Bangalore, the Silicon Valley of India, is notorious for intense traffic being the ‘6th most congested city in the world’. Almost 20% of the total travel time of the citizens is spent waiting at red signals. While they waited, we realised that the health of their heart could wait no longer. With the increasing occurrence of cardiac arrest and nearly 85% of it occurring outside the hospital, Manipal Hospitals wanted to raise awareness around this heart problem by virtually training the public in the life-saving skill of CPR.
Due to Bangalore's high level of congestion, ranking as the 6th most congested city in the world, and its citizens spending 20% of their travel time waiting at traffic signals, we decided to target this audience at stoplights throughout the city. On World Heart Day, Manipal Hospitals, in partnership with the Bangalore Traffic Police and BBMP, launched a campaign using heart-shaped red lights at over 100 traffic signals for a duration of 30 days. The campaign aimed to raise awareness about cardiac arrest and the importance of CPR training. Anyone and everyone who was stuck in traffic was targeted via the campaign. Bangaloreans stopped, noticed the heart-shaped red light, and then the sign board with a QR code below it. The QR codes trained them in CPR through a one-minute video (only 2% Indians know how to perform this life-saving skill).
Through the heart-shaped signals campaign, the public realised the importance of heart health. The campaign garnered 1.45 billion earned media impressions, 911% increase in social engagement, and 12,600 QR code scans. People stopped, scanned, and learned to save a life from cardiac arrest by calling an ambulance and performing the life-saving technique of CPR — the two important steps in saving a life suffering from cardiac arrest.
