“Great Care, Closer to Home” – blah, blah, blah

I can’t tell you how many times a hospital client has asked my firm to create a campaign where the key message is: Great care close to home. You may have launched campaigns with that very same messaging. I know you’ve seen campaigns like that. If this is truly the right messaging for your organization, the challenge is to communicate this information in a unique and compelling fashion.

Last year, my firm developed a new campaign to promote a pediatric affiliation between Lawrence General Hospital and Floating Hospital for Children at Tufts Medical Center. What we were promoting was high quality pediatric care that you would expect from an academic medical center in Boston, but now available in the Lawrence area (a suburb of Boston located in the Merrimack Valley Region). “Great care, close to home.”

I just got news that the campaign we produced has been recognized with five 2013 Healthcare Advertising Awards including Gold for newspaper advertising and Silver for outdoor/transit and radio advertising. Rather than leading with the “great care, close to home” message, we chose to take another path. We led with a message we felt parents would relate to: Don’t compromise when it comes to your child’s healthcare. Parents make all kinds of compromises everyday, particularly when they’re dealing with their children. For parents in the Lawrence area, when it comes to pediatric care, there is no need to compromise! The campaign uses images that immediately engage the reader/viewer. Check out some of the print elements from this campaign. Of course, there were also digital elements including a dedicated microsite and online ads.