Portland Water Bureau releases music video to engage new audiences
October 17, 2024
AWWA Articles
Portland Water Bureau releases music video to engage new audiences
A battle of the bands may be brewing in the water sector. Musical ensembles from Denver Water, and more recently Portland (Oregon) Water Bureau (Portland Water), are using creative parody videos to deliver important messaging to their audiences.
Portland Water entered the pop music ranks this summer with its song, “H2O,” a parody of Sabrina Carpenter’s hit song, “Espresso.” Cassidy Keola, a Portland Water communications specialist, tuned into the song while scrolling through social media and wondered if it could work similar to Denver Water’s Splashstreet Boys’ song, “I Water That Way.”
“‘Espresso’ seemed like it was going to be a top summer song,” Keola said. “One of our key messages in the summertime is to encourage people to hydrate. What if we made a parody of ‘Espresso’ about H2O?”
Keola brought the idea to Portland Water’s communications team. Sarah Creedican, internal communications representative, wrote lyrics encouraging Portland Water’s customers to stay hydrated through the heat of summer.
The hope was to introduce the water utility to Portlanders in an approachable, fresh way.
The video and associated social media campaign aren’t just about staying hydrated. The outreach is a deliberate effort to build a rapport with new, diverse audiences. It’s a difficult task for a public utility with a minimal advertising budget in a saturated communications and media market.
“You have to work really hard, especially as a public agency or utility, to connect with people, to give them a reason to take a moment of their time to pay attention, and to then become a fan,” said Felicia Heaton, Portland Water’s communications director.
Portland Water has gained many fans since dropping the “H2O” video. As of mid-September, the video had surpassed 22,000 combined views on Portland Water’s social media platforms, an exposure the utility earned without paying an outside agency or production company.
“You have to work really hard, especially as a public agency or utility, to connect with people, to give them a reason to take a moment of their time to pay attention, and to then become a fan,” said Felicia Heaton, Portland Water’s communications director.
Portland Water has gained several fans since dropping the “H2O” video. As of mid-September, the video had surpassed 22,000 combined views on Portland Water’s social media platforms, an exposure the utility earned without paying an outside agency or production company.
“We don’t have the deep pockets to spend on marketing and advertising because we’re a public agency,” Heaton said. “We are funded by ratepayer dollars, and we take that seriously. So how do we break through the static and get people to listen and then come back to us again later, when we have critical information to share about water quality or another water emergency?”
To Portland Water’s communications team, the key is compelling content.
“Make them laugh first so that they listen later,” said Mischa Webley, Portland Water’s senior communications strategist. “The idea is that we need to be able to get people’s attention consistently throughout the year. Last year, we had a major wildfire threatening our water source. We spent a good amount of time gaining an audience, getting people to listen, feeding the algorithm. When it came down to it, we had a captive audience that knows we mean business if we’re talking about this fire.”
Portland Water hasn’t committed to any follow-up music video efforts, but the communications team joked that it may include a full-length film featuring their mascot, Drippy, or maybe joining the Splashstreet Boys for a tour of supergroups.