Launching A New System

Making government less governmenty

The Challenge

The state of Nevada invested in an overhaul of its unemployment benefits system after system failures were borne out during the pandemic. They needed to let Nevadans know they had a shiny new system that residents could rely on when they needed to, so they partnered with Estipona Group (EG) to get the word out.

We had several challenges to consider. There was historic ill will and frustration from those pandemic-era failings to overcome. Because any adult Nevadan can end up needing benefits, messaging had to be accessible and relatable to a diverse population. And we needed to get folks interested in a topic most don't want to think about until they have to.

The Strategy

While every adult Nevadan was part of the target audience, there were two main groups to focus on in our communications: unemployed (and potentially unemployed) workers and Nevada employers.

To convey that the system was indeed new and improved, we shared specific, meaningful improvements, including: ease of use, 100% electronic/online, mobile-friendly, built-in AI support and a library of explainer videos. To make the content both simple to understand and engaging, we created a spokesanimal modeled on the system’s AI chatbot — Benny the Bighorn sheep. We transcreated all marketing materials in Spanish.

The client wanted to prevent call centers from being overwhelmed upon launch by users' questions. To answer anticipated questions and address predicted curiosity, EG developed extensive social media content and executed a paid social media campaign.

We also developed an extensive library of how-to videos in English, Spanish and American Sign Language, so users could easily understand and navigate the new system. To create continuity with both the user experience and the marketing, the videos feature the system's AI chatbot, Benny the Bighorn sheep.