FirstEnergy
Leading utility company FirstEnergy has always prioritized public safety education. But safety messaging can often be dry and unengaging—making it difficult to effectively build interest and understanding around the dangers of overhead wires and downed power lines.
Recognizing that utility safety messaging is generally a low-interest category, FirstEnergy wanted to build a compelling platform to reach its residential customers, contractors and the wider community with information about electrical wire safety. It also wanted to leverage that platform during periods of heightened risk—like summer home projects or holiday light installations—to emphasize the dangers associated with overhead and downed wires.
What better way to personify a category than to, well, bring in a person? We introduced Max Safety, a charismatic spokesperson who embodied the spirit of a FirstEnergy worker. Max became the face and the voice of our public safety campaigns, delivering important information with a touch of personality. And he (with our help) used some attention-grabbing media tactics:
Introducing Max Safety to FirstEnergy’s customers changed the game. By providing a unique and ownable way to make public safety messaging more relatable, the campaign delivered impressive results: Driving strong engagement through tangible educational tools, extended reach into school and family discussions—and successfully cutting through in a low-interest category to deliver an important increase in Brand Trust Scores.
Hey! Our name is pronounced Mōw-rrr, like this thing I’m pushing.