The challenge

When someone has a heart attack, any delay in receiving emergency treatment can be fatal. Early treatment is therefore essential to saving lives, limiting damage to the heart muscle and ultimately, preserving quality of life.

Sadly, one in three victims of a heart attack die before they reach hospital. Unfortunately, many people are unaware they are actually having a heart attack because they don’t recognise the symptoms or are unsure how to respond. As a result they fail to take the steps that might have saved their lives – or the life of a loved one.

In reflection of this, the BHF has an ongoing commitment to saving lives through raising public awareness of heart attack symptoms and encouraging people to call 999 when they experience them.  Building on learnings from previous campaigns, the challenge for this campaign was not only to raise awareness of heart attack symptoms, but also build an understanding that intense chest pain (as often portrayed in Hollywood movies) is only one of many possible symptoms – symptoms which can differ significantly in both type and/or intensity.

Of equal importance was the need to raise awareness among not only the victims themselves, but also friends and family who are often the people who make the all important 999 call. The challenge was therefore to highlight the relevance and importance of this knowledge to each and every individual, regardless of age, sex, or ethnicity.

The TV Solution

The solution was to call upon the services of one of Britain’s finest actors, Stephen Berkoff, to create an extraordinary TV event entitled ‘Watch Your Own Heart Attack’. The two-minute film, shot from the viewer’s perspective, saw Berkoff vividly make the viewer suffer many of the more common symptoms of a heart attack.

Screened at precisely 9.17pm on Sunday August 10th during ITV1’s Midsomer Murders, the event was the centrepiece of an integrated strategy designed to create a nationwide appointment to view.

1. The first element of the campaign was the creation of 2minutes.org.uk on July 28, hosting 10-second teaser adverts featuring well known personalities and allowing consumers to request a mobile or email reminder of the broadcast.
2. Web traffic was driven by outdoor and ambient media, using cross-track 48-sheets and washroom panels which invited the public to “Watch Your Own Heart Attack”, describing the event as “the most important two minutes of TV you’ll ever see”.
3. In the week leading up to the event, the stark invitation was placed in national press weekend supplements and TV listings magazines.
4. Well-known public figures including Chris Tarrant, David Cameron and Roy Walker built further intrigue by featuring in 10 second advertisements, each stating “I’ll be watching”. These ads appeared on ITV1, radio, online, ad vans, and via ITV’s interactive red button service.
5. A heavyweight PR campaign also generated significant national and regional coverage, heightening word of mouth.
6. Following the broadcast, the 2 minute event was made available for red button viewing – BHF was the first advertiser to use ITV’s 24/7 interactive platform – for two weeks, as well as at 2minutes.org.uk and via YouTube. Online, press and ambient advertisements were also used to generate further views and most importantly, encourage those who had seen the event to share it with their loved ones.

Results

• The 2 minute event was watched by more than six million people, attracting 13.1% of all UK adults.
• 2minutes.org.uk has since attracted more than 350,000 unique visits, whilst the film has been viewed over 61,000 times on YouTube
• Core message take out amongst people who viewed the event was outstanding, with a 30% increase in knowledge that “every heart attack is different, there are a wide variety of symptoms” versus those who had not seen the event
• Awareness of specific, lesser known symptoms also increased among members of the target audience (45+, C1C2D) who watched the event:
• Fainting/dizziness increased by 35%
• Pain in face/jaw increased by 32%
• Nausea/vomiting increased by 28%.
• Amongst those viewing the event there was a 20% increase in the number of consumers who wanted to find out more about heart attacks, as well as a 24% increase in target audience members concerned about heart attacks as a health issue.

A Final Word

Shortly after the screening of the event the BHF were contacted by two separate individuals who said watching the film had helped to save the life of a loved one. In the words of one very grateful individual:
“I would like to take this opportunity to thank your organisation for the 2 minute film, Watch Your Own Heart Attack. It helped me gain a precious few minutes by helping me to recognise the signs of my own heart attack early enough to get the help that ultimately saved my life.”