CHALLENGE |
By the middle of the 1980s Utah's infant mortality rate had increased to the point where state health officials were becoming alarmed. Something had to be done and done fast. Armed with increased funding provided by a hike in the state cigarette tax, the Utah Department of Health was able to improve the healthcare delivery system for pregnant women statewide. The challenge then became letting these women know that these services were available to them.

SOLUTION |
Vanguard Media proposed what seemed like a radical idea at the time. Create a program called Baby Your Baby which would encourage pregnant women to seek out care and assistance. The Baby Your Baby message was carefully crafted to appeal to women, without coming across as a welfare or public assistance program.Since its launch in 1988, Baby Your Baby has maintained its prominence on television, supplemented by flights of radio, outdoor, and print. Over the years, the messages have evolved to highlight different aspects of pregnancy, yet they always encourage early, regular prenatal and early-childhood care.

RESULTS |
The year following the beginning of the program, the infant death rate fell from 8.8 to 8.0 per thousand live births, the fetal death ratio fell from 7.1 to 5.2 per thousand live births, and the perinatal death rate fell from 11.3 to 9.0. Baby Your Baby also helped decrease the percentage of low-birth weight babies from 14 percent in 1985 to 8.7 percent in 1989. Baby Your Baby has a 95 percent recognition level in Utah - the highest of any ad campaign in the state. In addition, Baby Your Baby has won numerous of awards for its innovative and creative approach.