Equal Access Champions Nigeria's Social Reform with Mobile Rewards

Growing up, television programmes influenced how I learned, studied, played and interacted with my family and friends. Today my children watch YouTube, which is filled with YouTube stars shaping how our millennials and the generations to come socialize and view the world.Whether YouTube or television, the power of media and entertainment to shape societies and educate is undeniable. For NGO, Equal Access, innovative media programming is essential for them to reach 140 million of the under-served to inform, educate and bring about social reform. Equal Access broadcasts soap operas, chat shows and concerts across Africa, Middle East and South Asia that promote human rights, women empowerment, youths, peacebuilding, health and safety, agriculture and economic development.To promote women’s empowerment, youth and tolerance, Equal Access had launched a channel in Nigeria. To measure their success and impact, they identified a group of viewers who would participate in surveys over a period of 6 weeks. With 89% of the population in Nigeria owning a mobile phone, the surveys would be automated and conducted over the phone, to manage time and resources. Prior experience has shown that the biggest challenge with getting feedback, was getting consistent and complete responses weekly.Equal Access needed an incentive, however phone surveys meant that it wasn’t feasible to distribute cash, vouchers of gifts which would require costly distribution and logistics. As the solution, Equal Access decided to use Airtime Top-ups as an incentive for survey participants to answer the weekly surveys. This tied in effectively with phone surveys as participants were motivated that they were getting back the precious airtime used on surveys and a bonus on top of that. They would get their weekly airtime top-up once the survey was completed and it was successful for the quantity and completeness of surveys Equal Access needed for a sound analysis.For Equal Access’s Nigerian channel launch, the phone survey and airtime top-up incentive proved to be a successful combination. It gave insights into the extent of their reach, how participants had understood some of the educational messages embedded in the programmes, what had made a lasting impression and the extent of the impact on families’ attitudes and perceptions after watching the channel.Learn more about our mobile rewards solution HERE