How To Market Your Safety Program To Employees

Covilli, Langston and Weber all agree that one of the most important aspects of a workplace safety program is its marketing.

“Ultimately, you have your safety policy. You’re supposed to wear your safety glasses and you’re supposed to store chemicals correctly. The safety program is really the marketing piece,” Langston says. “How do you get people to do that? How do you get people out in the field to be excited and positive about safety?”

Weber points out that there can be an additional challenge: employees might be alone throughout their workday, and therefore might be tempted to cut corners when it comes to safety, comfortable in the knowledge that no one will see them do it. Accordingly, safety programs must be marketed and communicated effectively to ingrain safe habits into people, even when there is nobody watching.

For IH Services, the answer lies in creativity. The 12 Steps to Zero Accidents program has a cartoon mascot named Zero the Hero, and every year the program’s marketing materials feature a different theme. Langston lauds Weber as a “marketing genius” who has made the program memorable and fun for the company’s employees.

Another important point on which Covilli, Langston and Weber all agree is that safety should be emphasized across the board, from longtime CEOs down to the newest hourly worker. When company executives prioritize safety and lead by example, they are reinforcing to the company’s entire workforce that safety is truly a top concern and should be taken very seriously.

“Make safety part of your culture,” summarizes Covilli.

And though the safety programs are primarily intended to prevent accidents and injuries on the clock, both 4M and IH Services want their safety programs to create safe people, not just safe workers.

“It’s not just about work,” Weber explains. “It’s about taking safety from work into our homes, into our communities, into our churches; where we live every day when we’re not at work.”