UTICA, N.Y. — Oneida County recently wrapped up its Boost OC vaccination-incentive program, awarding $3.25 million to residents in the form of gift cards redeemable at a variety of area businesses.

The program launched in September, using $2.5 million in federal American Rescue Act funding to issue $100 gift cards to county residents who received a COVID-19 vaccine or booster shot between July 15 and Dec. 31, 2021. The county then authorized an additional $750,000 for the program, for a total of $3.25 million. In all, over 32,000 county residents received the incentive.

“Boost OC was a tremendous success,” County Executive Anthony J. Picente, Jr. contended in a release about the program. “It has helped to incentivize more than 32,000 county residents to get their COVID-19 vaccinations while pumping millions into the local economy.”

Businesses, organizations that benefitted

For Julie Whittemore, who opened Keaton & Lloyd Bookshop at 236 West Dominick St. in Rome this past October, the program provided a great boost to launch her business.

“I didn’t really expect it to be as effective as it was,” she notes. However, 103 people selected her store for their gift card, which equals $10,300 in potential sales for her business.

In addition to directly funding purchases at her business and others, the incentive also gets more people in the door, Whittemore says.

For Jervis Public Library in Rome, the Boost OC program was an opportunity to raise awareness for the library.

“We’re always looking for ways for libraries to be more visible in the community,” Jervis library director Lisa Matte says. This is especially important after libraries had to close their doors for a while early in the pandemic.

While borrowing books from the library is free, there are a number of paid services available for which people could use a gift card, Matte says. This includes purchasing an EZ Pass, printing services, book sales, and buying tickets for local events.

Even if people didn’t choose the library for their reward gift card, Matte says, the library’s logo was on the screen for everyone to see as a reminder that the library is still there serving the community.

In the end, only one person selected the library for his/her gift card, she says, but the library was very actively involved throughout the program helping patrons through the Prizeout process to claim and redeem the gift cards. From helping people schedule the vaccine appointments that would make them eligible for the OC Boost incentive to walking people through setting up an email account to use with the program, the library’s staff was there to help, Matte says.

“That’s where we were really actively involved in the Boost OC program,” she says, estimating the library helped more than 100 people navigate the incentive program.

Not all the people who received a text or email for an e-gift card completed the process, and Oneida County is working with people so they may still receive their $100 incentive.

“The Boost OC program was a great incentive that helped to generate some new business while also allowing my regular customers to have another opportunity to support a place they patronize throughout the week,” Andrea Duvall, owner of Utica Billiards, said in a news release about the program.

“Over 150 people chose the Krizia Martin gift card as their vaccine award, making the program a win/win for all involved,” Krizia Martin Enterprises owner Corrine Gates said. The clothing and gift- store owner said the business saw almost as many new customers as it did returning customers through the program.

Oneida County partnered with New York City–based Prizeout, Inc. for the program to deliver digital gift cards delivered via text or email. Recipients must go through Prizeout’s process to activate the code and pick the business at which they want to spend their $100. They can then visit the business, show the e-gift card on their phone, and use the funds to make a purchase. There was also an option for people to receive a gift certificate by traditional mail if they were unable to receive a digital gift card.

A total of 78 businesses participated in the program, including 25 locally owned businesses such as restaurants, retail stores, and service providers. Other businesses on the prize list included chain restaurants such as Applebee’s and Olive Garden; delivery services such as DoorDash and Grubhub; and a number of retail stores including Target, Home Depot, Old Navy, and Foot Locker.