“You Think You Know:” An Awareness Campaign for Youth, Young Adults, and Parents on the Dangers of Counterfeit Prescription Pills

Due to the increase in availability and accessibility of counterfeit prescription drugs, prevention coalitions in Connecticut developed a marketing campaign to educate communities and encourage conversations about the counterfeit pill crisis, with the ultimate goal of preventing overdose deaths. The campaign, “You Think You Know," was designed to target youth, young adults, and parents/caregivers, raising awareness about how teens and young adults are accessing prescription drugs, why they are using them, the lethal risks of obtaining counterfeit pills, and available prevention, treatment, and support resources. One area of focus was social media safety, since many teens and young adults are using it to purchase drugs. The campaign launched in September 2021 and has received a great deal of attention locally, statewide, and nationally. It has been promoted through the campaign’s website (www.youthinkyouknowct.org), bus ads, billboards, social media platforms, website banner ads, print ads, and press releases, as well as state and national conferences. In the second phase of the campaign in May 2022, a toolkit was released, allowing states and coalitions across the United States to access the educational materials for dissemination in their respective communities, along with a monthly newsletter and blog that features local subject matter experts and individuals with lived experience. Furthermore, the campaign won a Gold MarCom Award, an international marketing competition that recognizes outstanding achievement by marketing communication professionals.