Sip Safe
By Y&R Melbourne, Melbourne, Australia
For Monash University
Winner in category Direct
In subcategory Consumer Marketing
Project Description
The Sip Safe wristband has the ability to empower and protect a new generation, to seamlessly work from within the youth environment to put a stop to drink spiking and the predatory sexual behaviour associated with it.
The wristband is not only a product, it is a utility, it is a channel for delivering a drink safety message. It started with a university, a place with the greatest duty of care for young people and now has the opportunity to go far beyond, to leverage other social institutions to support the initiative and play their role in stopping drink spiking.
4,500 Australians have their drink spiked every year - 40% of which lead to sexual assaults.
As a caretaker of young people Monash University set a brief to help educate and make their students and the wider community more aware of drink safety.
The objectives we set out to achieve were to instil young people with the ability to ensure their safety when socialising in various surroundings.
A key indicator of success was to see a change in awareness of drink safety by creating behavioural change at a key moment in life. This change in behaviour was crucial in the ultimate objective of preventing drink spiking before it happens.
The product has been prototyped, refined, launched, rolled out at scale and is available for commercial purchase.
The wristband is not only a product, it is a utility, it is a channel for delivering a drink safety message. It started with a university, a place with the greatest duty of care for young people and now has the opportunity to go far beyond, to leverage other social institutions to support the initiative and play their role in stopping drink spiking.
4,500 Australians have their drink spiked every year - 40% of which lead to sexual assaults.
As a caretaker of young people Monash University set a brief to help educate and make their students and the wider community more aware of drink safety.
The objectives we set out to achieve were to instil young people with the ability to ensure their safety when socialising in various surroundings.
A key indicator of success was to see a change in awareness of drink safety by creating behavioural change at a key moment in life. This change in behaviour was crucial in the ultimate objective of preventing drink spiking before it happens.
The product has been prototyped, refined, launched, rolled out at scale and is available for commercial purchase.
Agency Solution
After observing that young people are accustomed to wearing wristbands at festivals and other events we found inspiration to create something to help stop drink spiking.
The Sip Safe wristband detects if a drink has been spiked with drugs. The wearer simply puts a drop of their drink onto the wristband and in a short amount of time the wristband changes colour if it has been exposed to ketamine or GHB – two common drink spiking drugs.
The ability to test your own drink provides the freedom to manage risk for the wearer. Also, wearing the Sip Safe wristband provides a visual deterrent to any would be drink spiker. The design of the wristband can incorporate the logos of any brand, nightclub or festival that provides these wristbands to its patrons.
To launch Sip Safe we established the product at events for pre-university students and on university campuses before taking it to the wider audience of clubs and festivals.
We initially targeted the wristbands at the young people who are most at risk. This was found to be those celebrating at Schoolies, Australia’s biggest end of high school exams party, as those attending are away from their usual environment and are now old enough to drink alcohol.
We also introduced the product to university students at a time when they are being exposed to new environments and social dynamics. Critically, the approach to sharing the Sip Safe wristband is about providing information and utility for the individual to make their own informed decisions.
In bars, clubs and other venues, we positioned the strategy as one of responsibility for venues to provide safety precautions for their patrons to utilise.
The Sip Safe wristband detects if a drink has been spiked with drugs. The wearer simply puts a drop of their drink onto the wristband and in a short amount of time the wristband changes colour if it has been exposed to ketamine or GHB – two common drink spiking drugs.
The ability to test your own drink provides the freedom to manage risk for the wearer. Also, wearing the Sip Safe wristband provides a visual deterrent to any would be drink spiker. The design of the wristband can incorporate the logos of any brand, nightclub or festival that provides these wristbands to its patrons.
To launch Sip Safe we established the product at events for pre-university students and on university campuses before taking it to the wider audience of clubs and festivals.
We initially targeted the wristbands at the young people who are most at risk. This was found to be those celebrating at Schoolies, Australia’s biggest end of high school exams party, as those attending are away from their usual environment and are now old enough to drink alcohol.
We also introduced the product to university students at a time when they are being exposed to new environments and social dynamics. Critically, the approach to sharing the Sip Safe wristband is about providing information and utility for the individual to make their own informed decisions.
In bars, clubs and other venues, we positioned the strategy as one of responsibility for venues to provide safety precautions for their patrons to utilise.