Videos share safety messages in memorable ways
This year’s winners of the annual American Gas Association Safety Awareness Video Excellence Awards use humor and heartstrings to successfully bring home their safety messages to customers and employees.
The winner in the external video category was Atmos Energy for its submission titled Gus the Gopher for Call 811.
In this humorous public service announcement aimed at customers, a cartoon gopher comes up from a dirt tunnel in a homeowner’s yard to exclaim that he sometimes gets a headache when he bumps into a utility line. “If you hit one with your shovel, backhoe or ditch digger, you could cause a gas leak, disrupt service or worse.” He warns homeowners to call their utility before digging.
“Once again, I was thoroughly impressed at the quality of the SAVE entries,” SAVE judge Dan Lyons, president of Lyons PR, told American Gas. “Gus the Gopher for Call 811 stood out because of its lighthearted and fun approach to a very important message.”
Orange & Rockland Utilities Inc. won the internal video category for its submission, Listen to Our Kids. It features more than a dozen children ages 4 to 16 giving on-the-job safety tips to their parents—utility workers—on everything from safe stopping and setting up orange cones when working to never texting while driving.
“I’ve been judging the awards for years, and this video is my all-time favorite,” SAVE judge Anne Lowe, vice president of operations at the National Energy Foundation, told American Gas. “Simply said: Children motivate adults. Having kids voice the challenge was spot-on. Nothing could be more inspiring than kids reminding employees that safe practices ensure they return home to their families every night. And those kids were pure adorableness!”
Southwest Gas received an honorable mention for its submission, But, I Don’t Have Natural Gas, which featured “Deep Voice Narrator” telling a homeowner she could be smelling natural gas even if she doesn’t have natural gas appliances because it could be a neighbor’s gas leak.
The competition provides an outlet to share important natural gas safety messages and advocacy priorities of the industry. Each year, AGA is struck by how well-executed the videos are and by the unique ways that utilities get their safety messages across, Lisa O’Leary, manager, digital communications at AGA, told American Gas.