Billboards
Transit Ads
Social Media
Fentanyl poisoning is a growing and deadly part of the opioid epidemic, taking lives through counterfeit pills made and sold on the streets—often disguised as trusted medications like Xanax®, Percocet®, and oxycodone. To address this urgent issue, my team and I collaborated with Sacramento County’s Substance Use Prevention & Treatment program, part of the Department of Health Services and now rebranded as Safer Sacramento.
Together, we developed a campaign designed to educate and raise awareness across the region. What followed was a compelling public health initiative that reached over half a million people through billboards, transit ads, and social media. The response was powerful—sparking community engagement and significantly growing the client’s online presence.
The Challenge
Top-of-funnel public messaging often focused on tragedy—grieving families sharing photos of loved ones lost, or stark visuals of body bags and toe tags. But that felt distant. It didn’t speak to the moment when someone unknowingly takes a counterfeit pill. We needed to reframe the message to reach people before it was too late.
The Approach
Instead of relying on shock value, we focused on the moment of decision. We created monotone portraits of everyday people, each holding a pill in a bold, contrasting color. Paired with the line:
“You thought it was Oxy. You died from fentanyl.”
The pill and final line shared the same color—subtly linking choice and consequence. The campaign ran for six weeks across Sacramento on billboards, transit ads, and social media.
Results
3x Shorty Impact Award Winner, recognized alongside campaigns from MTV and UNICEF.
Why it Worked
By focusing on prevention instead of aftermath, we made the message personal. This campaign didn’t lead with fear—it educated through sharp, visual storytelling that sparked change.
Billboards
Transit Ads
Social Media
Fentanyl poisoning is a growing and deadly part of the opioid epidemic, taking lives through counterfeit pills made and sold on the streets—often disguised as trusted medications like Xanax®, Percocet®, and oxycodone. To address this urgent issue, my team and I collaborated with Sacramento County’s Substance Use Prevention & Treatment program, part of the Department of Health Services and now rebranded as Safer Sacramento.
Together, we developed a campaign designed to educate and raise awareness across the region. What followed was a compelling public health initiative that reached over half a million people through billboards, transit ads, and social media. The response was powerful—sparking community engagement and significantly growing the client’s online presence.
