The U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) national “If You See Something, Say Something®” (or “S4”) campaign is designed to increase awareness of suspicious activity and inform the public of the importance of reporting suspicious activity to local law enforcement.
Project Mission
Since 2010, LMD has worked with DHS on this campaign to engage the public in playing an active role in keeping America safe.
What We Did
LMD works closely with DHS to create, implement, and monitor a national, integrated outreach campaign that includes PSAs, media across multiple channels, an awareness day, and a partnership program.
Activities & Deliverables
- Marketing and outreach strategy
- Media strategy, planning, placement, optimization, and reporting
- Partnership strategy and execution
- Graphic design for print, radio, outdoor/transit, cinema, digital, and online materials
- TV and radio PSA concepts and scripts and oversight of talent casting and production of the spots
- Spanish campaign materials, including translation, talent casting, and production
Communicating That We All Play a Role
LMD has evolved the S4 campaign over time to reflect DHS’ interest in engaging both individuals and communities. LMD’s early creative strategy emphasized an individual’s responsibility to report suspicious activity. Our creative approach shifted toward communicating that keeping communities safe is a role shared by private citizens, businesses, law enforcement, and public safety officials. And in 2018, LMD launched “Why I See Say”—an interactive behavior change campaign designed to engage and mobilize citizens through motivational “why” messaging.
Delivering the Right Message at the Right Time
LMD’s outreach strategy uses a variety of external marketing communications channels, including print, radio, TV, outdoor/transit, cinema, digital, and online media, to deliver the campaign’s message when it will be top-of-mind. For example, we’ve used tactics such as transit and airport dioramas to raise campaign awareness among commuters and travelers.
Engaging National & Local Partners
Strategic partners help the campaign increase its reach and visibility—and get the attention of key target audiences. LMD’s partner strategy enables DHS to engage with state and local partners, as well as important industry verticals, such as hospitality, sports, transportation, and academia. For example, we created TV PSAs using actual sports officials from NFL, NHL, and MLB, as sporting events are soft targets for suspicious activity. LMD also developed a PSA for colleges and universities to challenge students to raise their awareness of suspicious activity and get involved in keeping their campus communities safe.
