7207 MKT Research Report: Blood Donation Survey Analysis

This report presents the findings of a survey conducted in Australia to understand the factors influencing blood donation rates, particularly among the youth. The research examines the motivations and barriers to blood donation, analyzes the use of various media channels by the target demographic,...Read More

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Assignment 2

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Executive Summary
It is an essential fact that at present as well as in the past, blood donation has become a
major issue among the people worldwide. Australian too is facing such problems of dealing with
lack of motivation towards blood donation among the youth. This report provides a complete
analysis of the survey research that has been conducted in the Westerns and Eastern part of
Australia for the heterogeneity of the participants.

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Table of Contents
Executive Summary.............................................................................................................1
Introduction and Background to the Issue...........................................................................2
Summary Literature Review, Research Objectives and Hypothesis...................................2
Method and Rationale..........................................................................................................3
Participants......................................................................................................................3
Survey Instrument............................................................................................................3
Procedure.........................................................................................................................4
Results and Discussion........................................................................................................4
Descriptive/Sample Characteristics.................................................................................5
Hypothesis Testing..........................................................................................................7
Recommendations................................................................................................................8
Social Media Marketing..................................................................................................8
Print Media and Advertisement.......................................................................................9
Event Marketing or Campaign for Blood Donation........................................................9
Conclusion...........................................................................................................................9

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Introduction and Background to the Issue
As per the reports of the Red Cross Society, Australia, 1 out of 30 people donates blood;
however, the ratio for blood requirement is 1:3 (Australian Red Cross, 2019). The lower blood
donation rate in Australia might lead to failure to provide blood to the people in need. Finding
the right approach and an appropriate method is essential for improving the level of blood
donation in Australia. Many organizations such as the Red Cross face increasing difficulty to
promote blood donation particularly among the youth. In addition to this, it has been found that
large portion of the population (younger generation) of the nation is moving away from blood
donation campaigns or events. As a result of this, Australia is running out of blood supplies
which create a tension among the people that they might not be able to get blood when needed
(Sojka & Sojka, 2008).
This report provides a detailed analysis of the survey on blood donation conducted in
Australia. A brief review of the literature and the hypothesis has been provided along with the
methods selected and rationale behind selecting them. This report also includes proposed
recommendations for improving the rate of blood donation in Australia.
Summary Literature Review, Research Objectives and Hypothesis
This research aimed at identifying the new targets along with newer approaches towards
blood donation in Australia. Effective communication channels must be found in order to
accomplish this objective and reaching the target audience. The hypothesis of the research
involved testing whether more youngsters can become the target towards increasing the rate of
blood donation. In addition to this, the hypothesis involved testing the reasons behind the
lowered rate of blood donation in Australia, such as lack of promotion, people being unaware of
the blood donation events, lack of media attention, low motivation regarding the importance of
donating blood, lack of national promotion as well as inadequate promotional teams.
There are a number of reasons behind people not donating blood (McVittie, Harris and
Tiliopoulos, 2007). These include fear of needles, or contacting infectious diseases like HIV
anxiety or practical issues. Blood donation is also affected due to the demographic factors

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(Lattimore, Wickenden and Brailsford (2015). The inclination towards blood donation to the
ethnic group was more than compared to others (McVittie, Harris and Tiliopoulos (2007). In
addition to this, it has also been found out that lower involvement provided of people in social
work or community events led to lower connection with blood donation as well. There is no
feasible plan for approaching people for blood donation. This in turn has led to decrease in the
number of blood donors in the past few years. The shortage in blood donors in Australia have
resulted in social and psychological constraints that keep them away from donating.
The below sections deal with the methods and rationale for the research, and observation
to encourage people towards blood donation.
Method and Rationale
This research will be conducted using survey methodology. It is a research method that is
used to collect data from a pre-defined respondent group so as to gain data and information about
any particular subject matter. The survey is conducted using questionnaire method. Each set of
questionnaire being sent to the participants on the first day by distributing the same at colleges
and universities in Eastern and Western Australia.
Participants
The participants will be selected randomly, particularly the youth from Australia. The
primary data collection will be used for testing the concepts, reflecting attitude of people towards
blood donation, help in establishing the level of customer satisfaction, as well as conduct
segmentation research. 100 participants would be selected combining the Eastern and Western
part of Australia, specially the youth aging between 18-32 years age. This group has been
considered the most effective participants due to their age, as more people from this age group
are lacking involvement in blood donation.
Survey Instrument
A survey instrument is a tool that is used for the purpose of constantly implementing
scientific protocol in order to obtain data from the selected participants. For most social as well
as behavioural surveys, the instrument in this survey will involve a questionnaire that will

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provide a script for presenting a standard set of questions as well as response options. These
response options will be the pre-set answers that will be provided to the participants.
Members of the sample group will remain anonymous. This is considerably cheaper than
most of the other primary data collection methods. In addition to this, there is also immense
possibility to generate large amount of data and information.
Procedure
The participants were recruited using random sampling approach at a major public
university and institutions in various locations within capital city in Australia so as to maximise
participant’s heterogeneity. There were no incentives given to the participation to conduct this
research. Instead they were asked to participate voluntarily assuring that their identity would not
be revealed. In addition to this, they were also ensured that they are free to refuse for
participating in the research without any consequences.
The survey questions were set in line with the objectives and hypothesis. These questions
were printed on a sheet of paper for 100 participants who would be asked same questions and the
response option would also be the same. This will make it easier to determine the results based
on the majority of answers received. The questionnaire will be distributed to the universities and
colleges and then the responses will be collected after the day ends. This provides an opportunity
to get large size of information within a short period of time.
The process would continue for 5 days until the last survey form is received from the
students. Thereafter the results will be evaluated as per the survey responses.
Results and Discussion
This section of the report presents the findings from the survey that has been conducted
in the universities and institutions. The results have been divided into few sections only which
represents the opinions of the candidates and the percentage of the responses in each categories.

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Descriptive/Sample Characteristics
The samples have been divided based on their age group with a difference of 5 years
between 18 to 27 years and beyond. In addition to this, they have also been divided based on
their gender, i.e. female and male respondents based on different age groups.
Table 1. Demographics
Age Bracket And Gender %
Female between ages 18-22 Years 43%
Female between age 23-27 Years 55%
Female above 27 years 2%
Male between age 18-22 years 37%
Male between age 23-27 Years 62%
Male above 27 years 1%
Table 2: Use of Media Channels
Media Channels Preference %
Facebook 26%
Instagram 35%
Twitter 42%
Television and Radios 65%
Print Media 30%
From the above table 1, it can be seen that most of the candidates, both male and female
falls under the age bracket of 23 years to 27 years. This indicates that they are university
candidates who are about to complete their higher education and begun professional studies. In
addition to this, Table 2 represents the media channels that are frequently used by these
candidates in their daily life. Most of the candidates use television ad radios as well as Instagram
and Twitter to a great extent. Therefore, it will be necessary for the organization to these media
largely to spread awareness.
Many of them responded that they fear of catching disease from infectious needles due to
which they do not want to donate, whereas, others have fear of pain, needles, fear of blood sight,

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religious beliefs. Whereas, only few of them strongly agreed that they have moral and social
obligation towards the society. In addition to this, many of them found it interesting and a
pleasure activity as well as a responsibility towards the society to donate blood and this is why
they prefer keeping themselves updated with the blood donation campaigns. However, almost
80% of them were not aware of such activities taking place.
The results from the survey also indicate that social involvement of people in blood
donation activity is low than compared to any other activities. This is one of the major reasons
there is lack of moral responsibility among the youth. In addition to this, it has also been noted
that the religious belief of the Catholics and the ethnic group prevented them from donating
blood on account of some pious. This creates a fear among the youth that they might not be
allowed to donate blood by faith, though they have moral obligations.
The findings from the survey also indicated that the maximum number of candidates,
almost 76% of them did not know where the blood donation activities are taking place or they
have not heard about the event taking place recently or might happen at a distant place. This
averts them to move a step ahead and to donate blood. In addition to this, it also stops them to
spread awareness among the community or inspire others for such social activities.
The results also indicate that few percentage of the samples have selected that they are
somewhat satisfied after donating blood whereas maximum number of them declare it as harmful
and unpleasant. This is again due to their fear and anxiety towards blood donation. There is
hardly any difference between the male and female candidates with regard to their opinions
about blood donation. Maximum number of them have selected that they do not donate blood out
of fear and also hey do not feel like doing any social work. In addition to this, most of the male
members have selected that they do not feel that they are doing some fruitful work as it is
unrewarding and harmful to use the same equipment as others are using for donating their blood.
This indicates that most of them are unaware of the sterilization and the use of new needles each
time a person volunteers to donate blood. There is no scope of using the same needle or
accessories. In addition, they are also not aware of the health and hygiene maintenance at Red
Cross.

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Hypothesis Testing
Testing hypothesis will be based on the above findings and discussions and hypothesis
selected beforehand.
H1: More youngsters can be utilized towards increasing participation in blood donation
campaigns
Yes more youngsters can be involved as there are maximum number of youth population in
universities and institutes who are less affected from any disease.
H2: People are not inclined towards blood donation for the lack of promotion
Yes, this is proven due to the fact that the participants are now aware of the blood donation
events taking place or there are no proper media channels for communication of such events.
H3: More people want to engage in blood donation but are not aware of the events
Yes, this is proven due to the fact that the participants are now aware of the blood donation
events taking place or there are no proper media channels for communication of such events.
H4: Blood donation events do not get the same amount of media attention as other large events
This cannot be proved as the above hypothesis H3 is proved that there are no proper media
channels and no promotional events
H5: People are less motivated to donate blood as much health related misconceptions are present
Yes, people fear of getting infected through the use of unhygienic equipment or medical tools.
They have a myth set in their mind regarding this. This makes them less motivated for taking up
any social activity related to blood donation.
H6: Blood donation is not nationally promoted in Australia
Yes this as well is proven as there is lack of appropriate events or promotional activities that can
educate people about the importance of blood donation or about the events of blood donation
campaigns.

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H7: Red Cross would need to utilize large promotional teams to promote blood donation
Yes, the Red Cross would need to utilize large promotional team for the purpose of promoting
blood donation, without which, it might not be able to raise awareness. Use of diverse media
channels and promotional activities are necessary for such events.
Based on the above findings and hypothesis testing the following section proposes few
recommendations with regard to the promotion of blood donation in Australia.
Recommendations
It is necessary for the organization for market stimuli and develops a strong identity for
blood donation. The marketing concept must be seen as a philosophy of action that goes beyond
obtaining a donation. In order to do this, the organization should identify people who are willing
to support their mission, develop an attractive image, as well as produce communication
messages to invite them, and also to communicate through different channels.
Following are few proposed recommendations that would help the organization to raise
awareness and promote blood donation in Australia.
Social Media Marketing
Social media marketing is used to influence the target audience for voluntarily accepting,
rejecting, modifying, or abandoning behaviour for the benefit of individuals, groups, or society
as a whole (Ashley & Tuten, 2015). Voluntary Blood Donation is a worldwide issue and this is why
social marketing would be an effective approach towards it. The primary objective of social
media marketing for the blood donation campaign is to influence action as well as change
behaviour of the youth. Therefore, social media marketing strategy of raising awareness through
messages sent throughout the Australian territory. This can be done using the social media
channels on which the youth of today spends most of their times during leisure, i.e. Facebook,
Twitter and Instagram (Felix et al, 12017). This will help in reaching the target audience within
short span of time. The awareness with regard to the blood donations campaigns and events must
be provided through attractive display and video messages on these platforms.

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Print Media and Advertisement
The print media advertisement is the traditional form of advertisement which would
involve publishing messages on newspapers, magazines, flyers, billboards, hoardings and
pamphlets (Kumar et al, 2017). These medium are also effective in reaching large mass people
through different sub-channels involved in it. In addition to this, advertisement of blood donation
and its educational campaigns must be displayed over television and also promoted through
radios (Mackey et al, 2015). This as a result will help the Red Cross organization to spread
awareness about the blood donation campaign. In addition to the advertisement, educational
promotion campaign should also be displayed through video on the television so that people
become aware that that sterilized equipment are used for blood donation.
Event Marketing or Campaign for Blood Donation
Event marketing or campaign for blood donation must be done for the purpose of raising
awareness about the myths and the concerns of the people about blood donation (Sundermann et
al, 2017). It will help in meeting people and communicating with them the importance of
donating blood and clarify their issues with regard to the fear of blood donation (Tugrul & Lee,
2018). These campaigns can be held at universities and institutes where most of the youth visit.
The events would be conducted on monthly basis or in every quarter depending on the date of
appointment and permission granted by the universities and colleges for such events.
The above recommendations have been proposed keeping in mind the functions and
operations carried out in Red Cross organization. Similar approaches can be made by other
similar organizations so as to improve public awareness and communication.
Conclusion
From the above findings and discussions it is clear that most of the people are unaware of
the events of blood donation. In addition to this, they also lack knowledge that blood donation is
conducted using new and sterilized equipment and this is why they fear of getting infected.
Therefore, it is essential for The Red Cross Society to take an initiative towards raising
awareness among the people about blood donation. The proposed recommendations are in favour

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of the organization and would help it to make a move towards improving the current situation of
blood donation in Australia.
The social media marketing, print media and advertisement as well as event marketing
would be a valuable source for the Red Cross Organization to promote blood donation and
improve the conditions in Australia. The banners, billboards and hoardings are an effective
medium of communication about blood donation campaigns and raising awareness among the
students and youth. The hypothesis tests have been proven based on the findinbgs from the
research, thereby making it important for the Red Cross organization to adopt proposed measures
and large promotional teams to set father mission of spreading awareness among the Australians.

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References
Ashley, C., & Tuten, T. (2015). Creative strategies in social media marketing: An exploratory
study of branded social content and consumer engagement. Psychology &
Marketing, 32(1), 15-27.
Australian Red Cross. (2019). About us. Retrieved from https://www.redcross.org.au/
Felix, R., Rauschnabel, P. A., & Hinsch, C. (2017). Elements of strategic social media
marketing: A holistic framework. Journal of Business Research, 70, 118-126.
Kumar, V., Choi, J. B., & Greene, M. (2017). Synergistic effects of social media and traditional
marketing on brand sales: capturing the time-varying effects. Journal of the Academy of
Marketing Science, 45(2), 268-288.
Lattimore, S., Wickenden, C., & Brailsford, S. R. (2015). Blood donors in E ngland and North
Wales: demography and patterns of donation. Transfusion, 55(1), 91-99.
Mackey, T. K., Cuomo, R. E., & Liang, B. A. (2015). The rise of digital direct-to-consumer
advertising?: Comparison of direct-to-consumer advertising expenditure trends from
publicly available data sources and global policy implications. BMC Health Services
Research, 15(1), 236.
McVittie, C., Harris, L., & Tiliopoulos, N. (2006). " I intend to donate but…": Non-donors'
views of blood donation in the UK. Psychology, health & medicine, 11(1), 1-6.
obstacles for donating blood. Vox sanguinis, 94(1), 56-63.
Sojka, B. N., & Sojka, P. (2008). The blood donation experience: self‐reported motives and
obstacles for donating blood. Vox sanguinis, 94(1), 56-63.
Sundermann, L. M., Boenigk, S., & Willems, J. (2017). Under blood pressure–differentiated
versus undifferentiated marketing to increase blood donations. International Review on
Public and Nonprofit Marketing, 14(3), 321-340.

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Tugrul, T. O., & Lee, E. M. (2018). Promoting charitable donation campaigns on social
media. The Service Industries Journal, 38(3-4), 149-163.
Appendix
Being a part of the learning process, I would definitely engage withy the community and
the Red Cross organization to improve awareness about blood donation in Australia among the
people. I have learnt about the reasons behind the people in Australia to stay away from donating
blood for the benefit of the community members.
The strategies that have been recommended above would be significant and crucial in
gaining the ultimate objectives of creating donors. In addition to this, I would like to use the
social media campaign in order to spread awareness among my group members and colleagues
so as to turn them into potential donors. Spreading awareness about the blood donation program
is one of the greatest opportunities for ensuring welfare of the society.
As it is evident from the reports that there is lack of blood donors in Australia, I would
initiate to take part with the Red Cross Organization. Learning about the event marketing
program, I would like to indulge in conducting events with my group members with special
programs on blood donation and educate people about health and hygiene as well as hygienic
equipment used for taking blood. This will be done to invalidate their myth and reduce their fear
of needles, unhygienic campaigns and other fears as well. Additionally, the arrangement of even
more frequent events, particularly on weekends and public holidays would also help the
organization to make an effort towards gathering people and spreading awareness.

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The print and advertisement media when used to the fullest would provide an opportunity
to create new messages for the Australian and encourage them to have a thought over the concept
and importance of blood donation.
It is evident from the research that most of the candidates use television ad radios as well
as Instagram and Twitter to a great extent. Therefore, it will be necessary to take a step towards
using these media channels largely to spread awareness. In order to improve the efficiency of
social marketing programs as well as the marketing campaigns or advertisements, it will be
highly significant to trigger changes in behaviour and attitude of the people towards the societal
needs.