Driving Medicare Enrollment…With A New Name
When Gateway Health asked LevLane to drive signups for its Medicare DSNP program, the timeline was tight with the Annual Enrollment Period (AEP) only months away. And while that was challenging, there were two other things that were somewhat steeper asks.
But the bigger challenge was reaching Pennsylvania consumers already overwhelmed by competitors in traditional media – channels that weren’t especially effective with this audience.
LevLane identified alternative channels to reach them more effectively and with less competition. And the second ask? Two months before the AEP, Gateway Health changed its name to Highmark Wholecare. Yes, really.
DIVING INTO ENROLLMENT DATA TO FIND MEDIA OPPORTUNITY
With the recent rebrand to Highmark Wholecare, LevLane quickly adapted the campaign and developed new digital creative to support the change. Despite the tight turnaround, the campaign launched on time and generated significantly more leads than the prior year.
Post-campaign analysis examined the impact of the rebrand. Qualified lead rates were lower in Western PA (Highmark’s home market) but improved moving east across the state – contrary to expectations.
Further analysis revealed the likely cause: brand awareness of Highmark was highest in Western PA, suggesting consumer confusion, with many respondents seeking other Highmark offerings rather than Highmark Wholecare.
Initiation
Plan
Developed
Rebrand
Announced
(Rethink the process)
Replan +
New Creative
AEP Launch
IDENTIFYING AREAS OF
CONCERN & OPPORTUNITY
LevLane found many consumers were still visiting the old Gateway Health website, and branded search for “Gateway Health” was higher than for Highmark Wholecare.
A review of consumer calls confirmed the issue: many unqualified calls were for other Highmark products, indicating brand confusion after the rebrand.
For the 2022 campaign, LevLane recommended:
- Sustained Highmark Wholecare branding effort to clarify its Medicare DSNP offering
- “Gateway Health is now Highmark Wholecare” campaign ahead of AEP
- Market focus on Pittsburgh (to improve brand understanding) and Philadelphia (to build on strong performance)
- Improved website messaging and redirects from Gateway Health
- Remarketing creative and refreshed deadline messaging late in AEP
- Direct-response TV test with call tracking to optimize media performance
Driving Enrollment Results
The results for the 2022 AEP showed enormous improvement in brand understanding, media-assigned goals, and (most importantly) overall business goals.
- Search popularity of “highmark wholecare” significantly grew throughout the year and spiked at the onset of the branding and AEP campaign.
- Pittsburgh Qualified Lead Rate improved, with double Enrollment and very low Disenrollments
- Philadelphia grew to a top-4 market for Enrollments
