It’s Not a Game Launches Comprehensive NIL Effort to Promote Highway Safety
The Brandr Group, DCC Marketing team up with IDOT on campaign to deter reckless driving
PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. – The Brandr Group (TBG), one of the nation’s leading group licensing rights providers for colleges and universities, and DCC Marketing, an Illinois-based WBENC certified marketing agency, have collaborated with the Illinois Department of Transportation as part of It’s Not a Game, an innovative and impactful campaign that leverages the influence of student-athletes to encourage responsible driving throughout the summer.
The Illinois Strategic Highway Safety Plan is targeting a goal of “Zero Fatalities,” which envisions reducing fatalities on Illinois roadways to zero in the long term. The state had 1,337 traffic fatalities in 2021, and the rolling average per year for young driver fatalities was 140, which was higher than projected. As such, the state is investing in a multi-faceted educational campaign to help reduce fatalities and serious injuries on Illinois roadways.
As part of It’s Not a Game, DCC Marketing developed a strategic campaign to best engage various audiences and educate them about highway safety, and then partnered with TBG to identify student-athletes. The campaign, which features 22 student-athletes from various universities and colleges across Illinois, launched Memorial Day weekend and will run through Labor Day. It includes students from Illinois, DePaul, Southern Illinois and Northwestern, including:
Jack Lausch - Northwestern / Football
Caroline Lau - Northwestern / WBB
AJ Henning – Northwestern / Football
Boo Buie - Northwestern / MBB
Caileigh Walsh - Northwestern / WBB
Nicole Doucette - Northwestern / Women’s Soccer
Kennedy Hill - Northwestern / Volleyball
Kansas Robinson - Northwestern / Softball
Luke Goode – Illinois / MBB
Kayla Burbage - Illinois / Volleyball
Adalia McKenzie – Illinois / WBB
Malik Elzy – Illinois/ Football
Kennedy Berschel – Illinois / Women’s Soccer
Tori Thomas – Illinois / Track & Field
Mia Townes – Illinois / Gymnastics
Ty Rodgers – Illinois / MBB
Jeremiah Oden – DePaul / MBB
Anaya Peoples - DePaul / WBB
Shakara McCline – DePaul / WBB
Billy Gneiser – DePaul / Golf
RJ McGee – SIU / MBB
Dante Cleveland – SIU / Football
“It was crucial for us to showcase diversity – diversity of sport, diversity in gender and diversity in culture – to ensure that we not only were displaying the best of college athletics, but also to best engage, influence and persuade a diverse collection of audiences,” said Melissa Amedeo, SVP at DCC Marketing. “Identifying the right student-athletes was crucial to building this campaign, making sure we could bring together ambassadors who had a personal connection to this cause, as well as those who could make an impact with their participation.”
“Connecting these student-athletes with this campaign was such a meaningful, powerful experience, especially knowing that many of them had personal stories involving their loved ones through drunk driving and vehicular crashes,” said Daniel Siegel, Vice President at TBG. “Providing an opportunity for them to help raise awareness and promote highway safety practices enables them to put NIL to its highest and best use, using their status to make a positive impact around an important cause.”
About It’s Not a Game:
It’s Not a Game is the Illinois Department of Transportation’s innovative safety campaign reinforcing that roadway safety is not a game. There are no extra lives, no respawns, and no second chances to get it right. www.itsnotagameillinois.com
About The Brandr Group:
The Brandr Group (TBG) is a brand management, marketing and licensing agency powered by a team with decades of collective management experience for some of the world’s largest brands. TBG has emerged as the leading agency in group licensing programs, leading efforts for more than 90 college athletic programs and their student athletes in the Name, Image and Likeness category including the biggest brands in college athletics. TBG partners with prominent brands, colleges, sponsors, corporate trademarks, athletes and events to cultivate, diversify and monetize intellectual property through professional brand management and licensing endeavors. For more information, please visit tbgusa.com.
About DCC Marketing:
DCC Marketing, established in 2000, is a nationally-certified Women’s Business Enterprise (WBENC) marketing agency based in Illinois. With offices in Chicago and Decatur, DCC is driving impact through their unique approach to multicultural marketing that creates stand out campaigns to drive consumer education and behavior change. For more information about DCC and their work, please visit their website at www.dccmarketing.com.
