MORE THAN PINK^™

In response to a growing population voicing concerns that Susan G. Komen^® was more about promotion than the breast cancer mission, the parent organization devised a strategy that integrated an aggressive mission-driven goal with a campaign, More Than Pink^™, meant to rally public involvement. All Komen affiliates were expected to support the nationwide launch of the strategy, help communicate the messages of the organization’s new bold strategy for drastically reducing breast cancer deaths, and make More Than Pink part of its ongoing branding. Komen Philadelphia came to us to achieve “beyond the expected” visibility on the local level—but with a nonexistent budget.

Because the launch of More Than Pink hit during Komen Philadelphia’s busiest season, the organization had virtually no staff to devote to understanding and executing More Than Pink tactics. So we added members to our Ads Variation Ltd Komen Philadelphia team and gained trust from our client to “run with it.” Members from our creative, social media, PR and account management teams participated in all Komen national webinars, scrutinized new branding materials, communicated directly with Komen national representatives, and began converting the local Komen Philadelphia brand from one that was “overly optimistic and happy” to one that drove home the reality of the work that still needs to be done in the fight to end breast cancer.

To keep costs down, we leveraged materials provided by Komen national, enhancing them with our own Komen Philadelphia attitude and local mission aspects. We started by overhauling the Komen Philadelphia website and email templates to promote More Than Pink. Our PR team got to work creating More Than Pink “Hero” presentation events and telling the story of the bold new goals, along with Philadelphia-targeted tactics. Our writers wove More Than Pink messaging into everything from scripts for Komen Philadelphia’s annual gala and thank-you letters for sponsors to Thanksgiving donation solicitations. The social media team took over the organization’s monthly calendars, inserting regular More Than Pink posts that celebrated heroes in the local community, demonstrated impact and encouraged involvement.