The challenge

Colorectal cancer is the second leading cause of death in the United States, but nine out of ten such deaths can be prevented if the cancer is detected early enough. Each March is National Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month, a time when the public is encouraged to be screened for colon cancer using one of four common screening methods. Colonoscopy is the single most effective way to prevent colon cancer, but the public has many misconceptions about the procedure. The American Society of Gastrointestinal Endoscopy (ASGE) asked Lipman Hearne to develop and implement a communications strategy to leverage the national awareness campaign to promote screening colonoscopy and help individuals locate an expertly trained endoscopist.

Our response

In less than three weeks, Lipman Hearne launched a multimedia web microsite with the easy-to-remember URL “screen4coloncancer.org.” The site featured a video hosted by Meredith Vieira, testimonials from real people who’ve undergone a colonoscopy, and a searchable national database of gastroenterologists who’ve completed advanced training in endoscopy. To drive traffic to the site and ASGE’s toll-free call center, Lipman Hearne placed online advertisements and ASGE-sponsored TV news traffic segments, and distributed print and audio press releases featuring local spokespersons in three target markets.

The results

Our radio news releases aired 790 times on 216 stations nationwide, delivering 10.5 million impressions. Our online ads delivered 1.7 million impressions, with a solid click-through rate to the microsite. Screen4coloncancer.org received 87,500 hits in March 2006—impressive for a brand new web presence—and ASGE’s call center fielded three times more calls than usual.