Venomocity: Evolving Trends in Social Media Efforts to Reach Teens

Audience: Arizona ranks 23^rd among all states for current teen smokers. The current rate of smoking among Arizona teens (10.6%) is slightly higher than the national average (10.1%). To combat cigarette smoking and tobacco use among teens, attendees will learn how qualitative research guided the development of a unique, communications strategy, which brought to life “Venomocity” – Arizona’s youth prevention/anti-tobacco campaign. People most likely to benefit work with youth in terms of health education, youth group/coalition building and outreach.

Key Points: Venomocity launched in 2009 and was supported primarily by traditional media and grassroots outreach. In March 2011, the campaign evolved into a digital/social media effort, driven by Facebook and YouTube applications that centered on a one-of-a-kind web site, Venomocity.com.

Educational Experience:  The presentation will cover outreach strategies relative to counter marketing tactics and the utilization of social media platforms to engage teen audiences, all of which have been driving forces behind Venomocity.com.

Benefits: Discussion will further identify trends in teen media habits and assess how the campaign’s transition into the digital space led to a 67% increase in YOY visits and a 66% increase in YOY unique visitors to the site. These methods can easily be translated to other programs for increased success in reaching youth.