AT&T's multimillion dollar "it can wait" campaign sent a driving simulator to high schools across the United States to give teenagers first-hand experience of distracted driving.
Research indicates that drivers who text are far more likely to be involved in an accident then average and that teenagers – who as a group send five times as many texts as adults – are especially vulnerable.
American telecoms company AT&T developed a simple message to spread the word to consumers of all ages: no text is so urgent it is worth risking lives on the road.
What made the campaign even more effective during 2013 was its ability to enlist a range of companies – including Verizon, Sprint and T-Mobile – as well as 1,500 non-profit organisations, to join the campaign. It rapidly reached millions of consumers through schools, stores and events.
Disney Parks, for example, shared "it can wait" with over 95,000 employees; Goodyear blimps displayed the message in skies over Miami and Los Angeles; and the Girl Scouts worked with 112 councils nationwide to inspire pledges never to text and drive among scouts and local communities.
Central to the campaign was AT&T's annual "pledge day" on September 19. Over 1,000 AT&T employees visited 425 secondary schools, generating 10,353 pledges from young people on the day.
The company has spent many millions on the campaign. It sharedits research with communities, customers, and suppliers and asked everyone to act.
The result has been a community effort to curb the practice.
Lynn Beavis is part of the wordworks network
The Guardian Sustainable Business Sustainability Case Studies contain articles on all the initiatives that met the criteria for the GSB Awards.
