Project Summary Update
The Problem
In an ideal world, horses would not need to be on the road. Unfortunately, limited off-road equine areas forces most horses to be exercised on public roads. While many motorists are considerate to horses, slowing down and allowing plenty of room while passing, there is a large number who are not, which can lead to the injury or even death of humans and horses.
The rapid expansion of urban boundaries, rising population, increasing immigration, and the tourism boom mean that more encounters between equine road users and ignorant motorists are likely to occur and the need for education becomes more important. My campaign uses forward thinking to look ahead at the growing number of people on the roads in general and the increasing number of people driving in New Zealand who are used to different driving experiences/road environments, and provide preventative educational material.
There are already many accidents and near misses involving equine road users on New Zealand public roads, but the NZTA are not collecting statistics about how many equine road users are involved in road accidents - which feeds into why people do not realise this is a problem, and why this voice is going unheard. The immediate effects and also the knock-on effects of these accidents should concern NZ.
There is a need for a road safety campaign for equine road users that captures the attention of motorists in a refreshing and compelling way that shifts their attitudes, increases their empathy for horses, and educates them on how to behave safely around equine road users.
The Audience
Urban-Dwelling & Tourist Motorists
Profile 1. Behaves unsafely as thinks horses on the road are an obstacle/nuisance + that they are not legitimate road users and have no right to be on the road - NEEDS EMPATHY
Profile 2. Behaves unsafely as is likely to have little to no knowledge of how to act around a horse (no stock sense) as they're not rural or not from New Zealand + no idea of how fast a horse can react - NEEDS EDUCATION
Profile 3. Understands that an equine road user is a vulnerable road user but is unsure about what the correct behaviour is + might not see an encounter with a horse as particularly risky as they believe the human has a high degree of control over the animal - NEEDS CLARIFICATION
Barriers to reaching the audience: They don't know appropriate behaviour, they don't think there's a problem, they're not interested in horses, they turn off from safety messages, they have a short attention span (especially for educational material), they may have little knowledge of English.
The Campaign
The campaign will consist of educational illustrations describing driving etiquette around equine road users (horse/pony riders and harness horse/pony drivers). These illustrations will show situations from a horse's perspective so that motorists understand how a horse thinks and how it could react, to realise why certain behaviour is not safe. Horses are at all times subject to their instincts and even the calmest, most well-trained horse can become irrational if spooked. I want motorists to learn this and gain compassion for horse on the road.
The campaign needs to deliver fast-consumable pieces of information that are extended across multiple platforms to re-inforce the key messages and create greater social impact. Nearly 90% of New Zealanders aged 15+ use social media. Social media is the digital word of mouth, it is far-reaching, popular and interactive, and can therefore be used to re-invest young adults in road safety. The challenge is to hide a serious safety message inside content the audience want to engage with.
Methods
Social Media Campaign - Illustrations & Animations that quickly confront, engage and inform. Social media has the reach and impact to gain the attention of my target audience. Another key aspect of social media is the shareability of content, meaning key information (the fundamentals of how to drive around horses) can spread quickly.
Educational Materials - Website & Booklet that act as an extension of exisiting NZTA resources. Information from these resources could also be aired in appropriate places to impact tourists, the segment of the audience who needs the most education, such as incoming flights to New Zealand. The booklet contrasts the problem and the solution while the website just shows the solution as it doesn't need a hook.
Objectives
1. Educate motorists to: slow down to 20km/h, pass on the opposite side of the road, not sound the horn, rev the engine, yell at horse and rider, throw things at the horse, flick up gravel etc, obey rider signals, stop if the horse appears spooked/out of control.
2. Reduce ignorance and increase empathy and awareness of proper etiquette in urban-dwelling motorists and people visiting/new to New Zealand. IMPROVING THE SAFETY OF EQUINE ROAD USERS!
3. Gain the support of stakeholders (such as the NZTA and NZ Police) and NZ horse communities and also be a part of New Zealand's 'Vulnerable Road User Month' (November).
In an ideal world, horses would not need to be on the road. Unfortunately, limited off-road equine areas forces most horses to be exercised on public roads. While many motorists are considerate to horses, slowing down and allowing plenty of room while passing, there is a large number who are not, which can lead to the injury or even death of humans and horses.
The rapid expansion of urban boundaries, rising population, increasing immigration, and the tourism boom mean that more encounters between equine road users and ignorant motorists are likely to occur and the need for education becomes more important. My campaign uses forward thinking to look ahead at the growing number of people on the roads in general and the increasing number of people driving in New Zealand who are used to different driving experiences/road environments, and provide preventative educational material.
There are already many accidents and near misses involving equine road users on New Zealand public roads, but the NZTA are not collecting statistics about how many equine road users are involved in road accidents - which feeds into why people do not realise this is a problem, and why this voice is going unheard. The immediate effects and also the knock-on effects of these accidents should concern NZ.
There is a need for a road safety campaign for equine road users that captures the attention of motorists in a refreshing and compelling way that shifts their attitudes, increases their empathy for horses, and educates them on how to behave safely around equine road users.
The Audience
Urban-Dwelling & Tourist Motorists
Profile 1. Behaves unsafely as thinks horses on the road are an obstacle/nuisance + that they are not legitimate road users and have no right to be on the road - NEEDS EMPATHY
Profile 2. Behaves unsafely as is likely to have little to no knowledge of how to act around a horse (no stock sense) as they're not rural or not from New Zealand + no idea of how fast a horse can react - NEEDS EDUCATION
Profile 3. Understands that an equine road user is a vulnerable road user but is unsure about what the correct behaviour is + might not see an encounter with a horse as particularly risky as they believe the human has a high degree of control over the animal - NEEDS CLARIFICATION
Barriers to reaching the audience: They don't know appropriate behaviour, they don't think there's a problem, they're not interested in horses, they turn off from safety messages, they have a short attention span (especially for educational material), they may have little knowledge of English.
Therefore the campaign needs to be: Educational, empathy increasing, visually appealing, humorous, engaging, fast-consumable, sharable, participatory, brought to the people (they don't have to seek it out), clear and understandable both image and text wise.
The Campaign
The campaign will consist of educational illustrations describing driving etiquette around equine road users (horse/pony riders and harness horse/pony drivers). These illustrations will show situations from a horse's perspective so that motorists understand how a horse thinks and how it could react, to realise why certain behaviour is not safe. Horses are at all times subject to their instincts and even the calmest, most well-trained horse can become irrational if spooked. I want motorists to learn this and gain compassion for horse on the road.
The campaign needs to deliver fast-consumable pieces of information that are extended across multiple platforms to re-inforce the key messages and create greater social impact. Nearly 90% of New Zealanders aged 15+ use social media. Social media is the digital word of mouth, it is far-reaching, popular and interactive, and can therefore be used to re-invest young adults in road safety. The challenge is to hide a serious safety message inside content the audience want to engage with.
Methods
Social Media Campaign - Illustrations & Animations that quickly confront, engage and inform. Social media has the reach and impact to gain the attention of my target audience. Another key aspect of social media is the shareability of content, meaning key information (the fundamentals of how to drive around horses) can spread quickly.
Social Media Involvement - Individuals can like and share posts. When they make a small commitment such as this it can begin to alter the way they perceive themselves (they are now someone who cares about equine road users issues). There is also the opportunity to run a competition where people upload a photo of themselves with the campaign hashtag and a comment (a plea from horse riders and a pledge from motorists) and they will be in to win a prize related to the campaign (hi-viz apparel for horse riders and fuel vouchers for motorists). This provides an incentive to make a public commitment to the campaign, helping people view themselves as part of something bigger/making them feel involved in making a difference. Making the user a hero in such a visible way means they are far more likely to actually adopt the desired behaviour.
Educational Materials - Website & Booklet that act as an extension of exisiting NZTA resources. Information from these resources could also be aired in appropriate places to impact tourists, the segment of the audience who needs the most education, such as incoming flights to New Zealand. The booklet contrasts the problem and the solution while the website just shows the solution as it doesn't need a hook.
Objectives
1. Educate motorists to: slow down to 20km/h, pass on the opposite side of the road, not sound the horn, rev the engine, yell at horse and rider, throw things at the horse, flick up gravel etc, obey rider signals, stop if the horse appears spooked/out of control.
2. Reduce ignorance and increase empathy and awareness of proper etiquette in urban-dwelling motorists and people visiting/new to New Zealand. IMPROVING THE SAFETY OF EQUINE ROAD USERS!
3. Gain the support of stakeholders (such as the NZTA and NZ Police) and NZ horse communities and also be a part of New Zealand's 'Vulnerable Road User Month' (November).