Power dynamics between influencers and target audiences can significantly affect a project’s success. At times, these dynamics are anticipated, other times they are observed in the design process and sometimes they are only seen during implementation. When designing a project addressing voluntary family planning (FP), influencers play a significant role, often affecting intervention outcomes. Transform/PHARE (hereafter referred to as PHARE), a five-year (2015‒2020) project funded by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), implemented a variety of cross-sectoral social and behavior change approaches outside of traditional health-related contexts. PHARE used innovative practices from marketing, advertising, human-centered design (HCD), and behavioral economics to address barriers to modern contraceptive use, transform attitudes about reproductive health and increase demand for voluntary FP products and services in Benin, Burkina Faso, Côte d’Ivoire and Niger.