#CallsKill: National Safety Council & MultiVu Drive Awareness on Dangers of Distracted Driving with News Releases

NEW YORK, Jan. 11, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- When the National Safety Council (NSC) conducted a recent poll on cellphone usage, the nonprofit organization found that eight out of 10 Americans believed cellphones are addictive. This addiction to mobile devices has a major impact on distracted driving, including driving with hands-free devices.¹ In order to fulfill their mission of preventing injuries and deaths through leadership, research, education and advocacy, the NSC combined its efforts with PR Newswire's MultiVu team to create a comprehensive campaign that would raise awareness on safety issues around driving and talking on the phone — both with or without a hands-free device.

"Our primary goal with this campaign was to build awareness around distracted driving. Cellphone calls, including hands-free calls, are a source of distraction," said Kathy Lane, senior director of public relations at NSC. "It's time to reconcile the cost of being constantly connected with the consequences of risky behavior behind the wheel."

PR Newswire's MultiVu team approached the NSC's goal by developing a compelling, integrated PR and marketing campaign strategy. The MultiVu team handled every aspect of the campaign, from video creation to broadcast production and strategic media placement, to draw awareness to the issue and capture the attention of the Council's target audience.

"Our strategy for this campaign was to reach a targeted audience using an integrated multichannel approach," Lane said. "We wanted to create compelling content to catch the interest of our audience, and help boost exposure to our message."

Through the use of a multichannel program, including a PR Newswire Multimedia News Release, NSC was able to secure campaign engagement and awareness that surpassed anticipated projections:

• Custom landing page – Drove traffic to NSC.org: 5,900 pageviews, 97 percent more than guaranteed impressions
• TV and Radio placements:
  • TV Public Service Announcement (PSA) Earned Media – 12.8 million impressions and more than 6,500 airings
• Total earned media coverage for #CallsKill campaign: 1,055

"Using a multichannel approach was key for us. We quickly realized that our target audience consumes information using various platforms. We wanted to maximize our reach by sending our message using different mediums and channels," Lane said. "With PR Newswire's solutions, we were able to target that specific niche audience within multiple channels."

In addition to reaching or exceeding the goals for the #CallsKill campaign, the Council's campaign was named a "Gold Winner" in the Public Service Announcements Category from AVA Digital Awards, which recognizes excellence by creative professionals responsible for the planning, concept, direction, design and production of digital communication.

"Changing common misconception about hands-free calls while driving is a challenging task. By partnering with MultiVu, we were able to target and reach a specific audience, create multiple assets, and distribute our message using a true multichannel approach," Lane said. "We are pleased with the results of the campaign, and we hope that it continues to raise awareness about distracted driving, and ultimately help save lives."

Read the full case study here.

About the National Safety Council
Founded in 1913 and chartered by Congress, the National Safety Council, nsc.org, is a nonprofit organization whose mission is to eliminate preventable deaths at work, in homes and communities, and on the road through leadership, research, education and advocacy. NSC advances this mission by partnering with businesses, government agencies, elected officials and the public in areas where we can make the most impact – distracted driving, teen driving, workplace safety, prescription drug overdoses and Safe Communities.

About PR Newswire
PR Newswire, a Cision company, is the premier global provider of multimedia platforms and distribution that marketers, corporate communicators, sustainability officers, public affairs and investor relations officers leverage to engage key audiences. Having pioneered the commercial news distribution industry over 60 years ago, PR Newswire today provides end-to-end solutions to produce, optimize and target content -- and then distribute and measure results. Combining the world's largest multi-channel, multi-cultural content distribution and optimization network with comprehensive workflow tools and platforms, PR Newswire powers the stories of organizations around the world. PR Newswire serves tens of thousands of clients from offices in the Americas, Europe, Middle East, Africa and Asia-Pacific regions.

Cision is a leading media communication technology and analytics company that enables marketers and communicators to effectively manage their earned media programs in coordination with paid and owned channels to drive business impact.

Contact:
Stacey Miller
Director, Communications
(301) 683-6038
[email protected]

¹ http://www.multivu.com/players/English/7398051-nsc-cell-phone-calls-kill/

SOURCE PR Newswire Association LLC