Healthcare brand embraces creativity and hits on success

Piedmont Healthcare, a US-based provider, worked the principles of marketing science into its operation, finding both growth and executive buy-in as a result.

Why it matters

Many marketers become focused on targeting at the expense of the more effective principles of creativity.

The principle of creative commitment was established in a whitepaper, authored by James Hurman and Peter Field, in collaboration with WARC and Cannes Lions.

Piedmont’s CMO Douwe Bergsma worked with Hurman at Cannes Lions advisory to integrate these findings and broader marketing science into the organisation. According to a case study on Mi3, the work was undertaken to address a sharp drop in brand awareness.

Seven steps to enhanced effectiveness

Speaking with Mi3, Hurman explains the process in seven core steps:

1. “Are we spending enough money to grow?” i.e. are we attaining excess share of voice relative to market share?
2. Target broadly to drive penetration
3. Balance the long- and short-term growth work
4. Build mental availability through distinctive assets that make the brand easy to think of
5. Use emotion to smooth the decision around your brand
6. Commit to creativity across campaign duration, media breadth, and spend
7. Measure and refine

Key quote

“If you think about the principle of excess share of voice or the principle of mental availability or any of these things … it’s like baking a [marketing science] cake. If we bake a cake with all of the ingredients, it turns out brilliant. If we leave a couple of the ingredients out, it either tastes disgusting or it's a big old mess” – James Hurman, speaking to Mi3.

Sourced from Mi3, WARC