This time last year we were in the beginning weeks of COVID shutdowns — do you remember the defining moment you realized the pandemic was changing life as we knew it?
We’ve all asked ourselves that question but Glacier Media used Subtext to produce a user-generated content series designed to answer this question.
A year after the World Health Organization declared the coronavirus a global pandemic, Glacier Media sent the text below to their 9K subscribers.
Quickly, they received hundreds of replies:
They discovered common themes that revealed how we all encountered many of the same emotions and hardships.
“It was a terrible moment. I needed to get toilet paper and supplies for myself and my elderly aunt who is in her 90s. I went to a drugstore and explained what I was doing and requested they make an exception to the rule about one item per person. I was aggressively approached by a security person who stood in front of me to block me from going to the cashier. Two people around me offered to purchase the items on my behalf. Their Immediate kindness and generosity brought me to tears. I had no cash to pay them so I declined and left the store. I felt humiliated at the time. But I'll never forget the kindness of strangers”
“Hi, I realized that life was changing and not for the better when a vast amount of people lost loved ones. Not being able to comfort both parties...the loved one with covid and their families. The final moments, the grieving process, the closure. There will be a lot of mental health issues related to this situation.”
“We were at our winter home in Mexico. I would have to say March 19th when we made the decision to return to Canada and hoped to be allowed to cross the border into first the US and then into Canada. Driving through the states felt like a scene from the Walking Dead. Empty roads and shopping malls. Going through Los Angeles California on our way down in November took about 4 hours and driving back we never saw anyone and we drove through Los Angeles in about an hour or less.”
Using the responses of their audience, the team produced #TheMoment, a beautifully orchestrated reflection campaign sourced primarily from Subtext readership.
Through this campaign, Glacier Media’s Subtext subscribers became the focal point of a story the whole world could relate to. They mastered storytelling by leveraging authentic audience connections, and what they were able to achieve was truly touching. Check out the pieces below:
- British Columbians reflect on the exact moment the pandemic sunk in (VIDEO)
- #TheMoment: When did you realize COVID-19 had changed everything?
Interested in learning more about hosting your own Subtext campaign? Schedule a demo with the Subtext team.