Truth Initiative (Paid Media)

The Truth Initiative's "This Is Quitting" campaign is a text-based support program designed to help teens and young adults quit vaping. The campaign focused on driving enrollments among users aged 13-17 in Washington, D.C., a highly specific and regulated audience segment requiring thoughtful channel selection and targeting. The primary challenge was reaching and converting a younger audience across fragmented, mobile-first platforms while navigating advertising restrictions for users under 18. PBJ was tasked with developing an omnichannel paid media strategy that could both drive awareness and convert users into program enrollments efficiently.

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- Developed a full-funnel, omnichannel paid media strategy prioritizing TikTok, Snapchat, and Meta to effectively reach a Gen Z audience

- Captured high-intent users through Google Search while leveraging YouTube and Performance Max to expand reach and drive efficient scale beyond social

- Implemented Google Display remarketing to re-engage site visitors and convert them into enrollments at a low cost

- Executed a video-first creative approach, utilizing multiple formats to maximize engagement and prevent creative fatigue

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Key Learnings

- Video-first creative is critical for Gen Z engagement and conversions

- Human-centered storytelling outperforms animated and static formats

- Search remains the highest-intent driver, even for younger audiences

- Omnichannel strategies are essential to guide users from awareness to enrollment

- Top-of-page landing content is crucial, as most engagement occurred above the fold