2019 Winners & Shortlists

Why is this work relevant for PR?

The true value of communications can only really be seen when real business impact is delivered. GOSHxSuperhope is a leading example of a PR campaign with creativity at its heart, based on real market insight, executed across multiple platforms and that delivered against business objectives. Storytelling at its finest, we took a less than positive subject matter - childhood cancer - and created a positive emotional connection with audiences to differentiate the GOSH brand in the region and drive consideration and uptake of its services.

Describe any restrictions or regulations regarding Healthcare communications in your country/region (imposed by healthcare regulatory bodies, government, TV stations, etc.)

N/A

Describe the target audience

The primary target audience for this campaign is local GCC parents, GCC patients based in UK, GCC & UK hospital stakeholders and the general public.

Background

Great Ormond Street Hospital (GOSH) in the UK is a world-class pediatric hospital providing highly-specialised treatment not otherwise available in the GCC. GOSH treats 1,500 children with rare, complex conditions from the GCC annually. Although GOSH is well-known in the UK, GOSH awareness in the GCC is low. Market challenges include decreasing outbound medical tourism across GCC and no GOSH satellite clinic in the region. The challenge: differentiate GOSH in the region to drive patient referrals and strengthen relationships with key stakeholders.

Describe the creative idea (20% of vote)

Enter: The Super Six. A partnership with Dubai-based organisation Superhope, an initiative to boost positivity amongst young cancer patients, to give six very special young GOSH oncology patients the experience of a lifetime. We transformed them into their super-hero alter egos, and enlisted the pro-bono help of an impressive list of global industry talent to take the characters from imagination to reality - including best-selling London comic book artist, Amrit Birdi, and digital compositor, Roy Peker, of Avengers fame. It started with a simple question - "if you were a superhero, how would you imagine yourself?". Their answers were turned into superhero personas, and unbeknownst to the children, transformed into real-life costumes which they would wear to star in their own photo and CGI video shoot. We captured the experience as a keepsake for the patients, and turned it into a documentary film with trailers for each Superhero.

Describe the strategy (30% of vote)

Through audience profiling, we confirmed GCC parents are 53% more likely than the global average to interact with a good cause online. This, coupled with a social listening audit of hospitals across the GCC which revealed negligible conversation around paediatric care and patient experience, were the two guiding insights that led to our creative idea. Audience profiling informed our content strategy. GCC parents are heavily influenced by ads at cinemas and use mobile-specific apps, such as Instagram, more than the global average - demonstrating the need for an integrated approach across multiple platforms to generate impact. Our lead piece of content - the documentary film - was optimised for social media and we set out to broker a partnership with VOX cinemas across the region. This was underpinned by an earned media strategy to highlight the human stories of our Super Six and focus on the patient experience.

Describe the execution (20% of vote)

12 months in the making, GOSHxSuperhope officially launched on October 1st 2018. 1) GOSHxSuperhope documentary début Children, families and staff gathered eagerly at Great Ormond Street Hospital to watch the official premiere of the documentary. We proactively engaged London-based reporters from top-tier GCC newspapers to attend the premiere and interview the stars of the show; giving the event that extra wow-factor for the children. 2) Communications outreach The campaign spread quickly on social media and into media, with content published in the days following by media and influencers, as well as earned media coverage appearing within the next month in print, broadcast and online across UAE and Kuwait. 3) GOSHxSuperhope in cinema We secured free air time for the official trailers of the GOSHxSuperhope film in 3 VOX cinemas across UAE and Kuwait for a 10-day period.

List the results (30% of vote) – must include at least two of the following tiers:

Tier 1 • 26 positive coverage hits, with estimated reach of 25 million • Key message penetration achieved in all media coverage (patient experience) • Estimated captive reach of 50,000 across VOX cinemas in UAE and Kuwait • 1.3 million+ reach on social • 139k+ video views on social • 132k+ positive engagements on social • 10k+ users to the website – a 72% increase compared to previous month Tier 2 • GOSH consultants and families noted an increased positive mental attitude and confidence of the children involved post-GOSHxSuperhope campaign Tier 3 • The CEO of the GOSH Hospital is planning to launch the initiative across more wards in 2019, meaning a more positive patient experience for even more people • 105 patient referrals in the month of Superhope launch (57% increase compared to previous year’s monthly average)