The Lung Association has asked Santa to compel people to quit smoking via quirky testimonials on www.on.lung.ca, part of the ‘Santa Quits Smoking the Pipe’ campaign.
Santa leads by example, sharing his victory over naughty health habits: ‘I’m happy to say I’ve quit smoking the pipe for three years now, and if I can quit after 40 years of loving my pipe, well, I think anybody can.’ Of course, the messaging also conveys how the Lung Association can assist in quit-smoking solutions.
The Association’s Toronto-based marketing and communications manager Karen Petcoff tells MiC: ‘This strategy is the most cost-effective way to create a buzz at this time of year when, as a charitable organization, budgets are tighter and news of the day is heavier.’
Petcoff says they are also looking for more corporate opportunities through a newly created website, www.YourHealthyHome.ca, which offers affordable tips for improving the indoor air quality of one’s home as part of its clean air campaign. The website uses flash to give viewers a room-by-room home tour to learn how to keep their family healthy. ‘The site offers a range of sponsorship opportunities from room sponsorship naming opps to banner ads to enlisting some of our clean air experts for consumer education purposes,’ adds Petcoff.
The Ontario Lung Association recently launched a major public education campaign to support the new smoke-free vehicle legislation, ensuring parents who smoke don’t do so in their vehicle with a child under the age of 16 present.
Petcoff says there’s a host of opps for health-related or environmentally conscious corporations to partner with them on similar campaigns.
