End-to-end product launch against the clock

The brief

Niche Health selected Highland Marketing to support the promotion of its Intelligent GP Reporting (iGPR) product which improves the reporting of information by general practitioners (GPs) to third parties, such as insurers.

Niche Health required a full, end-to-end, integrated marketing and communications campaign that centred around a launch date that was just weeks away. A key objective was to raise awareness of the product to as many thought leaders, GP practices, clinical commissioning groups (CCGs) and suppliers as possible. In addition, it was imperative to demonstrate the efficiency savings that could be gained as well as benefits around patient confidentiality. Secondary to that, it was also important to highlight the usefulness of the tool to other insurance companies who would benefit from using the solution.

The campaign

The first step was to gain a solid understanding of the organisation and iGPR, as well as the challenges that the solution helps healthcare professionals and insurers to overcome. In order to achieve this, a comprehensive messaging and strategy document was produced by Highland Marketing that would ensure the correct messages were portrayed to each individual target audience through the most appropriate channel. The new messaging was incorporated into all PR and marketing material leading up to, during and after the launch.

In the lead up to the launch, Highland Marketing ensured that key influencers within NHS England, the Health and Social Health Information Centre (HSCIC, now NHS Digital) and privacy groups were informed of the availability of the product. Subsequently, the launch took the form of a big bang approach where the content of a new website was established and collateral that highlighted the benefits of iGPR, as well as Niche Health’s wider offerings, were delivered. It was imperative to have this material prepared in time for the launch as Niche Health was also exhibiting at an event just days after and many of the company’s potential end-users would be in attendance and wanting to know more.

In addition to this, three press releases were written; each targeted at different types of press to ensure the correct message was portrayed  from national, to insurance, to healthcare. Highland Marketing liaised with Legal & General to ensure that the approach was streamlined and that appropriate consultancy was provided to all involved parties. Media training was held and Q&A document was developed to ensure that the key spokesperson for Niche Health was prepared for the numerous briefings and interviews that were set up. Both Niche Health and Legal & General were involved in this process to ensure that responses were informed and consistent.

In order to gain maximum exposure and increase traffic to the website, advertisements were also run in parallel in healthcare publications: eHealth Insider (EHI, now DigitalHealth.net) and Pulse. Finally, following on from the press release’s, an opinion piece was written which highlighted the companies approach to the solutions it provides to the NHS: problem solving.

Working with an experienced healthcare marketing and PR agency was key to our product launch as we required a team that knew and understood the intricacies of the healthcare market. Plus considering the timescale and the schedule of work to complete the launch within a 12-week period, we were confident Highland Marketing could take on this challenge.

One of the key aspects of the campaign was to ensure clarity of our messaging and this is what Highland Marketing was able to advise us on. Niche Health is an organisation that prides itself on its reputation, credibility, and experience, so working with a partner who shares the same values was important to help ensure success.

Guy Bridgewater, managing director, Niche Health