A new playbook for the healthcare industry?

For years, healthcare marketing has relied on a familiar formula: fear-based messaging designed to shock people into action. ‘Don’t smoke, or you’ll get cancer.’ ‘Eat this, not that, or you’ll suffer the consequences.’ While these messages are factually correct, they often fail to resonate. The reality? Audiences have become desensitised to these tactics - they scroll past, tune out, and move on.

The problem: healthcare campaigns are losing their impact

Take cervical screenings, for example. According to NHS data, cervical screening rates in England hit an all-time low in 2023, with just 68.7% of eligible women attending their appointments. That means millions are missing out on a test that could save their lives. Traditional awareness campaigns simply aren’t cutting through anymore.

This problem isn’t exclusive to cervical screening. Bowel cancer screening uptake sits at around 65% in England, despite early detection significantly improving survival rates. Meanwhile, awareness of testicular cancer - one of the most common cancers among young men - is low, with many unaware of the importance of self-checks. When healthcare messaging fails to connect, lives are put at risk.

And in an era where content is consumed at warp speed - where ‘brainrot’ videos with subway surfer clips overlaid on podcasts keep people engaged - how do you make healthcare messaging stick?

The solution: speak their language

Healthcare marketing needs to stop playing it safe. If the audience has changed, the approach needs to change with it. Overly formal, clinical messaging can scare, bore, or worse, be ignored altogether. Instead, campaigns need to be bold, engaging, and culturally relevant.

That’s exactly what we did with Whatever Gets You Going, our campaign with The Eve Appeal. Instead of relying on the same tired tropes, we used provocative, attention-grabbing headlines like ‘Size matters’ and ‘Switch positions’ to challenge taboos and encourage real conversations about gynaecological health. The goal? Get people ‘sat’ - engaged, interested, and ready to take action.

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The campaign: breaking barriers, changing lives

We set out to tackle the 10-year low in cervical screening uptake with a provocative out-of-home campaign for The Eve Appeal. Launched ahead of Cervical Cancer Prevention Week (21-28 January), the campaign was personal for our Senior Creative, Becky Narito:

“In 2013 I was diagnosed with cervical cancer. I’d been ignoring the letters inviting me for screening, and the reason was just sheer fear. I’d never had any kind of examination like that and didn’t know what to expect. Combined with seeing awareness campaigns employing scare tactics, I felt powerless, out of control, and scared.

Now 11 years later and having been given the all clear, I wanted to prevent as many others as possible from going through what I did. At Continuous, we have our ‘Alternative View’ programme that allows us to tackle personal or under-represented challenges with impactful creativity to redefine what’s possible, and so ‘Whatever Gets You Going’ was born.”

This national campaign empowers people with the knowledge and tools they need to advocate for themselves.

“When you look at other screening campaigns, they’re either patronising, daunting, or worse, non-existent,” said Olivia Downing, our Associate Creative Director.

“Driven by an all-female team, our campaign speaks to people in an insightful, relatable, and accessible way. It’s about understanding and highlighting how those small things could really make the difference in whether or not you go to what could ultimately be a life-saving screening. And in light of recent press reports about gynaecological waiting times doubling, it’s even more important than ever to get checked out.”

The bigger picture: why other healthcare campaigns need to catch up

The success of Whatever Gets You Going raises an important question: why aren’t other areas of healthcare taking the same approach?

The, frankly, stagnant approach to healthcare marketing is seen across the products we use, the medication we take and the illnesses we fear. The focus is functional or emotional but very rarely relatable.

If we want to change behaviour, we need to change the way we communicate. Healthcare marketing can’t afford to be passive - it needs to be as innovative as the treatments or products it promotes.

The takeaways: redefining healthcare marketing

• Stop fearmongering, start engaging. Fear-based messaging is outdated - people are numb to it.
• Get creative. Healthcare marketing doesn’t have to be dry, clinical, or overly serious to be taken seriously.
• Speak in a way that resonates. Attention spans are short, so make your message unmissable.
• Be bold. The safest option isn’t always the most effective.

The healthcare industry has been playing by the same rules for decades. Maybe it’s time for a new playbook? We certainly think so.Whether you're looking to implement these ideas yourself or partner with an agency with a track record of standout campaigns (we might know one), we'd love to see more initiatives like Whatever Gets You Going out in the world - making an impact where it truly matters.