Outpost379 worked with Gilead early in the pandemic to be in market with “Bet on Them,” showing support for infectious disease physicians and nurses in the fight against COVID-19.
An agency that calls itself “the outpost of advertising” has figured out how to do work that resonates in the heavily regulated direct-to-consumer (DTC) advertising category for prescription medicines.
An effective DTC campaign “has to lean into the condition,” says Paul Hickey, president of Peterborough, Ontario-based Outpost379. “The audience has to see themselves in the work.”
The isolation caused by the pandemic put HIV patients behind in their regular doctor check-ups. The approach for the “Back to” campaign was to play off activities with which the audience was more excited about re-engaging.
Specializing in this area for 17 years, Outpost379 has crafted campaigns that have stood the test of time. And that can be challenging given that in most cases the condition being treated can’t be named, as per Canadian DTC advertising regulations.
One of Outpost379’s most memorable campaigns has been for Dukoral, a vaccine to prevent travellers’ diarrhea. The “Keep Up with the Joneses” campaign contrasts happy vacationers who took the preventative treatment with miserable ones who did not.
Meanwhile, Danish-based multinational Novo Nordisk, which has a self-described mission to “drive change to defeat diabetes,” engaged Outpost379 for a campaign that not only celebrated the 100th anniversary of the discovery of insulin in Canada, but also promoted the notion that the work the pharmaceutical company is doing today will have a similarly positive impact on the next century.
Outpost379’s work for Gilead includes the unbranded “Back to” campaign that was a response to research that showed many people living with HIV were not engaging with their physician during the pandemic as much as before. The campaign encouraged them to return to taking charge of their health and book an appointment.
“It was the category leader reminding patients that as their world returned to normal, don’t forget to keep on top of your HIV – re-engage with your healthcare providers, including clinics, labs and pharmacies,” Hickey says.
This campaign for Novo Nordisk, a global leader in the battle against diabetes, speaks to a future of further amazing discoveries.
He sees driving consumer demand for Rx brands as a major source of growth for Big Pharma, adding that the opportunity to be first in a category to invest heavily in consumer communication can pay bigger dividends that continually chasing physicians for share gains.
Hickey launched his firm as BrandHealth in his hometown of Peterborough in 2005 but in 2019 changed its name to Outpost379, a tongue-in-cheek reference to the agency’s presence outside of Toronto. (379 is its address on George Street North).
Outpost379’s Idea Lodge planning model consists of a two-day, immersive experience at the agency’s cabin north of Peterborough, inspired by the positive energy, relaxation, and clear thinking that happens at a cottage or summer camp.
The agency has 27 staffers who have cut their teeth at healthcare and consumer agencies around North America.
It has expanded to take on non-pharma work that still has health, wellness and betterment at its core, including the YMCA of Greater Toronto and the governments of Ontario and Prince Edward Island.
As creative and media AOR for the YMCA of Greater Toronto, Outpost379’s latest campaign is aimed at improving understanding of the YMCA’s many programs and community services that can help support anyone reaching their full potential.
And it has been hiring talent from outside pharma circles, including VP client services Jenni Cowdy, who was brought in last year after working at John St. for clients including KFC and Tangerine and who is now heading up the Toronto Y account.
Other notable hires include new creative director Ben Steele, formerly with Grip; Scott Cosgrove, media director, formerly with UM; and Zac Durisko, previously with Klick, who was tapped as director, medical strategy.
In the interests of refreshing the client relationship, Outpost379 has created a proprietary planning process it calls Idea Lodge, which gathers agency and client at a Kawartha Lakes cabin for a two-day immersive planning session. The notion is that people do great thinking in a summer-camp-like setting.
Broadcast work for Dukoral contrasted the plight of a family stuck in their hotel room with traveller’s diarrhea to a family that prepared by taking the vaccine ahead of time.
“You go into it with clear objectives and come out with a strategic foundation for a brand,” Hickey says. “It leads to some very good work.”
Hickey believes clients outside pharma respect the agency’s health roots, and “based on our track record of changing consumer behaviour in challenging areas like HIV, IBD [Crohn’s disease and colitis] and Multiple Sclerosis, see us as well-equipped to tackle tough, important problems of many kinds.”
CONTACT:
Paul Hickey
President
paul.hickey@outpost379.com
