A Leading Cancer Treatment Center Focuses on Outcomes, with Eclectic Mix of TV Spots, Radio, and Print
by Peter Hochstein
Just as the advertising agency and its client intended, some new animated TV spots created for the Seattle Cancer Care Alliance limit use of doctors, white coats, and hospital corridors. Some would consider this treatment a departure from “typical” hospital advertising campaigns. But something else makes the campaign even more of an unusual depiction.
The TV sounds a bit different from radio spots for the same campaign. The print, transit, and outdoor advertising look nothing at all like the television. With the exception of the key message, there’s a lack of a common visual treatment or sound across various media. What’s going on here?
“Our job is not to match executions,” says Forrest Healy, creative director and principal at Frank Unlimited, the Seattle advertising agency that created the campaign. “Our job is to communicate the survivorship message for Seattle Cancer Care.” The various execution styles, he says, are a case of “picking the right tool for the right job.”
Some background information before I go on: According to website copy, Seattle Cancer Care Alliance (SCCA) is a treatment center that unites doctors from Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, UW Medicine, and Seattle Children’s. Its purpose is to lead in the prevention and treatment of cancer.