At the end of each year, just before Christmas, my wife sits down at the kitchen table and does an ‘end of year review’. Actually, she does two - one personal, one professional. Although the Christmas decorations are up and we’re getting into the festive mood, review season does put me a little on edge... and I’m pretty sure that’s her intention!
But it got me thinking - what have I achieved in the past year? Which projects have been most important and fulfilling? How can I do better next year?
And even though the first quarter of 2021 was spent in lockdown, I decided to sit down and make a list of all the things I’ve enjoyed working on or achieved this year with FirstCar. Honestly, I was expecting to come up with five or six decent things that I was proud of - but ended up whittling a long list down to the 15 most significant.
It’s been a really liberating exercise and reminded me not only of how fortunate we are to have sustained the business through COVID and come out the other side (although at time of writing, that statement may be optimistic!), but of the enormous support we enjoy from the road safety community.
So as you read my scribblings below, please know that without your passion and commitment to road safety, none of this would be possible. Thank you to everyone who trusts us to support them in their important work.
Merry Christmas and I look forward to working with you again in 2022!
#1 - The mysmallchange campaign re-launch
Although we’ve been running the #mysmallchange campaign with the Safer Essex Roads Partnership for several years, 2021 saw a full re-launch with new touring car, website, tech and resources. The idea is simple: young people make a pledge to be a safer driver or passenger. Entering their pledge via the website starts an email cascade, whereby the pledger receives a #mysmallchange Monday email on the first Monday of each month which contains useful information and advice about safe driving.
When the car is toured around schools, colleges and public venues, new drivers and their parents can engage with the SERP team using a variety of new tech, including iPads showing iconic road safety ads and Oculus GOs playing the full ICE Hub library.
#2 - Junction Priority video
Whilst I shot this film last summer (and I remember it clearly, because Harry was one week old and I was running on fumes! 😵), the purpose was to make the case for cyclist and pedestrian priority at junctions, which has come to be with the Highway Code Review this year. Our clients, Cycling UK, along with other organisations such as BHS did some great campaigning and we were pleased to have produced one of their tools.
This film is direct, pacy and uses a variety of filming techniques to put a potentially complex concept across in a way that is easy to understand. We hope that having understood the issue and the solution, this film inspired viewers to contribute to the Highway Code review and achieve this change in legislation.
#3 - New look Parent Guide launched
We realised pretty early in the year that with the huge backlog of learners due to COVID, private practice with parents (and others!) would be key to helping young drivers maintain their skills whilst waiting for a test. So we looked at FirstCar’s existing A6 pocket Parent Guide and decided it needed an overhaul - which is what we did!
The FirstCar Parent Guide is now full A5 with 36 pages packed with all the content for anyone looking to help a new driver through the learning process. Copies are available in hard print or digital format. Have a flick through the digital page turner sample above or check out our website for more information.
#4 - FirstCar consumer awards
As well as providing magazines, films, campaigns and resources for road safety professionals, FirstCar has a strong consumer-facing brand. This year we decided to showcase the best and safest cars, products and services to new drivers directly with the FirstCar Awards, which were sponsored by Quotezone.
Winners were decided by a combination of a judging panel and public ballot, which saw over 18,000 young people cast their vote. Unfortunately, due to lockdown, I had to film the awards alone in my living room! You can find out the winners by watching the film linked above or visiting our website.
#5 - Water Safety TikToks
@eastsussexfire Shook by the shock! ##icebath ##beachlife ##lifehack ##coldwatershock ##swim
♬ original sound - eastsussexfire
We were commissioned by East Sussex FRS to produce a series of TikTok videos aimed at summer beachgoers. Topics included cold water shock, inflatables, tombstoning, unplanned water entry, CPR and how to use a throwline. With my background as a lifeboat helm, I jumped at the opportunity! FirstCar has a growing TikTok following (see #15) and they were really fun to produce. Who wouldn’t want to spend a few days shooting at the beach?!
Despite some stormy days, we filmed successfully on-location at Eastbourne with the beach lifeguards and Fire & Rescue Service. And within a few weeks, the cold water shock film (linked above) got almost 500,000 views!
#6 - Active Travel VR
Since COVID struck, more and more people have been turning to cycling, scooting and walking as a means to get around. This is great for our health, wealth and the environment, plus it also relieves congestion in towns and cities. But this move brings with it some challenges for road safety educators. Earlier this year, the team at West Midlands Fire & Rescue and Transport for West Midlands Active Travel Fund asked us to produce an active travel education film aiming at helping pedestrians, cyclists and e-scooter riders stay safe.
Shooting in central Birmingham over two days, we managed to incorporate three major themes - 1) Get visible, 2) Get aware, and 3) Predict. Under these headings we could provide vulnerable road users with the most practical information and advice to reduce their chances of getting hurt on the roads. And we included plenty of tips for those behind the wheel too! VR was absolutely the right medium for this, especially on the busy streets of Birmingham! The all-round vision helps viewers understand how complex traffic situations can make the risks for the most vulnerable even higher.
#7 - DriveFit
Despite this being one of my big filming projects of 2021, the Pre-driver Theatre & Workshop Education Research (PdTWER) project is ongoing and much of the stuff I would love to talk about is embargoed until spring next year. However, I can say this: we worked with RAC Foundation’s Liz Box and Kent Fire & Rescue Service to produce a talk-show style film with a range of special guests who offer viewers their unique insights into how young drivers can stay safe, get more out of the learning to drive process and enjoy getting on the road without breaking the bank.
Anyone who has visited the Kent Road Safety Experience may recognise the BTS shot above - we took over the auditorium for 48 hours and made our very own talk-show set!
#8 - FirstCar’s new website launch
A bit like the Parent’s Guide I mentioned earlier, FirstCar’s website benefited hugely from the unexpected Q1 lockdown! Rather than twiddling our thumbs, we completely overhauled firstcar.co.uk which offers young drivers useful information and advice, divided into the following sections: Learning, Buying, Owning, Driving and Insurance.
Much of our road safety content is included within the ‘driving and owning’ sections, but next year, I’m intent on setting up local road safety pages so readers can learn more about the help and support in their areas. Thus far, the new site is proving a huge success, with a big drop in bounce rates, increased in visits and longer dwell-time.
#9 - Young Driver Focus 2021 Report
With the 2021 Young Driver Focus event being postponed, we wanted to make sure all the great content that would usually be presented on stage, was still made available. So with the help of our very kind supporters - GEM Motoring Assist, the RAC Foundation and Westcotec - we have produced the Young Driver Focus 2021 report, which is free to read online. Additionally, we have produced enough printed copies to supply each road safety team with three - so just let me know if you would like to have these posted out to you!
The live event will be held next year at the prestigious, five-star Royal Automobile Club, Pall Mall, London on Wednesday, 25th May, 2022. You can find out more or book tickets on the YDF website.
#10 - GoDrive
Thames Valley Safer Roads Partnership wanted a film they could use in schools and colleges as alternative to live SDSA performances this year, but for it to not become redundant when SDSA restarts. So we came up with GoDrive - a 40 minute film that gives viewers 16 tips on how to be a great driver. These cover everything from how to boost your hazard perception skills and what to do in the event of a breakdown, right through to understanding the probationary period and basic car maintenance checks.
As you can see from the slideshow above, we turned a bare loft in Brighton into a full studio set and back in just one day! We had two great presenters - both had recently been in Hollyoaks! Great team effort from TVP and a pleasure to work on this project.
#11 - ICE Hub growth
Since the start of this year, the ICE Hub has grown its membership by over 25%. More and more road safety teams are investing in VR as a way to deliver education to a wide variety of road users, including young drivers, cyclists and motorcyclists. The ICE Hub is proud to have added more films this year and supported members with biannual webinars to share knowledge, experience and best practice.
If you’re interested in understanding more about what we do and the films available to members, you can learn more about the ICE Hub here.
#12 - The Honest Truth Campaigns re-launched
The core principle of The Honest Truth remains the same - giving young drivers the truth about safe driving, without patronising or sugar-coating. In the age of fake-news and the fear that millennials aren’t quite as resilient as their elders, The Honest Truth campaign believes that they can handle it.
Behaviour change theory is at the heart of all our resources and we have engaged with well-known advisors and researchers to ensure everything we put into the public domain is backed-up by robust methodology and ongoing evaluation. We have produced an array of over 70 materials covering each of the 10 Truths - both in print and digital formats.
#13 - FirstCar Digital Editions
Whilst digital magazines will never replace physical magazines, they do play an important role in reaching and engaging audiences online. This year, we invested in new page turner embed technology (as you can see above) and started offering road safety teams customised versions of all our titles in a digital format.
Initial feedback is really encouraging and the versatility of the platform means the magazines are fully mobile responsible and can be embedded into websites and social media. Using analytics, we can track user numbers, dwell time and most popular pages.
#14 - Modified Car VR
NOTE: video audio contains swearing!
We worked with West Midlands Police and West Midlands Fire & Rescue Service to produce a VR film aimed at the modified car/street racing scene. This project was particularly interesting because we wanted the narrative to raise more questions than it answered which helps facilitators get into conversation with viewers about their own behaviours. Yes, we did roll a stunt performer over the bonnet - but the viewer never finds out just how injured they were. When we cut to the police cell holding the driver, viewers aren’t told the length of his sentence. So there are lots of question marks for discussion.
As you can see from the above BTS/VR overcapture merge, our female passenger forced the driver to stop the car and let her out just moments before the knockdown. This provides passengers with an important message - that they have the power to make good decisions.
#15 - FirstCar’s TikTok hits 35,000 followers (well, almost..)
FirstCar launched its TikTok channel back in the summer as a bit of a test project. Thanks to the skill of our resident funny-man, Keanan, the channel flew and within a few weeks, we’d hit over 10,000 followers! We decided to build the channel with fun, relatable content for new drivers and when we get to 50,000 followers, we’ll start to include more serious tips and road safety advice.
Working in the road safety sector, it’s easy to fall into the trap of focusing on the negative. But setting up this channel has reminded me of so many good and funny memories of when I was learning to drive. Content about shared experiences is really viral and our top performing video has over 1.7 million views!!