Victor,

I understand that you share a mutual friend, Gerard Lodico, with my business partner Don Faller.  Gerard told us you and he were recently talking about the dramatically different realities for hospitals today and what the future holds.  Don and I have done branding and communications work for some of the best U.S. hospitals, including New York Presbyterian and Hospital for Special Surgery, so we’ve spent substantial time in that world.

Sadly, on this page, you’re looking at commercials from 25 different hospitals around the country.  They all look the same.  They all sound the same.  They’re all saying the same things.

Unfortunately for them, the medical industry is facing a world where everything has changed.  Trust has evaporated.  Elective surgeries, even medically necessary surgeries, were sidelined during the pandemic.  Many have been slow coming back. Now, more than ever, it’s important for a hospital to set themselves apart.  To tell a story that is relevant to people and to speak in language those people are comfortable with…rather than talk to themselves as hospitals have typically been want to do.

Historically, research shows people have never liked hospital advertising.  They don’t want to think about these things until they have to.  And even then, commercials like the ones you see on this page are not what they want to see or hear.  Hospitals are going to have to show an understanding of what people face now…what matters.  The messages are going to have to be meaningful and interesting in order to get the world to listen.  They’re going to have to be human.  They’re going to have to show not only capabilities, but an understanding of life.  Most importantly, they’re going to have to look, sound and feel unique.

More than 15 years ago, we created some of the first truly consumer-driven hospital advertising.  We created some of the first branding for some excellent hospitals.  We created advertising people actually noticed, liked and talked about.  Now we are in a position to work with a handful of hospitals who truly “get it” and want to stand out in the new world we are all facing.

From what Gerard tells us, you and your colleagues at Christus Children’s Hospital are among those who could step outside the box and help lead the way into this new age.  You could become one of the leaders of the discourse.  Take a look at the following pages to see what we’ve done and how we think and work. Then, we should talk.