A Wee Scoosh
Public Health Scotland
- Social
- Campaign
With flu season looming and vaccine hesitancy on the rise, Public Health Scotland needed a bold new approach to encourage uptake of the childhood flu vaccine.
Consent lies with parents, but many were feeling fatigued by the topic of vaccines, while the existing campaign had worn out and was becoming wallpaper.
With so much conflicting opinion and scare-mongering we avoided debating the risks or tackling the myths, instead we flipped the script by reframing the vaccine as something so simple it didn’t need a second thought.
It's just “A Wee Scoosh”.
The Challenge
Vaccine hesitancy had grown sharply since the pandemic, with fewer parents trusting messaging or seeing flu as a serious risk. Public Health Scotland’s own research showed a troubling dip in recall and perceived effectiveness, while budgets had been cut by 20% year-on-year.
The brief was ambitious: overcome growing apathy, boost awareness, shift perceptions, and drive real-world action, all with reduced spend and against the backdrop of declining trust in public health messaging.
To succeed, we needed to find a way to stand out in the cluttered digital space while delivering a reassuring, non-preachy tone that worked equally for sceptical parents and tired caregivers.
The Solution
We explored three creative directions: myth-busting, fear-based messaging, and a third, counterintuitive option, downplaying the drama. Through testing, one route stood out: a playful take on how the vaccine is actually administered, not a needle, but a quick, painless nasal spray.
Enter “A Wee Scoosh”. A light-touch, visual campaign starring bright, surreal noses and a breezy tone that positioned the vaccine as easy, everyday and not worth overthinking.
We created a campaign that felt fresh and positive, delivered across social, digital, radio, and point-of-care materials, it cut through in a way public health messaging rarely does.
Results
Exceeded targets across all 7 RUSTIC-M engagement dimensions and perceived vaccine effectiveness rose to a record high of 89% reversing the prior downward trend.42%
highest-ever spontaneous recall for a flu campaign
90%
of campaign recognisers took or intended to take action, vs 68% of non-recognisers.
84%
Agreement with the message “safe and effective protection” which rose from 77%.
“Bright Signals are always full of fresh ideas and thoughtful insights. Their creativity is matched by their commitment to understanding what the audience needs."
Jennifer Renton, Communications & Marketing Manager, Public Health Scotland