THINK! Named Riders campaign goes live

The THINK! team’s ‘Named Riders’ campaign launches today (20 June) and will run until 17 July.

Launching the campaign, Mike Penning, road safety minister, said: "Britain has some of the safest roads in the world but around nine motorcyclists were still killed on the roads each week in 2009.

"As a biker I know how much fun motorcycling can be and what a practical way it is to get around, but it is unacceptable that so many motorcyclists are dying on our roads and I want to tackle this.

"While many drivers may take extra care at junctions, they often don’t see bikers and this is a major factor in motorcycle casualties. That is why our THINK! campaign aims to remind drivers to think about the biker, not just the bike – so that we see fewer of these needless accidents."

The campaign is radio-led with two new commercials supporting the existing materials. While there is no TV activity, the use of video on demand systems enable the TV commercial to secure some reach and engage the driver audience online.

Other media channels used in the campaign include: radio sponsorship; online display (automotive and route planning sites); online search (targeting drivers and riders); petrol forecourt activity (in-store screens up-weighted in ‘hot spot areas’); and social media (engaging with the THINK! BIKE Facebook group).

Named Riders was first launched in March 2010, on the back of research which showed that drivers are more likely to notice motorcyclists on the roads if they personally know a biker. The campaign encourages all drivers to see the person behind the helmet in a bid to tackle the over-representation of motorcyclists in casualty figures.

A range of THINK! materials is available for road safety professionals to use to support the campaign, including ‘Named Riders’ posters and THINK! BIKE stickers.

While Named Riders is aimed predominately at drivers the THINK! team is also planning partnership marketing activity aimed at motorcyclists. This will build on the activity from March 2011, which offered safety gear promotions via insurance providers and trainers. SHARP will also continue to feature as a safety message within THINK! motorcycle activity.

Click here for background information about Named Riders.

Click here to see the range of campaign resources.

For more information about Named Riders contact Lucy Jewitt on 0207 944 4640.