Health Care
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Educating Americans about advances in neurosurgery, building an understanding for the biology of Alzheimer’s and training general practitioners how to spot teen depression are among our achievements for clients involved in the life sciences. We have worked on behalf of the world’s largest pharmaceutical companies, national health care organizations as well as professional medical associations to explain important advances in medical research, educate physicians about new trends in public health, and translate scientific issues into language that is most meaningful to the public.
Case Study
In early 2010, Spector & Associates launched a strategic media relations campaign for one of the oldest home care companies in the country — Griswold Special Care. Founded in 1982 as a family business, the company suffered from little brand equity and a growth rate well below the industry standard.
Now under new management, Griswold Special Care was in need of national visibility in order to compete in the home care market: one of the fast-growing segments of the eldercare market. And, since the company had no budget for advertising, media relations was going to be the chief way for Griswold to get exposure before potential customers.
Despite the number of years it had been in business, the company was virtually unknown to reporters. This made it critical to establish credibility for the company. We did so by setting up only the best-credentialed Griswold executives —geriatric social workers, nurses and finance experts — to serve as spokespeople, positioning them as “go-to” resources for elder care stories.
We knew that any initiatives built solely on the company’s services would go unnoticed by the media. So, instead, we positioned the company as a leading authority on such issues as caregiver burden, family dynamics and senior care living options. This not only promoted an image of Griswold as a caring, trusted partner in home care; it also positioned the company as a leading advocate for seniors living independently at home.
This “aging in place” campaign was directed at referral sources — primary care physicians, nurses, geriatric and care managers — as well as family caregivers. We used a combination of bylined stories in home care industry publications and interviews with national health and personal finance reporters to deliver the company’s message.
We also took advantage of the news cycle, providing timely advice and commentary around Alzheimer’s Awareness Month, Thanksgiving and tax season, as well as providing responses to breaking health or policy stories in the press.
Over the course of 15 months, we achieved more media coverage than Griswold had seen in its entire 30 years.
Stories in mainstream publications like USA Today, The Wall Street Journal and Fox Business supported our articles in industry mainstays such as Aging Well, McKnight’s Long Term Care, Aging Today and CARING magazine. In total the Griswold Special Care brand reached an audience of more than 34 million. Franchisees saw an immediate increase in the number of inquiries from families and the medical community.
But more importantly, the coverage contributed to a record 30 percent increase in franchise growth in a single year.