AA is going to start advertising on the tube – here’s why that’s so unusual What does an alcoholic look like? A homeless person drinking a bottle of cider on a park bench? Or perhaps […]

What does an alcoholic look like?

A homeless person drinking a bottle of cider on a park bench? Or perhaps someone alone, unemployed, tapping open a tin for breakfast?

The reality is often different.

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‘People coming in can have good jobs, earning good money’

Angela* was drinking 13 pints of beer a day at the height of her drinking, but still managed to hold down a job in the City. She only became sober after attending her first Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) meeting in London in 1985.

AA is a 12-step programme which advocates abstaining from alcohol completely and maintaining this sobriety by attending meetings regularly. At these meetings, which take place in community centres, churches, halls and venues around the world, members share their experiences and support others in their bid to stop drinking.

Like Angela, some members who attend meetings in affluent areas of central London challenge the stereotypes of an alcoholic.

Many are in well-paid jobs and donate generously to a cup that goes around for donations after meetings, according to a member of AA’s public information committee, who has asked not to be named. This money is intended to pay for tea, coffee and room rentals.

One of the AA’s founding principles An AA group ought never endorse, finance or lend the AA name to any related facility or outside enterprise, lest problems of money, property and prestige divert us from our primary purpose

“When people get sober, because they are not spending so much money on drink, it saves them thousands of pounds,” the member said. “People are very generous with that money.”

The generosity of their donations has led to a surplus which is now being used by AA’s London Regions North and South to launch their first ever poster campaign on the London Underground, in what will be AA’s biggest advertising campaign to date.

AA ran a campaign on buses covering areas of south east London in 2011 but is generally”cautious” about courting publicity because of its tradition that it attempts to reach suffering alcoholics by “attraction, not promotion”, they said.

AA also has a strict tradition of anonymity for members and those who do speak to the media are asked not to use their full names or identify themselves, although many do.

But after months of discussion, the London members agreed that to advertise their services comes under the heading of ‘attraction’ and would be a good way to carry the message to alcoholics in need of help.

When drinking is costing you more than money

AA hopes this campaign will challenge stereotypes. They are also keen to show that people do not have to have lost everything, or be towards the end of their lives before seeking help.

“That’s why we say if drinking is costing you more than money, maybe you’ve got a problem. AA can help. We’re just trying to let people know we are there.”

AA: Some questions to check if your drinking is a problem

It has become much more acceptable to go into self-help programmes like AA. Film and television dramas will often depict characters in recovery and drinkers sat in circles sharing their stories.

“AA is becoming more normalised in society,” the member said. “There’s less stigma attached to it.

“It means people are stopping earlier, so they don’t have to hit the rock bottom of the park bench – there are people coming in who are still in good jobs and earning good money.”

Why AA eschews social media

AA does not have social media accounts at present. The reasons are two fold: because of strict traditions of members having complete anonymity and because of AA’s tradition that it should not be allied with any outside cause or organisation.

Yet if this bold new advertising campaign is successful, social media may be considered.

The AA’s 2015 membership survey found among members who had been with AA less than five years, the internet was significantly more likely to be mentioned as a route to AA.

Their survey also suggested AA is attracting an increasingly younger membership. A third (33 per cent) of newer members – those with less than five years sobriety – are under the age of 40, and many of these will be active on Facebook, Twitter and other social platforms.

“At the moment, AA does not have any social media accounts and has a low profile because it has to stay in line with its traditions of being about attraction, not promotion,” the member said. “You could say we are like ‘show don’t tell’ in writing. So many people who come into the rooms do so via personal recommendation and word of mouth, or via prisons, hospitals and treatment centres.”

“There is never need to praise ourselves. We feel it better to let our friends recommend us.” From official AA literature

Can advertising work for a programme like AA?

The posters will appear on the Underground from 11 September to 24 September. AA will watch closely to see what impact it has and whether they should consider branching out to other forms of advertising, such as TV and radio.

The member said the group is “very excited” to see how this two-week campaign plays out.

“It is a step up for us to decide that advertising can, if done properly, be truly a form of attempted attraction, not promotion. We do not say we are a cure-all, or even a cure at all. The only desire for membership is a desire to stop drinking. We can offer a daily reprieve, recovery on a daily basis. And of course, AA is free.”