BrainFuel

Emergency Episode! World Social Marketing Conference: Hot Takes & Game-Changing Ideas Host: Ruth Dale  Guests: Ed Gyde, Katherine Knight, Ian Fannon We rushed home from sunny Spain with too much excitement not to podcast about it. This episode unpacks the World Social Marketing Conference, its biggest sparks, freshest ideas, and the vibe shift happening across global behaviour change.   🔥 Theme of the Conference Social marketing isn’t social media. It’s a discipline that improves lives - at scale. The event was bursting with: Planet-saving ideas 🌍 New ways to boost agency + confidence 💪 Serious ✨community power✨ Big questions about equity + systems change 🏛️   💡 Guest Highlights & Key Takeaways 🟦 Ed Joy – Audience, Social Marketing (UK) KEY TAKEAWAY: Stop peppering teens with single-issue campaigns. Build spaces and confidence instead. Ed shared the Sky Girls campaign — an empowering pan-African platform helping girls say no to pressure and yes to themselves. His energy: 👟 Less “don’t smoke” 🎮 More DJ booths, gaming, and real talk 💬 Real empowerment > behaviour nagging Ed’s Big Thought: “Create places and platforms where young people want to be - then the learning sticks.”   🟩 Katherine Knight – Intelligent Health KEY TAKEAWAY: Boosting > Nudging. Joy is a public health tool. Her Beat the Streets programme has already inspired 2 million people to get active, connect, and build community agency. 🔥 Massive shift at the conference: Climate change + inequality + health? ➡️ One and the same mission. Catherine’s favourite learning: Boosting builds people's capacity to choose change — together, not alone. Bonus: we want a whole episode on Catherine’s disaster-prep flannel story. 🚿🧽 Pure gold.   🟥 Ian Fannon – Claremont Communications KEY TAKEAWAY: Behaviour change takes time. Build, boost, bond and evaluate rigorously. Ian’s 3 B’s of brilliant behaviour change: 1️⃣ Building — long-term investment beats short campaigns 2️⃣ Boosting — focus on strengths + capabilities 3️⃣ Bonding — community + connection = magic ✨ His favourite takeaway: “We strengthen the good already in communities - we don’t fix broken humans.”     🧠 Big Ideas We’re Taking Forward ✔ Elevate agency over persuasion ✔ Build movements, not one-off messages ✔ Climate + health + equity are intertwined ✔ We need practitioners and academics working side-by-side ✔ Behaviour change isn’t instant -invest in longevity   🤫 Room 101 — What We’re Banning We nearly confiscated all bad PowerPoint slides forever… … but the official Room 101 winner is: 🚫 Harm-reduction messaging that shifts responsibility onto individuals and deepens inequality. 👉 Behaviour change must tackle systems, not shame people.   ❤️ Conference Vibes Sunshine + tapas 🌞🍷 Inspiration + brilliant humans A real sense of movement and momentum A tribe found (but everyone’s invited) Next stop? Montpellier 2026 🇫🇷 (We’ll race you to the plenary hall.)   🔗 Connect on LinkedIn Find Ed Gyde, Katherine Knight, and Ian Fannon over on LinkedIn    🌟 Final Thought This episode is your postcard from Spain - minus the sangria. The spark is real. The movement is growing. Health change is joy-change. Let’s boost a better world. 💥\   To stay up to date on behaviour change in health comms, and public health join BrainFuel over on Substack!  

  Ruth is joined by Caroline Latta, communications and engagement specialist and founder of OLOVUS, for a powerful conversation about what real co-design looks like when it moves beyond surveys, hypotheticals and “tell us what service you want.” This episode tells the story of a short break service for people with learning disabilities—re-imagined from the ground up. Instead of asking families to imagine a different service, Caroline and her team showed them what was possible. They took families and people with learning disabilities on visits to alternative short break providers: outdoor activity centres, community-based supports, spaces full of independence and joy rather than hospital-style care. The visits revealed moments of trust, connection and delight that completely reshaped the service design—and shifted the focus from “safe respite” to aspirational, joyful breaks that feel like holidays. We also explore Caroline’s deeply personal experience with weight loss medication, what it taught her about shame and biology, and how it strengthened her commitment to non-judgemental, inclusive design. A rich, emotional and practical episode - full of behaviour change thinking for anyone working across health, care or commissioning. 💬 Caroline's Quotes On co-design done properly “You don’t realise how limited your imagination is until someone shows you what’s possible.”     On why surveys fall short “You can fill in as many questionnaires as you like, but you don’t see the smile on someone’s face in a survey.” On shifting the frame “We weren’t trying to fix a ‘respite problem.’ We were asking, ‘What does a joyful break look like?’”       📚 Book Recommendation Invisible Women – Caroline Criado Perez A sharp, essential read that reveals how system design often defaults to men—and how invisible data gaps create very visible barriers. Perfect for anyone designing public health, social care or behaviour change programmes.   🔍 What You’ll Learn How to run co-design that produces real insight Why showing beats asking people to imagine The shift from “respite” to aspirational breaks How field visits surface truths workshops never will How robust involvement frees commissioners to lead boldly Desired vs problem behaviours in behaviour change Why paying people matters—practically and ethically How privilege, hormones and biology shape health behaviour   🎧 Links Connect with Caroline on LinkedIn  Check out Olovus   Training update  🔗 Behaviour Change Marketing Bootcamp – 10 December Misinformation, AI and behavioural science for health communicators.

"Must Listen for Everyone Working in or On Individual Change projects or Campaigns" Is blaming “individual willpower”  one of the industry’s most successful PR tactics.Why do our environments make the healthy choice so hard? And who profits when they do? In this powerful episode of the Behaviour Change Marketing Bootcamp Podcast, Ruth Dale sits down with Louis Bird, Principal in Public Health and national obstacle-course racer, to unpack the commercial determinants of health and what they mean for the everyday choices we think we’re making freely. Louis explains how industries like food, alcohol, tobacco, and fossil fuels shape our behaviour, our environments, and ultimately our health; often without us realising. And what you can do it about it at Local Authority level. This conversation shines a light on how power, profit and public health collide. But all is not lost. Louis shares his work in Swindon with tips on what you can do too. If you work in public health, health marketing, or behavioural science, this episode will change how you see your town, your life and the choices you make.    Quote from Lewis “When profit depends on harm, it’s not personal choice -  it’s structural design.”   Useful Links Transport for London - Food Advertising Regulations - NIHR Impact Study  - Easy Read  

Welcome to another episode of Brain Fuel! I’m so excited to share my conversation with Dr. Heather McKee, one of Europe’s leading lifestyle behaviour change specialists. Heather brings a wealth of experience in health psychology and digital health, and her insights are both practical and inspiring. In this episode, we explore the science of sustainable behaviour change, the promise and pitfalls of digital health, and how to make real, lasting improvements in our lives and organisations. Top 3 Takeaways: Intrinsic Motivation is Key: Real, lasting behaviour change comes from understanding and tapping into our intrinsic motivations—not just relying on external rewards or pressure. Implementation Over Information: Most of us know what we “should” do for our health; the real challenge is turning that knowledge into action. It’s not an information gap, it’s an implementation gap. Find Joy in Healthy Habits: Sustainable change is easier when we focus on the healthy habits we actually enjoy, rather than punishing ourselves or chasing short-term goals. Quote from Heather:“What we feed the mind is ultimately what becomes our behaviours. Be careful of what your media diet is, because what you consume, consumes you.” Book Recommendation:Heather recommends “Good Habits, Bad Habits” by Wendy Wood for a deep dive into the science of habits, and also gives a shoutout to “Atomic Habits” by James Clear for accessible, actionable advice. If you’re interested in behaviour change, digital health, or just want some inspiration for making positive changes in your own life, this episode is packed with insights and practical tips. As always, if you enjoyed the show, please like, share, or leave a review. And if you have a project or story to share, get in touch at [email protected] I’d love to hear from you!

A very different episode with Sabine De-Ville Instead of talking about health Let's embody it. In all our behavioural insights work, there is one common theme - despite the subject. It also appeared again and again in our training. Your tired brain. Breathwork can be a game-changer.  Especially if you live meeting to meeting - Zoom call to Zoom call. The air is free, you can do it anytime, anywhere. Sabine has over 20 years of experience delivering breath work, mindfulness, and cognitive resets for tired brains.   Enjoy x

In this episode, I had the pleasure of speaking with Eleanor Stanley, a coach and communication specialist, about her inspiring work with Guy’s and St. Thomas’ NHS and the British Association of Retinal Screeners. Eleanor shared a powerful case study on using co-production and storytelling to increase attendance for diabetic eye screenings, especially among groups that are often harder to reach. We discussed the importance of authentic communication, the value of patient voices, and how even small-scale projects can drive real behavior change. Top 3 Takeaways: Co-production with clear roles is key: Involving patients directly in the creation of communication materials leads to more authentic and effective messaging, but it’s crucial to define everyone’s role and manage expectations, especially with limited resources. Storytelling drives behaviour change: Crafting a compelling narrative, rather than just sharing facts creates emotional engagement and helps audiences connect with the message on a deeper level. Measurable impact matters: Adding a patient story video to appointment reminders led to a 25% higher rebooking rate for diabetic eye screenings, demonstrating the real-world value of thoughtful communication interventions. Eleanor's Quote “You need to be very clear on your outcomes. You need to be measuring for results and all of that, but it’s so much nicer for you if you are doing it from a place of authenticity and also it’s so much more effective in what you can produce. It’s just people, and it can sound scary…but actually just one really good conversation with someone can just completely change everything.” Book Recommendation Eleanor recommends “The Advice Trap” by Michael Bungay Stanier. She highlights its focus on humility, curiosity, and changing the way you lead through better listening. Resonance Programme Resonance Programme is a bespoke journey for leaders and communicators ready to rethink how they show up at work and beyond. It is professional development - led by Eleanor - for mid-career senior leaders and communicators working in health social impact. Click here for more info.  Come on the show If you enjoyed this episode or have a case study to share, reach out at [email protected]!

We explore the real reason why many health campaigns fail: a lack of clarity rooted in assumptions about the audience. Over the past few episodes, Ruth has walked us through how brains get overwhelmed, how decision fatigue kicks in, and how even well-meaning messages can backfire. This week’s episode brings it all together with a simple but powerful test: 👉 Do you really know your audience? 💡 Key Takeaways: Empathy fades under pressure: Deadlines and noise can push teams to default to generic messaging. The Clarity Test is your reminder to re-centre on people. Campaigns fail when insight is missing: If your work isn’t grounded in real understanding, you’ll see low engagement, low action, and lots of frustration. Assumptions ≠ empathy: Thinking you know your audience isn’t the same as truly understanding their world. Clarity is behavioural power: Clear minds craft better messages. Clarity isn’t a luxury — it’s a strategic asset.

In this episode, Ruth explores what happens when our brain’s decision-making battery runs flat — and why that matters deeply for health communication. Drawing on behavioural science concepts like ego depletion and bounded rationality, she shares how cognitive overload derails even the best campaigns. If your work relies on a calm, rational audience... it might be time to rethink. This one’s short, sharp, and designed to make you pause. Quote from the Episode: “Are we adding pressure to a depleted brain — or clearing the way for action?” What You'll Learn: What ego depletion actually is, and how it affects behaviour Why people don’t make ‘perfect’ decisions — and that’s okay The hidden mental cost of too many messages or choices How to design for clarity when your audience is distracted and overwhelmed Why It Matters: Health communication often assumes people are logical, focused, and ready to listen. But real-life decision-making doesn’t happen in a vacuum — it happens in a fog. Understanding the limits of mental energy can help you write, design, and plan with more compassion and impact. Takeaway: Clarity is a kindness. When you reduce the mental load for your audience, you reduce it for yourself too. 💌 Want the BrainFuel Breather ? Join us on Substack

Do Health Messages Nag or Nudge? In this episode of BrainFuel: The Clarity Series, Ruth dives into psychological reactance — the powerful force behind why people reject health advice (even the good kind). You'll learn: Why audiences push back (and how to stop pushing them) How clarity, tone, and choice impact trust Simple tweaks to make your message land better 🌬️ Want the BrainFuel Breather audio? → Join us on Substack 🎟️ Plus: Join our Social Norms Summer School on Aug 19 — only £49. Includes your Social Norms Starter Kit. → Grab your ticket

  Ever poured your heart into a health campaign only to see… crickets? You’re not alone. In this episode, Ruth dives into why clarity is the key to behaviour change — and why it’s so hard to find in a world of noise, deadlines, and overloaded brains (yes, yours too). We’re talking cognitive fatigue, irrational audiences, and the myth of "more info = better choices". 🎧 Plus, you'll hear: Why clarity starts with you — the communicator, strategist, planner How social norms quietly shape everything (and how to wield them with care) The secret sauce of choice architecture (used in canteens, emails & even inbox design!) An unfiltered behind-the-scenes peek into AI experiments gone wrong – including made-up research studies 😱 The BrainFuel Breathers: guided reset sessions just for you (yes, really) 🧠 Key Takeaways Audiences are overwhelmed. According to studies, we consume over 34GB of info a day — the equivalent of a million photos or 16 films daily. Design for this reality. Rational choice is a myth. If your strategy is built on “if they only knew,” you’re missing the behavioural science. You’re already nudging. Every piece of content you create shapes choices. Learn how to do it with intention (see: choice architecture). You need inner clarity too. Your ability to influence others is directly tied to how clear you are in your own thinking, purpose, and planning. 🛠️ Tools, Resources & Offers 🎟️ Mini Bootcamp: Social Norms Summer School → A 2-hour online masterclass on August 19th → Tools, case studies, evidence-based strategies → Only £49 | Free for Substack Yearly Subscribers 👉 Sign up now — doors close August 8th! 🧘 BrainFuel Breathers → Weekly audio reset sessions created with Sabine (breathwork facilitator & yoga teacher) → Exclusive to Substack subscribers → Subscribe here 📚 Mentioned Study: Click & Crunch Canteen Study – Australian high school experiment on menu design & healthy eating (via choice architecture) 🧪 Experiments, Mistakes & AI Misfires Ruth shares the truth about using AI in podcast production: Tried a chatbot co-host: fun but too chaotic Used AI for research: it made up studies (!) Takeaway? AI is powerful — but always, always fact-check 🗣️ Quote of the Episode “You’re already nudging — whether you mean to or not. Every message, every menu, every layout is shaping choice.” 🧭 Final Thought You’re not just delivering messages. You’re shaping behaviour, influencing decisions, and holding the power to make real change. But you can’t do that without clarity — for yourself and your audience. Stay kind. Stay curious. And give your brain a breather 💛 💌 Stay Connected → Subscribe: BrainFuel on Substack → Join the Mini Bootcamp: BehaviourChange.Marketing/Social → Connect on LinkedIn: Ruth Dale   These show notes were developed using Otter AI.