Getting Started

So, your workplace has decided to move forward with the do campaign. And you are in charge! It’s time to get organized, start planning, and do your do! Below are 8 steps to help plan, implement and evaluate your campaign.

Step #1: Assemble Team

Gather a team to help you with the development and implementation of your do campaign. Who has the right expertise? Recruit people from different areas of the company to increase word-of-mouth interest and to learn what activities would work best in other areas. Some possibilities could be:

An Employee Health representative
A Human Resources representative
Someone from Communications/Marketing
One or more members of the Employee Wellness group
Employees who understand the "pulse" of the company

Your team will probably have additional members as you get closer to kick-off, but this initial team can help you get started.

Step #2: Develop Mission

Increase the potential for success by defining the mission of the do campaign for your company. Then determine your goals (how you're going to get there) and your objectives (what activities will help reach the goals). This will clarify to everyone involved why your company is doing the campaign and how you're going to do it.

For example, your mission could be: "Keep a physical activity message in front of employees by providing opportunities for increasing activity." One of your goals could be: "Increase the use of stairs." Then you could have a number of objectives, including how you'll promote this activity and what events will highlight stair use.

Setting goals and objectives also makes it easier to do an evaluation after the campaign to determine if you "got there." Now is not too early to think about how you're going to evaluate the success of the campaign.

Step #3: Identify Resources

Once you've determined the do campaign mission, goals and objectives, it will be more obvious what other resources your team will need.

There are lots of decisions to make regarding resources. Here are a few of them.

Check out the Product listings and identify what items will be most useful for your campaign. Posters/PODPs are free and have an adhesive back. Identify which ones would be most useful for your workplace. Do you want to use any of the downloadable documents or is it possible to invest in other do items to help promote the campaign?
Check out all existing systems for communicating with employees. Emails and employee newsletters are a sure bet. How about a dedicated intranet page, bulletin board postings, employee meetings and/or PA announcements? For smaller companies, don't forget the obvious—placing a flier on each employee's chair.
Evaluate whether you have a supportive environment for employees to walk, bike or do other exercise at or near the workplace. Does your company sponsor sport teams or events for employees? Is there a walking or biking trail nearby? Is there a partnership established with an off-site exercise facility?

Step #4: Create Plan

Your plan is beginning to form, thanks to you and your team's ideas. You also have identified each objective to support your mission and determined necessary resources. Now it's time to get down to specifics. Decide what you want to do as far as:

Announcing the do campaign
Promoting the campaign
Tactics

Circle back around through the information in this section if you need to. Reread the three sample do campaigns, check out the Web resources, review all the materials, available under do Store or "Order Supplies."

Keep in mind that you want some of your objectives to be used long-term to create a do culture at your worksite, not just a short-term campaign.

Step #5: Make Calendar

How long should your do campaign last? What month is the best time for a kick-off? Will you purchase prizes? These are just some of the small details you need to decide and schedule.

Time to get your calendar. Or in your case, check out “My do calendar” under more do fun. Simply download and start filling in the lines. Bring the calendar to the next team meeting. Assigning dates, tasks and who is responsible will help everyone plan their time better and understand their roles. Work with your team on this important document. Then everyone needs to work on their tasks.

Step #6: Implement Plan

You're set—ready for implementation. Planning and teamwork are a huge part of a memorable and successful campaign of any kind. Your do campaign is no exception.

Remember, even the best-laid plans can go astray. Adjust as you go. Be flexible. Talk with your team, brainstorm solutions, then move on.

Step #7: Evaluate Campaign

How did it go? You're feeling good about the do campaign after a few months of running it, and your team has heard lots of positive remarks from employees about it.

Formal evaluations are invaluable for determining if you reached your goals and objectives, and if any revisions or changes are needed for future campaigns. Most importantly, you need answers to the question: “Did the do campaign make a difference?”

Evaluating the campaign can be simply a matter of asking employees for feedback. Use a written form or an email document. You can also look at levels of participation. How many cars are parked in the do parking lot area before vs. after the campaign? Did membership in the off-site fitness club increase with a new discounted rate? A complete evaluation will help tell you what kind of differences the do campaign made in your company.

Step #8: Create do Culture

Making do a part of your corporate culture is a natural extension of the do campaign. Employees have seen how easy it is to do 10 minutes of physical activity three times a day. Now the campaign activities should become the norm.

Look at what campaign activities you can extend on an indefinite basis. Keep changing the Posters/PODPs every 2-3 weeks. Keep sending the monthly emails. Try random recognition for do activities to keep employees on their toes.

And when you overhear a visitor ask an employee why your company has "walking meetings," and the employee replies, "That's just how we do things here. Physical activity is important"—then you'll know that you have a do company!