Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD): Bruce Jenner
Challenge: Over 24 million Americans who may be at risk for Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD), the nation’s fourth leading cause of death, remain undiagnosed because they are unaware of the early signs of detection. Boehringer Ingelheim Pharmaceuticals (BI), maker of anticholinergics which treat COPD, created an awareness campaign to educate people on the early symptoms of COPD and how to take action.
Execution: Gold Medal Greats (“GMG”), a leading celebrity consulting agency, provided insight and assistance on identifying celebrity spokespeople to agencies associated with BI. Understanding the campaign’s goals, target demographic and desired visibility measurements for a successful program, GMG researched and recommended several celebrities who would not only deliver the message, but do so in an authentic voice. One of the celebrities GMG suggested was Olympic icon and reality television star (Keeping Up with the Kardashians) Bruce Jenner as an ideal candidate for the program. Bruce not only transcends the target audience, but COPD personally affected his family. Bruce’s wife, Kris Jenner, lost both of her grandparents to emphysema, a form of COPD. Thirty-four years after racing for Gold in the decathlon, Bruce began the race to get one million people screened for COPD.
- As part of the DRIVE4COPD campaign, Bruce and a few other celebrities (Danica Patrick, Patty Loveless, Michael Strahan and Jim Belushi) toured the country making ‘Pit Stops’ in targeted cities to screen people and spread the campaign message as part of the “Race for the Missing Millions.”
- Bruce was featured in PSAs and appeared on Capitol Hill on behalf of COPD. (Bruce Jenner PSA).
- Bruce spread the campaign message virally through a Twitter page he created specifically for DRIVE4COPD. He appeared on various national shows including Larry King Live, ESPN and The Bonnie Hunt Show to promote the DRIVE4COPD campaign (Larry King Live).
Results: The campaign exceeded expectations by driving over one million people to get tested. The campaign, along with Bruce and the other celebrities, helped reach millions of consumers through various media vehicles, including Bruce’s 55,000-plus Twitter followers. The success of the campaign received national recognition from PRWeek, winning the “Healthcare Campaign of the Year” award.
