DDB Health: 2021

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DDB Health

200 Varick Street, 3rd Floor

New York, NY 10014

Telephone 

212-896-1300

E-mail 

[email protected]

Website 

ddbhealth.com

 

QUICK FACTS

Accounts

Account wins 5

Active business clients 12

Brands by 2020 sales

Brand-product accounts held 28

$25 million or less 4

$50 million-$100 million 2

$100 million-$500 million 7

$500 million-$1 billion 8

$1 billion or more 4

Products not yet approved/launched 3

 

SERVICES MIX

Professional advertising 40%

DTP 25%

Digital across HCP and patient 25%

Social across HCP and patient 10%

 

CLIENT ROSTER

AbbVie 

Amgen

ARS Pharmaceuticals

BMS REMS

Galápagos

Incyte 

Novartis

Rhodes Pharmaceuticals

Roche

Sanofi (Bioverativ)

Y-mAbs Therapeutics 

 

“This past year, more than any other, has reinforced the significance of the DDB Health refrain,” leaders at the agency say. “The urgency of health – and healthcare – has never been more top of mind. In an age where science moves quickly, innovation never stops, and taking the right action for better health cannot wait, DDB Health continues to rise to the occasion. The agency’s actions consistently mimic its mantra: Dare to Do Boldly. It’s a courageous call to action for its employees, clients, partnerships, and its work – all of which have grown markedly and impressively through a most challenging year.” 

RECENT ACCOMPLISHMENTS

The agency’s executive team says 2020 was “an incredibly productive” year for DDB Health. The agency added new business assignments from Novartis, Roche, and Sarepta Therapeutics. According to the leadership team, DDB Health “is in the throes of multiple exciting brand launches for innovative, category-shaping treatments.” 

“Our roster of therapeutic categories has become quite diverse, ranging from breakthrough, targeted oncology molecules to orphan products in the rare disease space to game-changing gene therapies,” says President Jennie Fischette. “We’re daring and selective in our approach to pursuing new opportunities. We carefully choose those that serve to make a bold impact on both healthcare communities and the development of our people.” 

In addition to building business and brands, the agency counts the launch of several successful internal initiatives among its greatest achievements of the year. The result was an even stronger internal culture and a continued commitment to building on inclusion and diversity. On being bolder with inclusion, Executive Creative Director Michael Schreiber says, “Health is a universal human need, and connecting in the right way and with the right innovation matters. The more we include diverse people and perspectives, the more we can deliver on this.” 

Schreiber says he is most proud of enhancing the already tight bonds among agency colleagues. “While we’re certainly all craving some live time together, we’ve honestly never felt more connected to one another than we have in this past year through quarantine. Ultimately, that connection led to happier, more supported, and more inspired people working together to bring bold, exciting work into the world.” 

STRUCTURE AND SERVICES

According to agency leaders, in an undoubtedly challenging year, DDB Health also made numerous new hires, tightened its structure, and bravely adapted its process to suit new ways of working. “We have an exceptional team, with the skills, the camaraderie, and the curiosity needed to evolve seamlessly, no matter how – and how far apart – we’re working,” Fischette says.  

Director of Strategy Eileen Yaralian says Dare to Do Boldly is not just a smart mantra but rather a lens applied to everything the agency does, and defines how employees show up for each other and each and every assignment. “New therapies demand bolder strategic thinking that challenges habits and resets expectations,” Yaralian says. “We don’t just demand boldness in the creative work; to be successful and to make real change, the idea of boldness has to expand to every corner of our business from the process to the execution.” 

DDB Health also continued to advance its engagement strategy offering, with a growing investment in robust business intelligence, content strategy, UX, CX and analytics, agency leaders say. Additionally, the agency regularly leverages expert partners inside and outside the network when a specialty service or collaboration can enhance a deliverable. 

The network has more than 200 offices worldwide with DDB Health flagships in France, Germany, and Barcelona. These offices co-create on a regular basis. “We tap into relevant agency or network specialists when unique business challenges necessitate their expertise,” Yaralian says. “Bold work often comes from bold collaborations.” 

FUTURE PLANS

DDB Health leaders say they plan to continue adding to the agency’s diverse portfolio of brands. Through their bold approach, they continue to seek out unique opportunities that are positioned to succeed in partnership with their proven skills in specialty marketing. They will devote the right resources to help navigate advancements in high-science treatments and areas of high unmet need. 

In 2021, this means opening a second office in North America to ensure the team can continue to serve these important areas, free of conflict. “This is a big, bold step for the agency – and one it is thrilled to take on,” management says.

No matter the office, key priorities will be united and clear, preserving the culture and pushing executional excellence, agency leaders say. With its strong culture, DDB Health is always focused on its people and, collectively, it will continue to push and progress their work/life integration policies. 

“We know our people are the source of our success,” Fischette says. “I’m continually impressed by how we support one another each and every day. But I’m also aware of the need to constantly evolve our efficiency models and the resources we provide to employees to ensure their life and work can be harmonious – even in the strangest times. We are also looking to ensure that we focus on the needs of our employees not just today, but in the future.”

That means embarking on another new employee-focused initiative, as the agency named Alyssa Farquhar as its first creative coach. DDB Health leaders say this position is derived from the idea the agency’s success means it has to be creative in everything that it does – and recognizing that creativity can come from any corner of the agency. The sole focus is honing the entire team’s creative skills and giving them the space, the resources, the freedom, and the confidence to think “what if?”. “Bold work comes from being courageous and creative enough to see things differently – and to do things differently than they’ve always been done,” agency executives say. 

According to Fischette, “We think that this new initiative is yet another strong marker of DDB Health Daring to Do Boldly and moving differently into the future with our people and our collective progress as an agency in mind.”

PHILANTHROPY/CITIZENSHIP

(from left) Eileen Yaralian, director of strategy; Michael Schreiber, executive creative director; Jennie Fischette, president; Josh Prince, CEO

For the third consecutive year, the agency continued its tradition of “6 Weeks of Giving.” All efforts shifted to a virtual fundraising where they prioritized food insecurity. Nearly 50 percent of Americans feel they can’t afford to put a nutritious meal on the table for their families. And with the pandemic sending everyone reeling, the agency felt this urgent and basic health need of the community couldn’t wait. 

DDB Health partnered with Getting Healthy to raise more than 1,580 pounds of food, and counting. 

“This year, our fight will go way beyond six weeks of giving and well into 2021 with a dedication to help meet the needs of the community that surrounds our employees,” Fischette says.