With the new brand strategy “Life’s calling,” St. Vincent Healthcare in Billings, MT, is rebranding its identity for the first time in more than 10 years in an effort to increase public awareness of the facility and reiterate its commitment to its Christian mission.

The multi–integrated branding effort consists of two launches—an internal launch to all employees followed by a multimedia launch to consumers in the region. By staggering the campaign launch, the hospital is able to give its employees—the consumers most likely to talk about the hospital—a sneak preview of the effort and get them excited about the campaign, says Carol Beam, senior director of market research and strategic planning at St. Vincent Healthcare.

“When you launch a campaign in two phases, it tends to gain a better momentum,” she says. “We’re launching the branding campaign first to our employees, who are ultimately also our customers. Then we launch to the public and press shortly after to spread the word even further.”

Brand Strategy: Life calls real doctors

Chicago-based Healthcare Branding Group, Inc. {HBG}, designed the campaign for St.Vincent Healthcare. Harriet Karzen, principal and co–founder of HBG, says her agency’s goal for the effort was to showcase not just St. Vincent Healthcare’s clinical expertise, but its warm environment and friendly staff of physicians as well.

HBG did this by using real St. Vincent Healthcare physicians, not actors, in the ads for the new brand. “To get the right message across and rebrand this hospital in the right light, it was imperative to include an academic feel with a warm and nurturing feel, as well as [St. Vincent Healthcare’s] commitment to Christian values,” Karzen says. “This new brand identity really encompasses the identities of community members here in Billings, Montana.”

The brand positioning came about after revisiting the hospital’s mission statement in creative meetings. Finally the team chose “Life’s calling” to demonstrate the hospital’s true essence, putting the focus back on living.

Multiphase Launch: Internal and external campaigns

The internal portion of the campaign launched on January 1, 2007. During this phase, employees were invited to a company–wide event to view the TV and print ads and even talk to the physicians featured in the campaign. The hospital also displayed all collateral used in the branding effort that included the "Life's calling" message, including direct-mail pieces, posters, and banners.

The external program of the campaign launched on January 7. That effort consists of print ads that ran in local newspapers, at train stations, and on benches, bus wraps, and billboards. A heavy media relations program kicked off at the same time, targeting statewide publications and broadcast media.

Additionally, on the external launch date, four spots began running in the local cable and network TV markets: one 60–second spot that umbrellas the "Life's calling" message, and three 15–second spots that focus on one physician detailing his or her personal "Life's calling" message. Karzen says the spots feature no actors, only real doctors, nurses, and community members. The spots were shot on location in Montana to “keep it real,” she adds. “People respond to brands they can identify with.”

The print collateral images also feature real physicians who work at St. Vincent Healthcare, as well as people of all ages enjoying life. The ads are vibrant in color, with a focus on the color green, used to depict outdoor scenes, trees, grass, and mountains. The ads show families, seniors, and kids enjoying various outdoor activities. Some print ads display a more academic feel, with doctors at computers or in hospital rooms talking with patients. The common thread between the ads is the catchphrase, “Life’s calling. Can you hear it?”

The “Life’s calling” campaign is scheduled to run through June. Based on survey results that St. Vincent Healthcare will compile this summer, the hospital may relaunch a follow-up branding effort in the fall.

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