Shockingly, 33% of girls and 16% of boys have experienced some form of sexual violence from a partner, and this figure is even higher amongst peer groups. Of equal concern is that there are large numbers of 13-18 year olds that view abuse, sexual coercion and violent behaviour within relationships and peer groups as normal and/or something you live with.Our challenge was to reduce these incidences within relationship and peer groups by challenging teen perceptions that this behaviour is normal and acceptable.

We chose to communicate frankly to a notoriously sceptical audience by asking teens directly: ‘If you could see yourself, would you see rape?’ Our aim was to open up the subject, exposing common myths surrounding rape and promoting discussion through TV, online and digital partnerships as well as an interactive website.First we had to get inside their heads and make them realise what rape actually is.

Whilst formal tracking results are due in May, the initial response to the campaign has been phenomenal. The launch of the campaign, spear-headed by Deputy Prime Minister, Nick Clegg, generated PR coverage reaching a total circulation audience of around 32m people alone. The site received 5,882 visits on the day of launch and comments posted to the site have almost reached their thousands. Dwell time on the site is 3 minutes on average, with visitors viewing 3.5 pages each time as they look at the videos and explore the site’s content, and the video has been viewed over 238,000 times on YouTube. Most importantly, when we spoke to young people about the campaign, almost all of them agreed that it had changed their perceptions about rape.

We confronted them with a highly targeted TV commercial that ran on youth satellite channels. Minute long versions of the TV also ran in cinemas before appropriate film viewings.Digital banners supported the TV creative, playing a vital role in exposing many of the current myths that surround the issue of rape. Other online vehicles such as Spotify and MSN messenger continued the victim’s story, where the girl’s singular account of what happened also appeared.The content prompted teenagers to reflect on their own views as to what constitutes rape. This sparked internet wide conversations. For the first time, our target audience were talking about rape.

The website, launched simultaneously, provided a place where teens could learn everything they needed and for the first time they had an outlet for their concerns, questions, and were able to have their say. They could also talk to an advisor if they needed to.