Digital-First Content Strategy for a National Health Service During the Pandemic
Client:
NHS
Field:
Healthcare + Public Sector
Service:
Brand Transformation
The Challenge
S01
During the COVID-19 pandemic, the NHS needed to deliver actionable health information digitally - with the resources of a single GP practice and the reach expectations of a national service.
Patients had moved. Telehealth was normal, attention was online, and trust in official information was under strain. How does public healthcare content compete for attention it has never had to fight for before?
The Approach
S02
I built the strategy on market research and cultural analysis rather than clinical communication conventions.
Channel infrastructure. Set up and optimised the practice’s social and digital channels from the ground up.
Culturally tailored content. Scriptwriting built around the specific needs of different societal groups, rather than one message aimed at an average patient who doesn’t exist.
Omnichannel delivery. An integrated approach meeting patients wherever they already were, using viral mechanics to carry information that would otherwise have sat on a website nobody visits.
The whole thing was patient-centric by construction: built from what patients wanted and needed rather than what the practice wanted to say.
The Insight
S03
Trust and shareability are usually treated as opposites in public health communication. They aren’t. Content people actually want to pass on is content they believe - and making healthcare feel personal is the mechanism, not the compromise.
THE
OUTCOMES
Deliverables and External Results
Digital and social channel infrastructure built and optimised for a single GP practice
Culturally tailored content strategy addressing distinct societal groups
Omnichannel patient engagement strategy
Over 1 million views within the first month
A viral hit within two weeks of launch
Sustained traction beyond the initial launch period
Internal Shifts Behind the Scenes
Moved from broadcasting clinical information to meeting patients where they were
Proved a single practice could reach at a scale usually reserved for national campaigns
