Imaginations Take Flight With Jetblueã¢â‚¬â„¢s Soar With Reading Initiative

Launched in 2011, JetBlue'due south Soar with Reading (SWR) programme is designed to encourage kids' imaginations to take flight through reading. The program'due south goal is to get books into the easily of kids in need. As an issue that is of import to crewmembers, customers and the customs, JetBlue'southward is working to help foster a love of reading from an early age.

JetBlue faced the claiming of differentiating this twelvemonth's SWR program and gaining recognition for the program. In its first iv years, SWR had donated more than $ane,250,000 worth of books; however, the effort was still grassroots in its approach and the airline had received little attending for its efforts amid traditional media, education influencers or social audiences.

Leveraging the program'south fifth anniversary as an opportunity to reinvigorate SWR, JetBlue devised a strategy to:

-Amplify awareness for the SWR programme
-Highlight nation didactics issue of 'book deserts' when low-income children lack of admission to purchase age-advisable books in their ain communities
-Appoint customers and drive participation on the plan's website and through social media
-Reinforce JetBlue's delivery to community service and its reputation as a good corporate citizen

To better empathise how to innovate the SWR program, JetBlue commissioned a study by Dr. Susan Neuman. The report examined three cities (Detroit, Washington, D.C., and Los Angeles) and found that all three metropolises had book deserts, or areas where there is a concentration of poverty and express access to reading resources. D.C. by far had the almost staggering statistic, with only ane age-appropriate volume available for every 830 children.

Children in these areas lack an essential ingredient in learning and thus their educational growth is stunted – particularly during the summer months. These findings provide a snapshot of a larger teaching epidemic in America and is an upshot that demands innovative solutions.

Using the written report's findings JetBlue devised a strategy to dispense free, age-appropriate books to children via vending machines. JetBlue launched the first-of-its-kind SWR book vending car pilot plan in the area and committed to bringing 100,000 new books to this community. JetBlue revealed the concept at the Social Innovation Summit held in June. The meridian attendees immediately supported the program and were interested in developing strategic partnerships for future years - establishing JetBlue as a idea leader in the CSR space.

With this momentum, JetBlue worked with customs partners to place book vending machines at high traffic locations (a church, a grocery store and a customs center). Families were encouraged to visit the machines as often every bit possible, which were restocked with new titles every few weeks. To garner attention, JetBlue planned a launch event for media as well as hosted weekly reading hours at the vending machines, featuring local television personalities – leveraging their attain on social to amplify awareness of the program.

To engage the entire JetBlue customer network, JetBlue as well launched a public, online voting contest. The online #BookBattle immune people to select which city would win 100,000 children's books in 2016. Five cities – Detroit, Houston, Fort Lauderdale, Los Angeles and New York – competed for customers' votes throughout July and August. Targeted media outreach to these local markets encouraged the public to vote for their own metropolis likewise as utilized research findings where applicable. Nosotros besides planned a series of events in #BookBattle cities around the country to generate awareness and interest in the online voting contest. Through targeted media outreach, we secured interviews with both national and local JetBlue representatives to speak well-nigh the program, highlight the enquiry findings and encourage the public to vote online.

We engaged celebrity spokesperson actress Victoria Justice for the New York event and a defended media day, allowing Justice to speak about the SWR program, the online #BookBattle and her own love of reading. Additionally, nosotros reached her devoted fans and followers through her social media channels, peculiarly Twitter and Instagram.

To announce Detroit equally the winning city, nosotros enlisted Victoria Justice to create a video congratulating Detroiters for rallying and receiving more than than 590,000 votes. In addition, we made targeted outreach to local printing, securing both broadcast and online coverage in the market.

The Soar with Reading 2015 program was a tremendous success, providing JetBlue with national recognition for this CSR initiative. The campaign garnered more than 564 million traditional earned media impressions and more 100 meg social impressions solely amongst media and pedagogy influencers. The program received praise on social media from teaching experts, nonprofit organizations and members of the media, including one-time U.South. Secretarial assistant of Education Arne Duncan. Paid support for the campaign garnered more than 70,500 impressions and nigh 35,000 engagements beyond social platforms.

The online book boxing received more one.2 one thousand thousand votes over the course of two months – generating 12 times more engagement with the Soar with Reading website than in 2014. To announce the winner of the #BookBattle, program spokesperson Victoria Justice released a video on her Instagram channel, generating more than 95,000 likes on that post alone.

Equally a result of the social media back up, the program more than than 30,000 books were donated directly from the vending machines and the remaining books are beingness distributed through key partners in the D.C. expanse.

Video for JetBlue's Soar With Reading