During a period of major transformation for Toronto’s North York General Hospital (NYGH), the medical facility has launched one of its largest marketing efforts yet.
The hospital has released the 90-second short film “Blink,” which tells the story of a mother who with each blink views different milestones in her life from the birth and maturity of her daughter, to a breast cancer diagnosis and treatment. The ad spot was created in partnership with Toronto-based agency Courage, and was directed by Oscar- and Emmy-nominated filmmaker Hubert Davis.
“So many of life’s big moments happen at a hospital,” says Ya Shan Waley-Horhager, North York General Foundation’s chief marketing & communications officer. “Having a baby, requiring emergency care, receiving a diagnosis, having surgery, maybe being in illness, and sadly sometimes saying farewell to a loved one. Those are big, transformative moments in people’s lives and our hospital is really there for these things from birth and throughout life.”
The campaign aims to underline the notion that what sets NYGH apart is the compassion, kindness and expertise its physicians and clinicians provide, through more subtle and emotional messaging.
Through the spot’s main character viewing these significant moments in her life, the campaign’s goal was to have the comprehensive care that NYGH provides on display in the ad. The campaign includes the hospital’s birthing centre as well as the treatment in its accredited breast care cancer program, the only one of its kind in Canada.
The campaign is part of NYGH’s “Here for Life” platform (pictured below), which references the care and expertise it provides at every life stage, and the promise to its community to help them live healthy lives.
The campaign comes as the hospital is in the process of introducing and developing features like its patient care tower, long-term care development, and revitalizing its birthing centre. The impetus for the campaign is to raise awareness about the level of care the hospital offers ahead of a comprehensive fundraising campaign and new strategic plan that are set to be released in the coming years.
“We wanted to raise awareness for the hospital from a philanthropic perspective, gain community support [and] donations for the hospital as well,” Waley-Horhager tells strategy. “In order to do that, we knew we needed to do something that was a little bit different, but also showcase what North York General is about.”
The campaign is the latest collaboration between the hospital and Courage, after it worked together to release the pregnancy and childbirth book What No One Tells You When You’re Expecting, last October.
NYGH selected Courage as its AOR in October 2022. Waley-Horhager says that after Courage came aboard, NYGH brought the agency’s staff into the hospital for tours and conversations with clinicians to better understand what sets the hospital apart.
Compared to the hospital’s past marketing efforts that have tended to be more functional, Courage creative directors Domenique Raso and Cindy Marie Navarro say the new campaign instead leans more heavily on emotion. The campaign aims to demonstrate compassionate care that NYGH provides, rather than explain directly the services it offers. The strategy also was designed to set NYGH apart from other hospitals’ marketing campaigns that rely on more functional messaging about how they operate.
Rebel & Thorn are supporting media for the campaign, with Middle Child PR overseeing media relations and influencers. The ad will run on connected TV and YouTube, while the campaign will also receive support through paid social, digital OOH, TSAs, Cineplex Value Add and print media.
