iSMA Offers Social Marketing
Professional Certificate of Completion
An ‘introduction to social marketing research’ training course designed to equip its students with a sound understanding of the vital role that research plays in informing audience-led social marketing programmes.
This 4-week course delivers ’how to’ lessons from a UK-based field researcher who specialises in qualitative insight to improve health outcomes & who serves on the Board of the European Social Marketing Association.
The tone of the course is practical; it does not include any required pre-reading; it will reference all sources referred to in each presentation for those who wish to conduct further follow-up reading.
It is designed for those who are new to social marketing and for experienced social marketers seeking to re-fresh or expand their research knowledge, particularly in qualitative techniques.
Students will leave the course with a sound understanding of where different types of research fit within the various stages of a social marketing programme & will have gained practical lessons from a qualitative research specialist, including writing a robust research brief, the basics of discussion guide design, handling sensitive conversations, managing group dynamics & more
Course Format:
- 3 pre-recorded 1-hour on-line presentations, followed by a 1-hour live webinar Q&A session with Rita Brophy [in 2 time zones].
- Students will have the opportunity to post questions to the trainer on the course website throughout the duration of the course.
- The course will take up to 4 weeks to complete: the 3 pre-recorded presentations can be accessed 1 week apart, with the live Q&A in week 4.
- OR students can access the 3 pre-recorded presentations at a time convenient for themselves within the first 3 weeks, then attend the live Q&A in week 4.
Course Expectations for iSMA Professional Certificate of Completion:
- Complete 4 x 1-hour sessions: 3 pre-recorded training presentations; 1 live Q&A webinar.
- Complete a multiple-choice questionnaire
- Those not achieving a pass will have the opportunity to re-visit the relevant
training presentations and re-complete the questionnaire; once a pass is achieved they will be awarded the iSMA professional certificate of completion.
Instructor: Rita Brophy, is a UK based social marketer with more than 20 years of experience in research.
Syllabus: Click here for a detailed course syllabus.
Scholarship: iSMA will provide a full free scholarship for one student on this course. To apply for a scholarship, please complete this short application form.
Researching Your Audience
Dates: Coming Soon
Cost: Coming Soon

Instructor: Rita Brophy, BSc (Hons) Sociology & Social Research, MA in Marketing
Certified member of the Market Research Society & serves on the Board of the European Social Marketing Association
Rita Brophy, a UK based social marketer specialising in research to inform social marketing programmes for health improvement outcomes. Rita is an experienced quantitative researcher, but her core specialism is in qualitative research, thus the ‘how to’ elements of the course focus on eliciting in-depth insight from target audiences via qualitative research techniques. Having worked as a researcher for 20+ years, with public sector organisations and global brands operating in health & well-being sectors, Rita draws from her wide experience researching a huge range of subjects with many and varied target audiences, to deliver a training course that is designed to equip its students with a sound understanding of the vital role that research plays in informing audience-led social marketing programmes.