Lead by example within your community or industry.

Share stories about how you are promoting vaccination within your organization. This may include reducing barriers, offering incentives, or developing mandates. Also describe your efforts to increase vaccination in your community. What lessons did you learn? What are tips for success? What challenges do you continue to experience?

HOW WE KNOW

Assess community vaccination needs with key stakeholders.

Consult with your county public health office to learn how your organization can help. Become familiar with relevant guidelines and requirements.

Identify ways that your organization might help the community achieve its vaccination goals.

Engage your organization’s leaders and employees. What resources can you offer? A site for testing or vaccination? A virtual town hall? Supplies, volunteers, expertise or funding? Think big!

Promoting Community Vaccination

Consider playing an active role in encouraging or facilitating vaccination in your community. It's good for business and for the health and wellbeing of the community as a whole.

Law Firm Uses Facebook to Spur Community Vaccination

A small law firm in a mid-size city partnered with the local health department to promote Covid-19 vaccination in their community. They created a Covid-19 page on Facebook to provide widespread education and outreach...

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Recommendations

Your internal research and data experts could help develop and conduct research programs.

For example, Covid-19 provides a unique opportunity to better understand the sources of vaccine hesitancy and how to address it. This problem is almost certain to arise again. Be sure to train your team to deal with personal identifiable information (PII) as needed.

You might reward customers or clients who have been vaccinated.

If you are a business, you could offer discounts. Community service organizations could offer donated products, gift certificates or special recognition. Such rewards might also encourage broader community vaccination. Krispy Kreme is offering free doughnuts to people who show their vaccine cards.

You might mobilize staff to volunteer for community vaccination programs.

For example, volunteers can help community members find, schedule and remember vaccination appointments. They might focus on people who are homebound or who have limited language or Internet access. Employees with different language skills could also provide translation services. Highlight the stories of your volunteers in internal communications and social media. They are role models!

Your internal communication experts could advise on, or co-create, educational materials on vaccination.

They could work with community organizations to develop and test appropriate messages. They could also help design signs, posters, flyers and digital materials.

ADDRESSING VACCINE HESITANCY

CHOOSING THE RIGHT WORDS

COMMUNICATING ACROSS CULTURES

You might host vaccination clinics or Q&A sessions with community leaders and experts.

Use your communications channels to publicize these events widely. Work with local partners to reach all groups within your community.

You might donate supplies local vaccination sites need.

These could include food and water, PPE, tents and chairs, printed materials, and office supplies. You could also offer internet and data services or loan computers and monitors.

KEEP IN MIND

Organizations are a vital part of the communities in which they operate. As employers, they contribute to economic and societal development and can create positive change. Increasingly, being socially responsible helps to attract and keep both employees and customers. That involves trying to authentically understand and address community issues and needs. Crises, like the Covid-19 pandemic, are an opportunity for organizations of all sorts and sizes to step up and make a difference. Collaborating and co-creating with community members is a productive approach. Public-private partnerships can generate new ideas, solutions, and valuable long-term relationships.