Case Study 05
Media planning for a spine study
Finding a great solution is almost always a sleeves-rolled-up exercise. You have to ferret out the facts, examine the options—and keep digging a little deeper to find the diamond in that bed of coal. Hard work, though, is the means to the most rewarding ends. And the best results.
Challenge
While our client had some success recruiting on their own in the competitive spinal stenosis device market, they needed help to make it to their goal of 470 patients – and the clock was ticking. ThreeWire not only had to provide the expertise to complete their enrollment on time, we also needed to inform and excite physicians about this new dynamic stabilization device and have them refer viable patients to the trial. To make this recruitment effort even more challenging, randomization was to spinal fusion.
Strategy
Two paths, one message: There may be hope for decreasing the pain and suffering of spinal stenosis. Patients are encouraged to get a little feisty and “take a stand” against the pain, while physicians are asked to stand up on behalf of their patients. We utilized a strong call to action across multiple media tactics to drive traffic to our nurse-staffed call center and, ultimately, enroll qualified patients in the study.
Result
Targeted tactics and a strategic media plan were the underpinnings of a 142 percent increase in enrollment in the first six months of ThreeWire’s involvement, keeping our client well on-track to meet their goals by the end of 2008. An extensive media campaign generated 7,300 calls in a single month, with a total of 16,000 calls in six months. Because of the large number of qualified patients being sent to the sites, ThreeWire developed customized service plans to offer additional support to site coordinators during times of heavy referrals.
