COVID-19 Vaccine Hesitancy Youth and Young Adult Project

DC Health engaged Bayne LLC to organize a youth council and conduct a social media campaign aimed at addressing the issue of COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy among youth and young adults (aged 12 – 25).  The project consisted of three key components: the COVID-19 Youth and Young Adult Advisory Committee (YAYAC), a COVID-19 Social Media Marketing Campaign, and Community Outreach Support to local organizations.

Youth and Young Adult Advisory Committee

• Fielded applications for YAYAC, selecting 14 applicants to serve on the committee
• Facilitated five YAYAC meetings between July 27 and August 24, 2021, to provide feedback to DC Health about messaging and outreach tactics to reach the youth and young adult population
• Provided YAYAC members with the opportunity to participate in a weekly Tic Tok challenge by submitting videos about the COVID-19 vaccine to DC Health for a chance to win digital gift cards, and received 10 videos submitted by YAYAC members

Social Media Campaign

• Conducted a social media campaign utilizing paid and organic engagement. Identified and recruited three regional social media influencers from comedy, radio, and reality TV
• Produced one long-and one-short documentary profiling a young teenager who convinced his parents to allow him to be vaccinated (and convinced them to be vaccinated themselves)
• Scripted and produced 17 videos for the social media campaign
• Orchestrated a social media campaign that had a total reach of 834,506, garnered 1,776,565 impressions, and resulted in 10,506 engagements

Community Outreach

• Provided support to three back-to-school/vaccination events during August 2021
• Donated masks, backpacks, and sanitizer to three local churches as part of the Credible messenger initiative to the faith-based community
• Provided funding to a local church and a telemedicine practice to conduct general grassroots outreach