When you think of Super Bowl commercials, the first things that come to mind are ads for beer, colas, cars, fast food, and other sports programming staples. But this year, a Boston-based hospital network joined the mix with a commercial promoting its hospitals as a destination for superior healthcare.
Steward Health Care System, which operates six hospitals in Massachusetts, launched a two-month ad campaign dubbed "Believe" with a regional commercial that aired Feb. 6 during Super Bowl XLV. The 30-second spot featured people talking about their healthcare experience and what they expect from a hospital.
"We think this campaign will be a game-changer for health care marketing," said Brian Carty, chief marketing officer for Steward. "There is no bigger platform than the Super Bowl and we're excited to introduce our brand to Massachusetts in a way that demonstrates our enthusiasm and commitment to being a long-term member of the communities we serve."
To create the commercial – the first of two that will air -Steward recruited the Boathouse Group, a local firm that's worked for high profile companies including Nike and Volkswagen. The ads were shot in locations in and around Boston including the neighborhoods of Allston, Brighton, and South Boston with an emphasis on people and settings viewers could relate to.
"All the people in our ads look familiar," said Carty. "We want people to watch the ad and say' Oh, I've met that person'."
While Steward did not disclose how much it spent on the Super Bowl ad, it was designed as a springboard for a two-month ad campaign that will feature TV ads, online ads, and regional print ads.
Carty said the company expects the ads to generate plenty of buzz around Steward Health. He said they're designed to set it apart from other healthcare providers, noting that "in terms of marketing, healthcare is about 20 years behind everything else." He added that most healthcare marketing still revolves around old delivery mediums such as direct mail and billboards.
Steward's six hospitals were formerly part of Caritas Christi Health Care and include St. Anne's in Fall River, Holy Family Hospital in Methuen, St. Elizabeth's Medical Center in Brighton, Norwood Hospital, Carney Hospital in Dorchester, and Good Samaritan Medical Center in Brockton.
For Steward - a subsidiary of private equity firm Cerberus Capital Management – the Super Bowl ad could pave the way for expansion beyond Massachusetts. At a J.P. Morgan Healthcare Conference in January, CEO Ralph de la Torre said Steward is developing a lower-cost, high volume patient care model that stresses new technology, coordinated healthcare, and other programs to keep overhead low.
"The main goal of getting bigger in a region is to gain volume," de la Torre told investors in San Francisco. "You can longer go to insurance companies and demand higher rates. Those days are gone." He added that Steward would market its emphasis on affordable, quality care. "In a world of Neiman Marcuses, we're OK being Filene's."