VaxTO Case Study

After a long wait for COVID-19 vaccines to be developed and procured, in the spring of 2021, the City of Toronto began to receive a steady supply of vaccines. The City sought out solutions to the confusion around eligibility for and availability of vaccines by disseminating accurate and timely information to the public through culturally-appropriate content and tools in order to build confidence and ultimately get as many people vaccinated as quickly as possible. When pediatric vaccines became available as well as third doses/boosters, the City followed up with citizens to educate and inform the public as to why these vaccine options were important and should be pursued.

Stratcom partnered with Point Blank, a creative agency, to develop a communications strategy that leveraged both companies’ strengths. Point Blank focused on creative development and digital advertising, while Stratcom got the message out using our direct communication and engagement tools and technology. The strategy proposed to the City of Toronto would inform citizens getting their first and second doses about location and booking details, as well as provide reliable information directly from health care providers and government officials. It also facilitated follow-up for missed appointments and to let others know when their next dose was available sooner. Once pediatric vaccines and third doses became available, the City of Toronto and Stratcom partnered to persuade those who were vaccine hesitant to protect themselves from Covid-19 through vaccination.

Engagement Calling Highlights

Almost

150,000

people attended Telephone Town Halls

More than

1 million

people contacted by voice mail broadcast

16,500

Torontonians

connected directly to the provincial vaccine booking line

Live Calling Highlights

More than

40,000

live phone conversations

Texting Highlights

300,000

people

received a text message

Engagement Calling

Telephone Town Halls (TTHs) were organized in English and special languages to reach communities with lower vaccination rates. These delivered accurate information about vaccines directly from government and health officials to participants in their languages or about their specific concerns (such as the pediatric vaccines). Interactive Broadcast Voice Messages (IBVMs) disseminated detailed information through multilingual messages recorded by notable public figures. Through both channels, participants could be patched through to a live booking line to make appointments in any of 300 languages, turning trust building into concrete action.

Live Calling

Stratcom rolled out four live phone campaigns targeting areas with low vaccination rates. Agents called Torontonians one-on-one to answer questions, provide updates on locations of clinics and pharmacies with vaccines, to connect individuals to nurses for further information or to the provincial booking line and directly addresses vaccine hesitancy.

Texting

Stratcom also utilized an interconnected texting strategy to reach a broader audience and follow up on live calls. This “one-stop shop” was an inbound text line to which citizens could text “VACCINE” to get keyword prompts for more information including FAQs and locations for vaccines, to request a live call or join a TTH, or to get a link to the booking site.

Our
Work

Engagement Calling

Telephone Town Halls (TTHs) were organized in English and special languages to reach communities with lower vaccination rates. These delivered accurate information about vaccines directly from government and health officials to participants in their languages or about their specific concerns (such as the pediatric vaccines). Interactive Broadcast Voice Messages (IBVMs) disseminated detailed information through multilingual messages recorded by notable public figures. Through both channels, participants could be patched through to a live booking line to make appointments in any of 300 languages, turning trust building into concrete action.

Live Calling

Stratcom rolled out four live phone campaigns targeting areas with low vaccination rates. Agents called Torontonians one-on-one to answer questions, provide updates on locations of clinics and pharmacies with vaccines, to connect individuals to nurses for further information or to the provincial booking line and directly addresses vaccine hesitancy.

Texting

Stratcom also utilized an interconnected texting strategy to reach a broader audience and follow up on live calls. This “one-stop shop” was an inbound text line to which citizens could text “VACCINE” to get keyword prompts for more information including FAQs and locations for vaccines, to request a live call or join a TTH, or to get a link to the booking site.

The Results

Stratcom’s engagement services and tools were strategically integrated and systematically deployed to reach a broad multi-lingual audience and achieve shifting and ever-evolving goals. At the core of the strategy was building trust and confidence in the information communicated. This was achieved by providing opportunities for people to hear directly from respected government and public health officials in TTHs and IBVMs. Live calling was also highly effective in building rapport with members of the public and persuading them to get vaccinated.

Toronto was the first city to launch a strategic engagement campaign using these tools and saw a huge uptake in vaccination rates. Due to its early success, the City of Toronto shifted its goal vaccination rate from 70% to 90%. The campaign benefited from the active collaboration between city resources, staff, politicians and organizations well regarded by the public. As a result, Toronto is now one of the most vaccinated cities in the world.

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