CRIMESTOPPERS witnessed a 15% rise in crime reports during the summer months, following a national advertising campaign encouraging people to speak up anonymously about violent crime.
The charity, which is independent of the police, saw a 15% increase in contacts about weapons, gangs and County Lines between May to July.
The uplift follows a national outdoor advertising campaign which ran throughout June and July with independent outdoor advertising gateway, the Smart Digital Network.
The campaign, which featured on nearly 300 high-footfall road, retail and petrol station D6 & D4 screens across the UK, encouraged people to not remain silent about violence, but to say anonymously what they know about violent crime incidents or planned attacks using Crimestoppers’ unique reporting service.
Karen Ogborn, Chief of Staff at the charity Crimestoppers, said: “We know that speaking up about crime can be incredibly difficult. Fear and intimidation can often force people into complete silence. This is especially true when people have information about violence and weapons.
“The results from over the summer have been very encouraging and we are pleased to have worked with The Smart Digital Network to promote our charity’s vital work and nudge more people in to taking action to stop crime.”
The charity has been working with a number of Violence Reduction Units across the UK to support a public health approach to tackling violence through the initiative, however the advertising campaign with SDN was the organisation’s sole awareness campaign during the period.
The screens operated by the Smart Digital Network are located in significantly high footfall areas, with high dwell times to help engage and persuade response from passers-by, with the company able to use real-time audience monitoring technology to monitor how many unique impressions their displays generate.
Julian Carter, Commercial Director at SDN, said: “It’s been fantastic working with Crimestoppers on the Silence Won’t Stop Violence campaign, and it is great we have our first proven case study showing the impact our network can have on getting results. Digital OOH is proven to be effective at driving response, and these small formats are close to people, so you cannot miss the message.
“Most of the advertising screens in the SDN portfolio are fitted with real-time audience measuring software which tracks real-time footfall which really separates us from our competitors and ensures our customers receive the best possible results for their campaigns.”
For more information on Smart Digital Network, visit: https://www.smartoutdoor.co.uk/
