• by Fern Siegel , February 2, 2022

The “On the Fence” awareness campaign, created by TimeZoneOne and its partner agency SCC (Schafer Condon Carter), promotes the effectiveness of the COVID-19 vaccine recently kicked off.

Partnering with the state of Illinois, the effort features 18 real-life stories told by Illinois residents initially reluctant to get the vaccine. Now, all 18 are fully vaccinated.

The campaign will continue to roll out over the coming months. Financial terms were not disclosed.

“We are on the eve of the third year of this pandemic, but we have the tools to get through this, and I encourage everyone on the fence to get vaccinated,”said Illinois Governor JB Pritzker in a release. “Reaching out to a relative, a coworker or a neighbor who is hesitant about getting the vaccine with kindness and compassion will help keep us all safe.”

Part of that strategy meant profiling a cross-section of people from diverse backgrounds representing a mix of demographics and regions throughout the state. The campaign is targeted to those hesitant about getting the COVID-19 vaccine.

That’s a critical public-health concern.

The unvaccinated in Illinois are 11 times more likely to be hospitalized than those who have been vaccinated and boosted, according to the Illinois Department of Public Health.

“Listening to real stories from people across Illinois who have been deeply affected by COVID-19 and lost loved ones was a humbling experience,” said Daniel Thomas, TimeZoneOne CEO.

The campaign targets residents statewide, in English and Spanish. The cross-platform effort utilizes TV and OTT, streaming audio, billboards, bus shelters, digital display and video, as well as print and social media.

The “On the Fence: campaign is part of the state’s larger “All in Illinois”  effort, backed by doctors and public-health experts, to encourage vaccinations.

TimeZoneOne, a global agency, has offices in Chicago, New Zealand and Canada. SCC, a Chicago-based agency, includes Chicago Cubs, Kellogg’s and GE Healthcare on its client roster.

TimeZoneOne also announced Amy Carr is now leading all content and media development strategies as the new General Manager, USA. Carr will oversee the agency's digital storytelling efforts. Carr joins TimeZoneOne from Chicago magazine, where she was editor-in-chief.

A separate state effort was launched at the Center for Cooperate Media at Montclair State University in New Jersey in 2019, but was put on hold in 2020, due to the pandemic. The Ad Lab was created to help members of the NJ News Commons sell ads.

The pilot effort started small — a $30,000 grant from the NJ Local News Lab Fund, a partnership of Democracy Fund, the Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation and the Community Foundation of New Jersey.

The impetus: Hyperlocal media orgs often lack sufficient ad sales staff. The Ad Lab's goal is to create an ad network for indie media organizations across the state. By Q4 2021, it restarted, this time with a shared sales rep, Annette Batson. In that quarter, she closed six sales for the network, bringing in $9,000 across 16 publishers. A total of 1.4 million ad impressions were served with 0.1% click rate across all placements and more than 90% viewability.

Broadstreet, which works with hyperlocal news organizations across the U.S., estimates a full year of investment, with a full-time sales rep, could produce a 10% to 15% profit for the ad network.