Editing McGruff the Crime Dog (section)

=== Initial Impact ===
McGruff was the first Ad Council campaign to undergo an independent evaluation. Garrett O'Keefe from the University of Denver received a $900,000 grant from the Justice Department's National Institute of Justice to assess the campaign's effectiveness. O'Keefe found that the media response was overwhelmingly positive, with over $100 million in donated ad time and space by mid-1981, making McGruff one of the most successful Ad Council campaigns. As a result, more than 1 million free crime prevention booklets were distributed, and an additional 250,000 were purchased from the Government Printing Office. The U.S. Army also printed 300,000 booklets for its programs.

By the end of 1981, more than half of Americans had seen at least one McGruff advertisement, with one-third reporting they had seen the ads more than ten times. Television accounted for 78% of views, followed by posters and billboards at 14%, and newspapers at 8%. The campaign reached a wide range of demographics, with a slightly higher impact on groups more prone to crime, such as men, youth, people in less stable housing situations, and those living in lower-working-class neighborhoods. Of those exposed to the ads, 88% could articulate their message, and 28% specifically noted the focus on encouraging citizens to participate in crime prevention and report suspicious activity to the police.

When O'Keefe surveyed public perception of McGruff, only 3% disliked the character, mostly finding him "too cutesy." In contrast, 57% appreciated McGruff for being "attention-getting, clever, different, or appealing to all ages," while 36% were neutral. Additionally, 8% found the commercials annoying, while 59% said they were "pleased" by them.

To measure the ads' impact, O'Keefe conducted surveys in 1979 and 1981—before and after McGruff's debut. The campaign promoted 40 personal security measures, with TV ads focusing on seven: locking doors, using outdoor lights, putting indoor lights on timers, asking neighbors to watch the house, watching the neighborhood, reporting suspicious activity, and forming community groups. Six of these saw significant increases in usage following the McGruff campaign. The only exception was locking doors, which O'Keefe attributed to a plateau effect, as 75% of respondents already reported locking their doors in 1979. Interestingly, the only security measure not featured in the TV ads but still showing a notable increase was getting a dog.