Skip to main content
Subscribe
  • Sign Up Free
  • Login
  • Subscribe
  • News
    • Current News
    • Providers
    • Insurance
    • Government
    • Finance
    • Technology
    • Safety & Quality
    • Digital Health
    • Transformation
    • ESG
    • People
    • Regional News
    • Digital Edition (Web Version)
    • Patients
    • Operations
    • Care Delivery
    • Payment
    • Midwest
    • Northeast
    • South
    • West
  • Opinion
    • Bold Moves
    • Breaking Bias
    • Commentaries
    • Letters
    • Vital Signs Blog
    • From the Editor
  • Events & Awards
    • Awards
    • Conferences
    • Galas
    • Virtual Briefings
    • Webinars
    • Nominate/Eligibility
    • 100 Most Influential People
    • 50 Most Influential Clinical Executives
    • Best Places to Work in Healthcare
    • Excellence in Governance
    • Health Care Hall of Fame
    • Healthcare Marketing Impact Awards
    • Top 25 Emerging Leaders
    • Top Innovators
    • Diversity in Healthcare
      • - Luminaries
      • - Top 25 Diversity Leaders
      • - Leaders to Watch
    • Women in Healthcare
      • - Luminaries
      • - Top 25 Women Leaders
      • - Women to Watch
    • Digital Health Transformation Summit
    • ESG: The Implementation Imperative Summit
    • Leadership Symposium
    • Social Determinants of Health Symposium
    • Women Leaders in Healthcare Conference
    • Best Places to Work Awards Gala
    • Health Care Hall of Fame Gala
    • Top 25 Diversity Leaders Gala
    • Top 25 Women Leaders Gala
    • - Hospital of the Future
    • - Value Based Care
    • - Hospital at Home
    • - Workplace of the Future
    • - Digital Health
    • - Future of Staffing
    • - Hospital of the Future (Fall)
  • Multimedia
    • Podcast - Beyond the Byline
    • Sponsored Podcast - Healthcare Insider
    • Video Series - The Check Up
    • Sponsored Video Series - One on One
  • Data Center
    • Data Center Home
    • Hospital Financials
    • Staffing & Compensation
    • Quality & Safety
    • Mergers & Acquisitions
    • Data Archive
    • Resource Guide: By the Numbers
    • Surveys
    • Data Points
  • Newsletters
  • MORE+
    • Contact Us
    • Advertise
    • Media Kit
    • Jobs
    • People on the Move
    • Reprints & Licensing
MENU
Breadcrumb
  1. Home
  2. Marketing
November 10, 2016 12:00 AM

Healthcare Marketing IMPACT Awards Agency of the Year: The Bloc

David May
  • Tweet
  • Share
  • Share
  • Email
  • More
    Reprints Print

    “Build with us.” Those are the first words a visitor sees when entering the website of The Bloc.

    The New York-based ad agency, which focuses solely on healthcare, has been busy helping companies and organizations build brands and relationships, but it's also created groundbreaking social media platforms in-house for education and advocacy efforts.

    In this year's Healthcare Marketing IMPACT Awards competition, The Bloc has garnered nine separate awards, the most of any participating agency. For the depth and scope of its work, The Bloc has been named Agency of Year for the 2016 awards program.

    Related Content

    Read more about the 2016 Healthcare Marketing IMPACT Awards

    Two campaigns among the agency's entries especially resonated with the judges, both spotlighting in-house digital enterprises: “Caregivers Speak Up,” which serves as an educational and advocacy platform for those serving in caregiver roles with family or friends; and “HealthAwareNext,” another educational platform that offered a yearlong look at disease awareness.

    “With 'Caregivers Speak Up,' we realized that caregivers weren't often thought of as a consumer set,” said Elizabeth Elfenbein, a partner at the agency. “So we looked at creating a community and platform where caregivers could be heard and feel supported.”

    She said the idea was born when a colleague had taken on the role of caregiver, a responsibility shared by millions of people nationwide. “It's really an unsupported group.”

    The platform, hosted primarily on Facebook, offers content on a broad range of diseases, from cancer and Alzheimer's to HIV, Elfenbein said, adding that the comprehensive nature of the information “really credentialed The Bloc in a unique way because no other agency has such an expertise in caregiving.”

    The Bloc

    Headquarters: New York City

    Founded: 2000

    Employees: 180

    Total billings: $45 million

    Healthcare as a percentage of work: 100%

    Sectors in healthcare served: Pharmaceuticals, biotech, medical devices, hospitals and health systems

    HealthAwareNext focused on raising awareness and educating the public about diseases, targeting a different malady every month. The primary platform was Tumblr, but it also had a presence on Facebook, Twitter and other social media networks.

    Content for most months was aligned to a client. March, for example, is national “Save Your Vision” Month, so the information complemented client Regeneron's business. The content highlighted the importance of dilated eye screenings for diabetics.

    During the months when there wasn't a match for clients, Elfenbein said the site became “sort of a blank canvas” for the design and content team. Staff members created original content such as posters, videos and social media posts, often targeting diseases that affected their family and friends.

    The essential element of all the material available through the platforms—and marketing in general—is effective storytelling. That's especially important in healthcare, said Stephanie Berman, also a partner at The Bloc. “All communication is storytelling, regardless of sector, but in healthcare, you're communicating complicated information that really needs to be shared in a responsible way.

    “People are making decisions about their health. They're not always life-and-death decisions, but they could be. It's emotional territory,” she said.

    Letter
    to the
    Editor

    Send us a letter

    Have an opinion about this story? Click here to submit a Letter to the Editor, and we may publish it in print.

    Recommended for You
    Womans main image - Woman's Hospital marketing
    Going beyond billboards to attract patients
    Aiming to inspire
    Aiming to inspire
    Most Popular
    1
    More healthcare organizations at risk of credit default, Moody's says
    2
    Centene fills out senior executive team with new president, COO
    3
    SCAN, CareOregon plan to merge into the HealthRight Group
    4
    Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan unveils big push that lets physicians take on risk, reap rewards
    5
    Bright Health weighs reverse stock split as delisting looms
    Sponsored Content
    Get Newsletters

    Sign up for enewsletters and alerts to receive breaking news and in-depth coverage of healthcare events and trends, as they happen, right to your inbox.

    Subscribe Today
    MH Magazine Cover

    MH magazine offers content that sheds light on healthcare leaders’ complex choices and touch points—from strategy, governance, leadership development and finance to operations, clinical care, and marketing.

    Subscribe
    Connect with Us
    • LinkedIn
    • Twitter
    • Facebook
    • RSS

    Our Mission

    Modern Healthcare empowers industry leaders to succeed by providing unbiased reporting of the news, insights, analysis and data.

    Contact Us

    (877) 812-1581

    Email us

     

    Resources
    • Contact Us
    • Advertise with Us
    • Ad Choices Ad Choices
    • Sitemap
    Editorial Dept
    • Submission Guidelines
    • Code of Ethics
    • Awards
    • About Us
    Legal
    • Terms and Conditions
    • Privacy Policy
    • Privacy Request
    Modern Healthcare
    Copyright © 1996-2023. Crain Communications, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
    • News
      • Current News
      • Providers
      • Insurance
      • Government
      • Finance
      • Technology
      • Safety & Quality
      • Digital Health
      • Transformation
        • Patients
        • Operations
        • Care Delivery
        • Payment
      • ESG
      • People
      • Regional News
        • Midwest
        • Northeast
        • South
        • West
      • Digital Edition (Web Version)
    • Opinion
      • Bold Moves
      • Breaking Bias
      • Commentaries
      • Letters
      • Vital Signs Blog
      • From the Editor
    • Events & Awards
      • Awards
        • Nominate/Eligibility
        • 100 Most Influential People
        • 50 Most Influential Clinical Executives
        • Best Places to Work in Healthcare
        • Excellence in Governance
        • Health Care Hall of Fame
        • Healthcare Marketing Impact Awards
        • Top 25 Emerging Leaders
        • Top Innovators
        • Diversity in Healthcare
          • - Luminaries
          • - Top 25 Diversity Leaders
          • - Leaders to Watch
        • Women in Healthcare
          • - Luminaries
          • - Top 25 Women Leaders
          • - Women to Watch
      • Conferences
        • Digital Health Transformation Summit
        • ESG: The Implementation Imperative Summit
        • Leadership Symposium
        • Social Determinants of Health Symposium
        • Women Leaders in Healthcare Conference
      • Galas
        • Best Places to Work Awards Gala
        • Health Care Hall of Fame Gala
        • Top 25 Diversity Leaders Gala
        • Top 25 Women Leaders Gala
      • Virtual Briefings
        • - Hospital of the Future
        • - Value Based Care
        • - Hospital at Home
        • - Workplace of the Future
        • - Digital Health
        • - Future of Staffing
        • - Hospital of the Future (Fall)
      • Webinars
    • Multimedia
      • Podcast - Beyond the Byline
      • Sponsored Podcast - Healthcare Insider
      • Video Series - The Check Up
      • Sponsored Video Series - One on One
    • Data Center
      • Data Center Home
      • Hospital Financials
      • Staffing & Compensation
      • Quality & Safety
      • Mergers & Acquisitions
      • Data Archive
      • Resource Guide: By the Numbers
      • Surveys
      • Data Points
    • Newsletters
    • MORE+
      • Contact Us
      • Advertise
      • Media Kit
      • Jobs
      • People on the Move
      • Reprints & Licensing