With growth in revenue, headcount, and clients, 2016 was a strong year for Giant. The largest independent healthcare agency in the West made significant strides in building its business with wins in emerging categories, including cancer immunotherapy, gene therapy, and molecular diagnostics.
For more than a decade, Greater Than One (GTO) has made a name for itself as one of the few agencies that truly understands health care as well as it understands digital channels that have, for so long, served as an agency dividing line, management says. Agency executives say it may come as a bit of a surprise that this pioneer in media and digital today derives more than three quarters of its revenue from higher-level work that includes AOR assignments, launches, strategy consulting, and conference experiences.
GSW will celebrate a major milestone this year as the agency turns 40. GSW was founded in 1977 by Bob Gerbig, Chris Snell, and Rick Weisheimer, “three friends with long hair, wide ties, a baby blue VW, and one big, bright dream that’s still coming true: ‘Be big by acting small.’” According to current management, “Little did they know that GSW would grow into one of the largest healthcare advertising agencies in the world.”
According to the leaders at Harrison and Star, even office supplies can be transformed into greatness. “A simple message of ‘HI’ spelled out in Post-it notes quickly turned into window art war between neighboring companies, grew into a worldwide phenomenon, and eventually became the centerpiece of a philanthropic effort on behalf of military veterans,” executives say. “The ability to turn mere pieces of paper into a global sensation is what sets Harrison and Star apart, and underscores its determination and ability to make the most of every opportunity.”
“2016 was not just another great year for Havas San Francisco. It was also a ground-breaking year for many of our clients too,” executives say. “With the launch of MS Voice, we ushered our anchor client Genentech into the social sphere by starting a record-breaking community for multiple sclerosis patients.”
HCB Health celebrated its 15th anniversary during 2016, which represented its biggest year in revenue since being founded in 2001, managers say. The year started off with modest growth but, by the second quarter, it was a whirlwind of activity with a number of significant new business wins, adding even more growth for the agency.
Healthcasts lives at the pivotal intersection where leading physicians and medical brands share the latest knowledge on drug therapies to improve patient outcomes, according to company executives.
During 2016, HealthWork redefined the agency’s mission: to create “Limitless Brands.”
“We took a look at the landscape of pharma marketing and saw that with the proliferation of treatments and products in every category, data was mattering less, and the power of creating a brand was mattering more,” says Denise Henry, associate partner, managing director of HealthWork. “So we believe in inspiring all of our clients with the ambition to build vibrant brands and have them express in limitless ways. Our quest to create Limitless Brands means that we think and create across audiences, across channels, across platforms, and push ourselves to think well beyond the traditional boundaries for pharma brands.”
Following the trend of remarkable success and annual growth, agency executives say 2016 became one of the most groundbreaking years in Heartbeat’s 19-year history as it continued to thrive and further magnify its mark on the healthcare marketing world. The agency reached unprecedented levels with historical highs in staff, number and size of clientele, and a 40 percent increase in revenue.
Huntsworth Health invests in innovative healthcare communications businesses and the talent that sets those businesses apart from their competitors, according to the network’s leaders.
