risk women at the rate of 10/week compared favorably to the rate of 7 /week in our previous field recruitment for a RCT. Nearly all were retained at 30-days. Online recruiting was also less costly than employing field personnel. A substantial number went for HIV testing.
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