Somerford Place - Alzheimer's Care

Somerford Place, a long-term care facility for Alzheimer's patients, came to us with two distinct goals. First, promote their soon-to-be-opened location by generating 10 new patient reservations and drawing 250 people to the upcoming grand opening event. And secondly, fill 100% of the beds at their existing location within one year. First we panicked. Then, we developed our creative strategy to position Somerford Place as the numero uno place for the care of Alzheimer's patients - not just because of the excellent facilities, but because their doctors and staff really understand how these patients think and tailor the environment to them.

But instead of the usual chest beating about the new facility or showing pictures of its interior (Yawn!), we spoke directly to the family caregivers in ways they could relate to; we showed them that Somerford Place understood the world of Alzheimer's patients. The campaign - which consisted of print ads, radio spots and direct mail pieces - used an educational approach to inform their market that there was more to Alzheimer's care than depressing "rest" homes. One of the ad headlines read, "Don't argue about the moose in the living room, open the door and let it out." The copy paid it off by explaining that family members of Alzheimer's patients can best cope with the disease by accepting their loved ones' beliefs, however delusion or irrational (as long as they were harmless).

The strategy struck a chord and the audience of caregivers responded. At the time of the grand opening, 14 reservations had been received and 480 people attended the grand opening event. And after just six months, their existing location was already 90% full with another six months to go. "Even our competitors always complement us on our advertising," said Laurel Fleming, Director of Marketing. "And we've had such a great response. We already have 36 out of 40 rooms filled, which is better than we expected at this point."