“Besties for Life” set out to combat the fentanyl overdose crisis among teens and young adults in the United States.
The goal was to educate audiences about naloxone, the opioid overdose reversal medication, and encourage young people to carry it as a way to protect friends and loved ones. The central idea was simple and human: people are more likely to take life‑saving action when it is for a friend.
To reach these audiences where they already spend time, the Ad Council partnered with Meta to deliver a national social campaign on Facebook and Instagram. The creative leaned into humor and on‑trend formats, like popular memes, to make carrying naloxone feel approachable. Assets were designed for Stories and Reels, and creative was tailored for young adult audiences, with segments that included college students, young professionals, and music festival goers. The campaign linked to more in-depth resources on recognizing an overdose and using naloxone correctly.
By positioning overdose prevention as a life‑saving act of friendship, the campaign reduced stigma and made carrying naloxone feel like something you do for your besties. The objective was clear: increase awareness, drive quality engagement, and move young people from seeing the message to taking the action that saves lives.
Creative approach
“Besties for Life” reframed overdose prevention as an act of friendship. Bold visuals, meme‑driven humor, and chat‑style posts made the call to action—carry naloxone—feel natural and socially endorsed. Stories included simple, step‑by‑step guidance for recognizing an opioid overdose and using naloxone safely, so the campaign provided immediate, practical utility alongside awareness.
Audience and placements
The campaign ran nationally from October 1 to November 3, 2025 on Facebook and Instagram. Creative was tailored for young adult audiences, with creative tailored to five key audience segments built utilizing Meta’s detailed targeting options to capture niche interests, as well as leveraging Meta’s Advantage+ audience to consistently reach the broader target audience. Organic Giphy stickers and GIFs extended reach beyond paid placements and reinforced recall.
Optimization and delivery
Weekly reporting informed creative and flight adjustments. Meta’s Advantage+ suite of products helped maximize efficiency and engagement, while parallel campaigns were configured to align with platform‑allowed objectives for key audiences. Reminder Ads and Video Saves encouraged on‑platform saves of life‑saving instructions, giving people an easy way to keep the “how to use naloxone” steps at hand.
What made the work unique
The campaign combined a friend‑first message with platform‑native creative and clear behavioral cues. It did not rely on heavy, fear‑based messaging. Instead, it treated preparedness as a badge of friendship and made the act of carrying naloxone feel normal, shareable, and aligned with the way young people show up for each other.
Across the October 1 to November 3 flight, Besties for Life delivered 77.3 million impressions, reached 16 million people, and drove over 700,000 ad clicks and 490,000 landing‑page views. There were nearly 4 million post engagements and over 26,000 reminder clicks, at just $0.09 per KPI. This reflects efficient delivery and strong engagement for a public service campaign.
Impact went beyond surface metrics. The campaign’s brand lift study showed a 15.3‑point lift in ad recall, a 5.6‑point lift in intent to carry naloxone, and a 3.6‑point lift in likelihood to share naloxone information with friends and family. In plain terms, the campaign did more than entertain. It measurably increased readiness to carry naloxone and share life‑saving information within friend networks.
Besties for Life demonstrates that a thoughtful creative strategy that leverages humor and social trends can make a life‑saving impact on a serious, often hard‑to‑discuss health crisis. Reaching millions and increasing intent to carry and share information about naloxone will lead to many lives saved.
