A dark roving billboard has poked fun at anti-vaxxers for refusing to get the Covid-19 vaccine.
If you were walking through the streets of downtown Charlotte, US, recently you might have seen a truck advocating a message that is a bit out of step with the current health advice.
A company called 'Wilmore Funeral Home' had a sign with big, white letters saying 'Don't get vaccinated'.
They're obviously suggesting that business would be booming if people didn't get the Covid-19 jab because there would be many more people dying in the US from the virus.
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Deaths in North America have fallen dramatically since the introduction of the various coronavirus vaccines, with non-vaccinated people now making up nearly all Covid-19-related deaths.
But funnily enough, Wilmore Funeral Home doesn't actually exist. When search for the fake company on the internet it actually directs people to a local health service that informs them on the best and easiest way to get vaccinated.
It was all the work of advertising agency BooneOakley.
BooneOakley's director, David Oakley, told CNN: "I just feel like conventional advertising is not working. Like, just regular messages that say 'Get the Shot' or 'Go Get Vaccinated' ... they just kind of blend in with everything else.
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"We wanted to do something that saw it from a different perspective and kind of shocks people into thinking, 'Holy moly, man.'
"I think the reason we did it was because we want people to get vaccinated and I believe even if just one person gets vaccinated because of that billboard, I give it a grand success. Just one person, it will be worth it to me.
"We share the frustration with a lot of people who aren't getting vaccinated. So we were wondering, what we can we do to help? So our team was throwing around some ideas one morning."
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The billboard was roving on Sunday (September 19) when people would have out and about for the big NFL game.
It was hoped that the bizarre message would give people something else to talk about that wasn't American football.
Mr Oakley said the health service that people are directed to on the Wilmore Funeral Home website were a bit 'nervous' about the campaign.
"We were nervous about it too to be honest, and how it would go over. But they agreed to let us link to their site and that was phenomenal, because that's what made the whole thing work-- to me, anyway," he said.
Featured Image Credit: BooneOakley
