SAFETY
All too often, the tragic circumstance that claims a life is one that could have been prevented. But there's no shortage of messages about public safety and safe behaviors; in fact, there may be too many competing messages about things we should do about something that surely won't ever happen to us. That's why clients engage Hager Sharp to cut through the clutter with information that engages the audience. Our 360-degree approach to social marketing reaches people where they live, work and play to "bring the message home" and save lives.
Current Safety Clients Include:
The Department of Homeland Security/United States Fire Administration (USFA)
The United States leads the industrialized world in fire-related deaths and injuries. Accordingly, one of the top priorities of the United States Fire Administration (USFA) is to communicate national public education efforts about fire prevention and safety, and to preserve the lives of firefighters and the citizens they protect.
Hager Sharp has been working with the USFA for over 15 years. Here are two separate campaigns recently developed by Hager Sharp on behalf of USFA:
A Fire Safety Campaign for Babies and Toddlers targets parents and caregivers of children under the age of five, who are twice as likely as the rest of the U.S. population to die in a fire. Award-winning campaign materials (produced both in Spanish and English) include a poster, brochure, fact sheet, print ad, video and www.usfaparents.gov, a Flash-animated Web site (with HTML mirror) with links to download or order campaign materials.
Hager Sharp distributed these materials as part of its partnership building efforts to such organizations as the National SAFE KIDS Campaign, the American Academy of Pediatrics, ZERO TO THREE and NFPA. We also engaged the National Association of Hispanic Firefighters and the International Association of Black Professional Fire Fighters as partners for a multicultural campaign effort. Campaign materials have been translated to Korean, Chinese, Russian, Vietnamese and French.
Tribute to Heroes is a campaign developed following September 11, 2001 to honor firefighters and uses a "teachable moment" to motivate people to protect firefighters by taking steps to protect themselves and their families from home fires. It has been one of the most enduring campaigns, in terms of airplay.
Hager Sharp has generated and tracked well over one billion media impressions for USFA over the past five years. This level of penetration does not begin to count the USFA campaign messages delivered again and again, community by community, through our campaign partners – the Fire Service and national organizations. The broad scope of Hager Sharp's work for USFA includes strategic campaign planning, market research, message and materials development and dissemination, media relations and events and the development of partnership programs.
The Ad Council
In the Fall of 2006, the Ad Council announced a campaign initiative to address the number one killer of American teens: fatal car crashes.
In this public awareness effort, Hager Sharp provided counsel and research to inform strategic planning. We helped develop a youth reckless driving prevention campaign called UR the Spokesperson, driven by the strength of the peer-to-peer social connection among the target audience of 15-21 year-olds.
Research shows that while they feel invincible, teen passengers will speak up if threatened by a friend's driving, therefore becoming the "spokesperson." Because of the strength of the social connection, the teen driver will listen to his or her peers.
Hager Sharp provided strategic counsel to inform campaign planning, developed background and press materials, conducted media outreach and developed substantial partnerships with national organizations including SADD (Students Against Destructive Decisions), a peer leadership organization with more than 350,000 student members, and AAA, the nation's leading motorist and traffic safety advocate. Hager Sharp worked closely with the Ad Council to generate more than 40 million media impressions for the campaign's launch, with placements including The New York Times, USA Today, Philadelphia Inquirer, Good Morning America, NBC Nightly News with Brian Williams, CNN Radio and Washington Post Radio.
In order to connect with and engage the target audience, Hager Sharp proposed campaign elements that are viral, edgy and most importantly prominent in the environment where this audience lives - online. The campaign includes a Web site, www.URtheSpokesperson.com, featuring an online video/essay contest, and an interactive eCard designed for teen passengers to send to their friends who drive recklessly, helping empower the passenger to become "the spokesperson." The campaign was in the top five of Ad Council campaigns in terms of audience impressions and PSA airtime in its first few months.
Past Safety Campaigns and Projects That Have Made a Difference:
The Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments
In the wake of September 11, 2001, Hager Sharp provided communications support to the Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments (COG) for its work on regional emergency communication and coordination efforts.
Federal Emergency Management Agency's United States Fire Administration (USFA)
Hager Sharp planned and implemented three national fire safety public education campaigns, including a full campaign targeted to Spanish speaking audiences for the United States Fire Administration.
Safety Client List
- Ad Council
- American Red Cross
- Federal Emergency Management Agency
- Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments
- U.S. Department of Homeland Security/U.S. Fire Administration
- Water Quality 2000