30 Minute ER Promise Marketing Campaign Wins in Three Communications Award Competitions
05-06-2009
If a tree falls in the woods with no one around to hear, does it really
make a sound? A similar question could be asked of superior practices
in healthcare. What good is an innovative idea if no one knows to take
advantage of it?
Atlantic General Hospital hospital’s marketing team and their partnering
advertising agency, Mullin Ashley Associates, met the challenge head-on
when the hospital first launched the 30 Minute ER Promise to the community
with a barrage of display ads, billboards, radio commercials and television
spots touting a catchy “we put the urgency back in emergency”
campaign tagline.
First introduced in February 2007 when the hospital-wide promise began,
the advertising and public awareness campaign has evolved over time in
visual promotion as well as the incorporation of an online wait time service
on the hospital’s web site.
The communications campaign has served well in increasing awareness of
the 30 Minute ER Promise in the community, and has also impressed the
judging panels at several national healthcare marketing award competitions
in the past few years.
In March 2009, the advertising campaign garnered a first place award in
the annual Alfred Knight Awards competition, sponsored by the Maryland
Society of Healthcare Strategy & Market Development. In 2008, it achieved
the Platinum Award from the prestigious MarCom Awards, an international
competition for marketing and communications administered by the Association
of Marketing & Communications Professionals. The same year, the campaign
won first place in the Summit International Awards for its marketing effectiveness.
“It is extremely rewarding to receive the award; however the true
success lies in the return on our investment that we have demonstrated
throughout this campaign,” said Toni Keiser, vice president of public
relations at Atlantic General. “We are fortunate to be able to provide
our community with convenient, compassionate, quality care and simply
wrapped a basic message around a superb service. Through the success of
this campaign we have witnessed first hand the tremendous confidence our
community places in the services provided by Atlantic General Hospital
and Health System.”
Commenting on the awards won for the program, Phillip Nones, president
of Mullin/Ashley Associates, stated, “This was a very exciting campaign
to develop. It’s inspiring to promote a service like the 30 Minute
ER Promise that is fulfilling a genuine need. Atlantic General Hospital
was willing to make a significant commitment to the community –
the first hospital on Delmarva – and the results have been a spectacular
success.”