What are the elements of Internet advertisements to promote help-seeking behaviors of users who search suicide-related words？

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to examine what elements of ad content were likely to promote help-seeking behaviors of suicidal people who search for suicide-related keywords on the Internet. We added one of the headlines direct messages (“please consult”) or empathic messages (“You feel painful”) to a basic ad content that encourages suicidal people to consult. Additionally, we combined the ad content with the presence of consultation means and professions to create 8 types of search-linked advertisements. Next, we set up Google ads so that one advertisement was showed randomly on the search result for 6 suicide-related keywords. Users could call to the helpline by clicking button on the linked website guiding helpline. Data was analyzed by logistic regression analyses with the button clicks as the dependent variable and the elements of the ad as the independent variable. Direct messages promoted the “Call” button clicks about 1.6 times as frequent as empathic messages. When the ads headline contained empathic messages, information on consultation means promoted the “Call” button clicks about 1.2 times as frequent as absence of the information. To encourage suicidal people to seek help from consultation support service, Internet ads should include direct messages and the information on consultation means.