In the spring of 2021, long lines formed all across the U.S. as people waited to get vaccinated against Covid-19. Experts were already seeing warning signs that the short supply of vaccines would soon turn into a lack of demand, and with no local government vaccination campaign in North Texas, local business leaders represented by the Dallas Regional Chamber boldly stepped up and enlisted an Edelman-led coalition of local, female and minority-owned agencies to mount a vaccination campaign.

At the time, most vaccine campaigns — including those of hospitals in the area — were only telling people what to do: get the shot. They were rational, focused on raising awareness and informing the public with accurate information. But DRC’s objective was to increase vaccinations among hesitant groups, so, we knew it would require an unconventional approach — we needed to give them a reason why.

Through our own research, we found that North Texans care about the health of their local economy. In fact, 77 percent of people believed vaccinations would benefit the economy . But few of them realized how much local businesses were still suffering: 1 in 3 small businesses had closed their doors, and key sectors like Leisure & Hospitality remained down 50 percent.

With this insight, we created a campaign to save lives and livelihoods, “Take Care of Business” (“Manos A La Obra”). Instead of just telling people what, we told them why: “Getting the vaccine isn’t just about protecting people, it’s about protecting paychecks.”