In 2014 more people drowned in Sweden than in any other year in the last decade. In fact, in the month of July, Swedish water-related accidents cost more lives than road traffic accidents. Most of the drowning victims were men and the majority had consumed alcohol – coincidentally the group least receptive to advice. So we decided to prove the point.

To showcase alcohol impairment, we asked a world-famous synchronized swimming team to perform their routine. Drunk. The team also represents those most likely to drink and dive in Sweden – middle aged men. They were filmed for the short documentary Don’t Drink and Dive.

With the objectives to save lives and raise awareness, Don’t Drink and Dive was launched a week prior to midsummer, a Swedish holiday closely connected to both drinking and swimming.

Our aim was middle-aged men, their families and relatives – but also to reach the general population to change attitudes towards swimming drunk.

A survey we conducted prior to the campaign revealed that nearly 50 % of Swedish men said that drinking alcohol in connection to a summer swim is OK. One in ten Swedes have taken a swim or bathed thoroughly drunk at least once during the last two years, and one of five admit to doing so after consuming ”a little bit” of alcohol. We also conducted focus groups with middle-aged men prior to launch to fully understand how we best could approach the target group.

The natural goal for the campaign was to save lives. Quantitative goals were to raise awareness in traditional and social media by receiving 100 placements in Swedish media and 1 or 2 internationally. We aimed to generate 100 000 video views through the documentary.

On a microsite we presented the film along with facts and statistics for individuals, businesses and NGO's to find information about the issue. Social media was used as a tool to spread the film both organically and through sponsored ads.

During midsummer week, it was one of Sweden’s most viewed videos, with over 1.1 million views to date and people all over the country pledged not to drink and dive through a successful Thunderclap.

The topic became of global interest. Drinking and swimming might be a Swedish midsummer tradition but it’s also a global problem, as showcased by international numbers from the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention.

1 in 5 Swedes stated they’d seen or heard about DD&D and among the people who had seen the film it was more common to state that no alcohol is ok to consume before a summer swim (53 %).The General Secretary of the Swedish Life Saving Society declared that the initiative could save lives. It most probably did. During the campaign period the number of drowned men decreased by 39 %.

Over 300 articles in more than 25 countries covered the story, resulting in a total reach of 250 million. But most importantly it hopefully saved a life.