MEDIA CONTACT:
Allison M. Slocum
District Manager
[email protected]
470-889-4213
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
December 14, 2020
Commissioner Lorraine Cochran-Johnson Launches JOIN ME! COVID-19 Awareness Marketing Campaign
Seeks to build coronavirus awareness as county experiences sharpest rise in COVID-19 cases since pandemic’s inception
DECATUR, GA – DeKalb County Commissioner Lorraine Cochran-Johnson has launched the JOIN ME! COVID-19 Awareness Marketing Campaign to raise awareness and provide residents with up-to-date information on the coronavirus as the country enters the third and highest wave of known cases since the inception of the pandemic.
The campaign takes a conglomerate approach to engagement through messaging on static and digital billboards, MARTA buses and shelters, and social media using IP addresses to strategically target DeKalb residents living in areas with the highest known COVID-19 cases.
One of the digital billboards for the JOIN ME! COVID-19 Awareness Marketing Campaign.
Centered around three major messages: “JOIN ME! In Social Distancing;” “JOIN ME! Wear A Mask” and “JOIN ME! Stop the Spread of COVID-19,” the campaign asks DeKalb residents and beyond to unite to stop the spread of COVID-19 through social distancing, using the proper hygiene and wearing a mask. Over 500,000 targeted social media ads also will be deployed to DeKalb residents.
“It is a critical time for DeKalb County as we enter flu season,” Commissioner Cochran-Johnson. “Many medical facilities are seeing high numbers of hospitalizations and there is a real fear of a ‘twindemic’ accompanied by consequences—the likes of which we cannot afford. Our medical staff is exhausted, and we may not have hospital beds or the capacity needed if we aren’t able to get control of COVID-19.”
“I believe many people have become desensitized to the pandemic as they try to move forward with their daily lives, but what we are experiencing is far from normal,” Commissioner Cochran-Johnson said. “We cannot afford to normalize a pandemic that has taken the lives of 492 DeKalb residents with nearly 32,000 known COVID-19 cases.”
According to Covid.cdc.gov, over 16 million Americans have been infected with the virus and there has been close to 300,000 deaths. Healthline.com states that the number of new COVID-19 cases is up more than 20 percent from two weeks ago and the number of hospitalizations has increased by 21 percent. The number of deaths has jumped 39 percent, with the United States surpassing 3,000 deaths in one day for the first-time following Thanksgiving.
“Currently we have a disturbing trend and we must take actions to stop the spread of COVID-19 through social distancing, proper hygiene and wearing a mask to protect our families and communities,” Commissioner Cochran-Johnson said.
At the core of the JOIN ME! COVID-19 Awareness Marketing Campaign is www.DeKalbCOVIDInfo.com, a website that serves as a central portal for all things COVID-19.
“I am proud to launch this website to share the latest COVID-19 numbers, updates on the vaccine and relevant information on how to stop the spread of the virus,” Commissioner Cochran-Johnson said. “The website features a global map that allows viewers to click any location across the globe to see the population, known COVID-19 cases and deaths. When you have an aerial view of the effects of this pandemic, it is very sobering, so the website is a key component of building awareness.”
In addition to digital and printed marketing efforts, the campaign also will include a JOIN ME! COVID-19 Awareness van which will share sanitizers, masks and literature about the coronavirus and will frequent several destinations such as shopping centers and other high traffic areas.
The JOIN ME! COVID–19 Awareness Van.
For more information, media coverage or to schedule an interview with Commissioner Cochran-Johnson, Email [email protected] or call 470-889-4213.
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Citation
https://covid.cdc.gov/covid-data-tracker/#cases_casesper100klast7days
www.healthline.com/health-news/the-post-thanksgiving-covid-19-surge-is-here-what-to-expect-now
