The true story of Carlos Rubio, young protagonist of #theblackout, who was incarcerated for more than two years for having caused an accident that provoked the death of his best friend, was able to convince the jury of the XV edition of price Aretê, dedicated to responsible communication in Italy.
The new video campaign of A4 Holding, an Abertis Group company which controls the motorways A4 Brescia – Padova and A31Valdastico, thought to make young drivers aware of driving risks after consuming alcohol or other drugs, has indeed deserved one of the greatest reward: the price as “best business communication”, received by Il Sole 24 Ore.
The cerimony took place yesterday, at the Bocconi University of Milano and A4 Holding received the prize because #theblackout has been considered from the jury as the best “combined spot-social action that involves discos, too, the first one of this kind in Italy, realized to directly speak to young people”.
A4 Holding was rewarded not just for the contents, but for the innovative format that thought about social networks, in particular Facebook and Instagram, as the main communication channels, and young people and their very own feelings as protagonists, as they listened to the story of Carlos Rubio. The campaign started between the nights of the 7th and the 8th of June, at the disco “Sesto Senso” (Brescia): the lights were suddenly turned off in the local full of young people, and the video that tells the story of Carlos Rubio was shown.
The reaction young people had before, during and after the “blackout” were filmed and a video was made, available on the main website of the campaign www.theblackout.it.
Participants then received a key holder to remember the slogan of the campaign “do not switch off your light: you’re the only one who has the key to do it”, which they were photographed with. The photos were shared both on the official website and on social medias.
The campaign was able to reach more than 160.000 users, with a total of more than 50.000 views and 200 shares on Facebook.
“For our company, this prize – the comment of the Chairman of A4 Holding Carlos del Río Carcaño – is a further incentive to keep investing on road safety on both the fields of prevention and infrastructures. We decided to adopt this video and social campaign to directly speak to young people by using the new media, where they always spend much time on, trying to reach them and make them more responsible. We tried a new type of dialogue, a method that was used only in Spain before. I am truly convinced – concludes Chairman Del Río – that for A4 Holding this commitment is strategic in order to contain and prevent the heavy distractions that cause too much lives”.
“It’s the right prize for the commitment A4 Holding always carried on to make mobility more – comments Elisa De Berti, transport assessor of Regione Veneto, who sustained this initiative from the very beginning – but what really has to make us proud is understanding that all the efforts we make for prevention can save human lives. We should never get tired of sending messages that could reduce risks and make young people understand that imprudent acts may cause great dangers for everybody. No lights has to be turned off, let’s illuminate the world with attention and responsibility instead.”
#theblackout was an awareness raising campaign shared by and with the territories crossed by the A4 axes of competence held by A4 Holding; it was patronized by the Municipi of Padua, Vicenza, Verona and Brescia and by Regione Veneto.
