In September of 2009, the Vermont Department of Health (VDH) created an ad campaign with the "get vaccinated" message as the main point. The airing of these ads was delayed, in the hopes that the H1N1 vaccine would arrive. When it was clear that there would not be sufficient quantities of seasonal or H1N1 vaccine for quite some time, the VDH planners felt it was still important to spread good health hygiene messages to remind people who can't get vaccinated there are still things they can do to protect themselves.
The Virginia Department of Health had created a video of children promoting the proper way to sneeze that inspired Vermont's staff. Employees decided to produce a video of their own that included hand washing and the "stay home when sick" messages in a general "keep germs from spreading" ad. Tone was important. The ad could not be frightening. Their solution was to feature children discussing serious information in a gentle way that would be both appealing and memorable.
A marketing firm that the health department had worked with over the years on flu campaigns fleshed out the concept and recruited a local video production studio. The young actors were all local children and volunteers. The marketing firm owner had a child of the appropriate age and was able to get other students from his son's school to participate. Some of the students had been in school plays. The owner of the production studio also volunteered his daughter who had experience in other ads. The marketing firm and the production studio gathered the props and directed the children. Additional background images and music elements were purchased from stock vendors.
Development and production of the ad in the various formats was $25,000. A media buy of $100,000 included running TV ads, statewide radio, print ads and online ads. The ad ran on local broadcast stations (CBS, ABC, NBC and FOX) from October till mid December. Morning and evening news programs were the main times the ad ran, with some selected late afternoon and evening programs also in the mix. The video version of the advertising campaign was posted at the National Public Health Information Coalition website.
A health department spokeswoman said she believes the video ad supported the other health promotion messages that were going out via press releases and weekly press briefings. The video ad was a gentle way to reinforce healthy habits and remind people there was something they could do while waiting for vaccine. VDH did not have a measurement tool to quantify the effectiveness of this effort. However, they did receive a lot of positive feedback regarding the ad.