BMW is launching their “Don’t Txt & Drive” national advertising campaign of tv, print, online and radio messages designed to raise awareness and show the consequences of distracted driving. The campaign theme of “Don’t Txt & Drive – When the Engine Starts the Texting Stops” will illustrate different situations of careless parents endangering their children with distracted driving and will run from June throughout the year.
The U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood states that, “Distracted driving is an epidemic in America, and it has deadly consequences for thousands of people on our roads each year”. The U.S. Department of Transportation also provides shocking statistics that nearly 5500 people died in car accidents in 2009 involving distracted drivers, while the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration found that nearly 87 percent of teens admit they text while driving. All of this has prompted BMW to become involved in this campagin of urging drivers to put down their phones and focus on the road. Jim O’Donnell, CEO of BMW of North America states, “We developed this campaign to be impactful in hopes of evoking emotion and conveying the serious dangers of distracted driving and its potential consequences.” In efforts to reach out to teens, the “Don’t Txt & Drive” message will also be incorporated in more than 100 teen driving schools across the United States.
The first television ad from BMW’s “Don’t Txt & Drive” campaign shows the contradiction of being an overprotective parent and the carelessness of texting while driving with the fatal effects of picking up a cell phone.
Two seconds. It only takes that long to double your chance of being
in a car crash. Stay focused on safety. Don’t text and drive.
Print advertisements will feature views of the road from a distracted drivers’ perspective and online ads show the words “TEXT MESSAGING IS VERY DISTRACTING” in bold, uppercase lettering across websites, proving how texting while driving can interfere with a drivers’ vision. BMW dealerships will also feature printed materials and decals for display in cars and showrooms throughout the summer.
Help spread the word. Put down your phone and focus on driving. The consequences are not worth it.
Leave a Reply