Description

Regional Municipality of Niagara Niagara Road Safety Brand Development and Pilot Program Launch LOUD Advertising was contracted to deliver the following for the provision and rollout of the Niagara Road Safety pilot program in Niagara-on-the-Lake. • A comprehensive road safety social marketing communication plan, • Focus-tested, evidence-based logo branding, and • Creative design and printing of various promotional resources. Logo/Brand Development The target audience for the campaign was Niagara road users. Marketing resources were to be promoted specifically to those who live and work in NOTL.. LOUD Advertising (LOUD) was selected by the RNRSC members using criteria based on the proposal quality, project approach and work plan, cost information, skills and experience of the project team, previous experiencewith similar projects, and staffing available to work on the project. The Think and Drive logo and campaign branding was developed through a series of consultations and focus group meetings. After an initial consultation with the RNRSC members, LOUD Advertising held a community focus group meeting with RNRSC members, the Ontario Ministry of Transportation (MTO) Regional Representative for Niagara, and eight community volunteers who mirrored the age and gender demographics of drivers involved in serious injury and fatal collisions from the NRPS motor vehicle collision data. Based on the focus group input, LOUD developed some initial social marketing concepts and a selection of three branded logos. The RNRSC provided initial feedback so the logos could undergo graphics editing before being presented to the community focus group. The focus group gathered again for a presentation of the marketing concepts and the three branded logos and to make an anonymous selection of the logos. Communication Plan LOUD and the RNRSC agreed on a campaign communication plan that included a campaign launch event, two direct mail pieces, two posters, and a supporting website where participants could participate in road safety educational activity and enter a prize draw. Prior to the Think and Drive launch, the RNRSC held a community meeting to gather information about how and where those who live and work in NOTL obtain information about community issues. All major workplaces, agencies, community groups, service groups and professionals were then contacted requesting their participation in the upcoming campaign. To supplement the campaign, the RNRSC planned and organized the promotion of Think and Drive through local activities and events, and staged advertising in the local weekly newspaper, the Niagara Advance. The committee planned and accomplished the distribution of promotional resources throughout the NOTL community with the assistance of many community volunteers. Website Road safety campaign participants were directed to the www.niagararoadsafety.ca website where they were asked “Are You a Good Driver? Take the Challenge.” A prize draw incentive was intended to entice participants to enter the site and participate in the awareness raising and educational road safety self-test. An introductory statement described the purpose of the road safety self-test and was followed by participant instructions. Once participants completed the road safety self-test, they were asked to complete and submit a ballot in order to be eligible for ten incentive prizes. Prizedraw rules were provided in a legal disclaimer at the end of the self-test. The Results Based on industry standards a 3% response rate to a direct-mail campaign such as Think and Drive is considered good, and a 4 to 5% response rate is considered excellent. The “Think and Drive” website had 1492 visits, over 1300 unique visits and there were over 900 entries for the prize draw, representing about a 10% response rate to the campaign—a resounding success. In summary the pilot program acheived the following objectives: • Increased awareness about Niagara road safety issues, • Increased knowledge about how to improve road safety in Niagara, • Increased intentions to improve driving attitudes, • Increased intentions to change driver behavior, • Resulted in active participation by over 10% of the NOTL driving population A complete copy of the final report can be found at http://www.regional.niagara.on.ca/living/roads/pdf/Evaluation%20report%2...