Social marketing for public health.

Marketing techniques and tools, imported from the private sector, are increasingly being advocated for their potential value in crafting and disseminating effective social change strategies. This paper describes the field of social marketing as it is used to improve the health of the public. A disciplined process of strategic planning can yield promising new insights into consumer behavior and product design. But the "technology" cannot simply be transferred without some translation to reconcile differences between commercial marketing and public health.