Lucas R Wade

Dr. Ganahl
Case 10-1
3/12/2014
Liz Claiborne Focuses On Creating the First Domestic Violence Campaign
SUMMARY
In 2005 Ruder Finn and Liz Claiborne collaborated on a campaign focusing on domestic
violence among an unexplored group: teens. They developed an education program for American
ninth and tenth grade teenagers called The Love Is Not Abuse. Liz Claiborne took initiative
and conducted a national survey that polled 683 teenagers and discovered high levels of abuse
ages 13 to 18 years old. Both Rupert Finn and Liz Claiborne worked closely with educational
and domestic violence organizations to create a unique teen violence curriculum. The
curriculums were three days long and focused on educating teens on how to recognize, seek help,
and prevent instances of physical and verbal abuse in relationships. Together the two companies
planned media events and opportunities to teach teens that love is not abuse.
The goal for the campaign was to be appealing to the teenagers while helping them to
sharpen their reading and writing skills by looking at short stories and having group sessions to
help them. They partnered with the Education Development Centers Health and Human
Development program and Break the Cycle, which provided help and professional council. In
June, they announced the survey results and curriculum at a press conference at the National
Press Club in Washington D.C. This was followed by a second campaign called Its Time To
Talk Day," which included meeting with teachers from 20 different high schools around the
country to launch the curriculum.
STRENGTHS
Their campaign about domestic abuse reached over 50 million Americans, and the Love
Is Not Abuse curriculum was distributed nationwide free of charge to educate, prevent,
and provide shelter from domestic abuse among teenagers.
Ruder Finn conducted outreach to numerous media outlets that targeted education and
Washington D.C correspondents, which generated widespread publicity like broadcast
coverage on CNN's late night.
Liz Claiborne's unique lesson plans that combined sex education with reading and writing
skills.
Their curriculum packets were free of charge making them more easily accessible to
teens that did not have an income.
WEAKNESSES
Liz Claiborne only reached out to the Education Development Centers Health and
Human Development program and Break the Cycle. They could have expanded this
partnership to more organizations.
The campaign did not use social media at all, when during this time Myspace was
extremely popular among teens.
The campaign got dailies in The Washington Times and The Boston herald, but these are
mediums that are not popular amongst students.
The campaign only used posters and wallet cards as visual aids to try and reach teens.
SUGGESTIONS
Try and partner up with more organizations surrounding teen issues as they are usually
linked to one another to try and reach more teens.
Implement the use of social media like Myspace due to its popularity among teens.
They could have used more mediums that a majority of teens are actually exposed to like
Seventeen Magazine, Spin Magazine, Myspace, and other social media sites.
They could have initiated a ground team to get more visual aids in schools, movie
theatres, driver's centers, etc.