GSW: 2015
GSW
500 Olde Worthington Rd.
Westerville, Ohio 43082
Phone: 614-848-4848
Website: gsw-w.com
Accounts
Account wins 37
Active business clients 93
Client Roster
Acerus
Actavis/Forest
Alcon
Amedra
American Medical Systems
Amgen
ASCO
Astellas
AstraZeneca
Atherotech
Baxter
Bayer
Biogen
Boehringer Ingelheim
Bristol-Myers Squibb
Cardinal Health
Conquer Cancer Foundation
CVS Caremark
Cyberonics
DePuy Spine
Elanco Animal Health
Eli Lilly
Emisphere Technologies
Endo Pharmaceuticals
Foundation Medicine
GE Healthcare
Gilead Sciences
Halyard Health
Hollister
ImClone Systems
Janssen Therapeutics
JDRF
Johnson & Johnson
Kimberly Clark
Mead Johnson Nutrition
Merck
National Bone Health Alliance
Novo Nordisk
OSU WMC SEO
Pendopharm
Pfizer
Pocket Protein
Purdue
Regeneron
Rextoro
Rockwell Medical
Roche
Salix
Sanofi
Shire
St. Jude Medical
Stryker
Takeda Pharmaceuticals North America
Tearlab
Teva
UCB
Zeltiq Aesthetics
GSW has taken a stance to change the conversation in healthcare by creating more empathetic and relevant connections between people and their health, according to executives. “As one of the largest healthcare advertising agencies in the world, GSW goes beyond advertising to create personalized brand experiences that involve, inspire, educate, and activate people through ongoing brand journeys,” executives say. “GSW calls it Speak People.”
“Through speaking a language that hasn’t been spoken in the healthcare space in a very long time, GSW is able to understand individuals and create meaningful work for the client that matters most–human beings,” says Marci Piasecki, president, GSW.
The year’s accomplishments
According to agency leaders, 2015 was year two since GSW first introduced Speak People and began strong, transformative relationships with companies who share the desire to improve the health dialogue. “It was also the year the rallying cry seemed to be most evident,” these executives say.
“We now know with certainty we can get there by injecting healthcare with human care, by telling stories and being authentic, and embracing the imperfections that make all of us human,” says Dave Sonderman, executive creative director. “From strategic planning to creative experience, it starts and ends with understanding that in order to move your business you must first move some people.”
Speak People continued to advance the agency’s work in 2015, executives say, including milestones such as unveiling the Epilepsy Empathy Project, where virtual reality technology enabled neurologists to actually feel an epileptic seizure (UCB); explaining the circulatory system and the risk of clotting with an unexpected goldfish metaphor and bringing people-speaking simplicity to consumers in a campaign for Pradaxa; celebrating the personal connection we all have with diabetes – from healthcare provider to patients to sales reps –through the short film series, “Whose Diabetes Do You Have?” for Lilly; and increasing awareness of men’s health by partnering with global tech company LiveTiles to create the “Sexy Men of Technology” calendar featuring tech professionals in various states of unabashed sexiness for Movember.
Other milestones reaches included challenging the industry with new thinking about the clarity and effectiveness of health communications by using hidden cameras to expose reactions of unsuspecting shoppers at a coffee shop, flower boutique, and fine restaurant when confronted with a clinical rendition of common brand communications (GSW Speak People Experiments); reimagining the information exchange between patients and care teams for Alimta.com, where an innovative “information shopping cart” system helps newly diagnosed patients shop for disease and drug content, organize it into “carts,” and generate key questions for their healthcare team; and infusing the decades-old art competition “Lilly On Canvas” with new thought leadership on the value of art therapy, moving the entire art gallery online in a mobile-optimized experience, and expanding to include music, poetry and painting.
The agency also launched Portrazza for Lilly Oncology and Lilly’s Journey Connections, a geo-located, crowd-sourced listing of oncology-related services for healthcare teams and their patients; so a nearby wig shop, ride to treatment, or nutrition store are both easy to find and carry a healthcare professional’s endorsement.
Executives say the agency also helped shape the future of big data for ASCO CancerLinQ and its role in personalized, predictive medicine with “Strength in Numbers” campaign; published the fifth series of its popular annual trends; and prepared for the introduction of Belbuca.
“Chronic pain is difficult to treat especially in today’s world, and is the subject of much scrutiny in a crowded marketplace,” agency leaders say. “The entry of Belbuca came at a time when both HCPs and chronic pain patients were looking for something different. Not only does Belbuca stand out by design, but also through its simple and optimistic campaign – Life on film.”
Additionally, GSW also helped change the conversation in men’s health, according to executives. “In the sea of awareness and dialogue around erectile dysfunction, men are suffering alone with Peyronie¹s disease (also referred to as erectile curvature),” executives say. “As a leader in men’s health, Endo is partnering with GSW to help men with this intimate condition get the help they need through targeted awareness, support, and physician locator services. In turn, we are also working to help HCPs empathize with their patients on a new level so they may begin offering a novel treatment sooner.”
Agency leaders say, “These successes are just a few examples of how we continued to Speak People in 2015, and how we know people are listening.”
In all, GSW acquired 37 new brands/clients, hired 139 new employees, and was nominated and short-listed for more than 30 awards across North America. “However, our proudest moments came from our short-list nod for our TearLab Mr. Hyperosmolarity project at the Cannes Lions Health Award Show and being named Most Admired Agency by Med Ad News,” executives say.
Structure and services
GSW has offices in Columbus, Ohio, New York City, the greater Philadelphia area, and Canada. “As an inVentiv Health company, GSW provides a distinct advantage over our competitors, based on our breadth of offerings and our ability to deliver integrated services,” executives say. “Building partnerships with pharmaceutical, biotech, and health-and-wellness clients in 18 major markets around the world, GSW creates marketing solutions through a comprehensive and wide array of services including research, analytics, marketing and brand consultancy, advertising, promotion, public relations, advocacy, medical education, meetings and events, interactive communications, and more. The agency is led by a team of best-in-class marketers who have experience with a variety of stakeholders such as healthcare professionals, patients, caregivers, payors, and consumers.”
Future plans
As the agency looks ahead, GSW is focused on building on its successes to fuel new projects and take on new brands. “We will continue to leverage our strengths to offer clients more effective ways to create value and increase their success,” executives say.
“GSW has been passionate about translating health and wellness insights into action for almost 40 years,” Piasecki says. “GSW has great momentum supported by a powerful value proposition. We are deeply committed to meeting the needs of our clients, employees, and communities long into the future and GSW’s Speak People hallmark will continue to serve the company well into the future.”
Philanthropy/citizenship
“At GSW, we actively support causes we believe in,” executives say. “Whether it’s volunteering at a local food bank or biking dozens of miles to end cancer, we passionately believe in building connections that help humans become healthier.”
According to Doug Mills, CFO/COO, “GSW is much more than a business. Since our founding in 1977, GSW has had a rich tradition of giving back and we are proud to support a variety of initiatives in the communities where our employees live and work.”
In addition to the donation of service and time from GSW’s 500-plus employees, the company’s work continues to prove its philanthropic spirit. In 2015, GSW impacted communities in a number of ways, including work for the Ohio State University’s James Cancer Center; Mental Health America; March of Dimes; the Memorial PGA Golf Tournament benefiting Nationwide Children’s Hospital; Susan G. Komen Columbus; and the Movember Foundation