Council for Responsible Nutrition Foundation

“Life…supplemented” is an award-winning, consumer wellness education campaign created by CRT/tanaka that promotes the responsible use of dietary supplements as one of the “three pillars” of health alongside healthy diet and regular exercise. Managed by the Council for Responsible Nutrition Foundation, the educational affiliate of the leading dietary trade association known for its science-based approach to supplements, the campaign is dedicated to encouraging and supporting Americans in a proactive approach to health and wellness with easy-to-use resources, tools and tips customized to their needs.

LIFE…SUPPLEMENTED CAMPAIGN (Years 1-IV)

Challenge

The dietary supplement industry is challenged in its growth by detractors who question the safety, efficacy and cost of supplements, including media who give heightened and, often, inflammatory editorial coverage to every negative or inconclusive study, however flawed.

CRT/tanaka’s PR objectives on behalf of the CRN Foundation in the multiyear campaign were three-fold:

• Create an environment conducive to increasing sales of dietary supplements in the United States
• Establish the use of dietary supplements as “mainstream” – not a fringe practice – in America
• Generate positive awareness and media coverage for supplements to offset the drumbeat of negative stories about these products

Solution

Through research, the agency discovered that more than 150 million American adults take dietary supplements as part of an ongoing health and wellness regimen. CRT/tanaka’s creative strategy focused on “identifying, studying and celebrating” these individuals – whom the agency dubbed the “Wellness Cohort” for being proactive about their health and wellness – and to leverage what was already an existing, powerful endorsement of supplements by “mainstream” Americans.

The agency’s recommended strategy also involved educating consumers about the responsible use of supplements and helping to simplify and personalize the use of these products – all findings that research revealed were obstacles to greater supplement use – as well as wrapping the discussion of supplements in the appealing and growing “culture of wellness” movement. Finally, the agency recommended commissioning research on the behaviors and attitudes of physicians and other healthcare professionals toward supplements, to create “news hooks” each year that reinforced a single, focused authoritative message – “doctors take and recommend supplements” – as a way to efficiently counter ongoing, negative media coverage.

The resulting “Life…supplemented” campaign developed and implemented by CRT/tanaka involved a consumer- focused effort positioning supplements as one of the “three pillars” of health and wellness, along with healthy eating and exercise. Core elements of the “Life…supplemented” campaign include:

• Lifesupplemented.org website, which includes “My Wellness Scorecard” – a feature involving a 36-question survey that when completed reveals where respondents fall on the wellness scale (AlphaWELL, WELL, WannabeWELL and OhWELL). The scorecard also provides feedback on how respondents fare against each of the “three pillars” of health and wellness, and tips for improving their score in each pillar, including recommendations on specific supplements that might be helpful to them.
• Healthcare Professionals (HCP) Impact Studies Years I, II and III studying the personal use and recommendation of supplements for nine physician, nurse and other HCP populations.
• Media campaign involving “earned” (print and electronic media relations) and “unearned” (online advertising and e-newsletters) coverage, communicating messages about supplements as one of the “three pillars” of health, that “doctors take and recommend supplements” and that “more than 150 million Americans” are supplement users.
• Social media campaign, involving educational video streams, TweetChats and Facebook contests and sweepstakes to engage consumers in learning about the “three pillars” as well as incentives to adopt this approach to health and wellness.

 Results

•  Over the past four years, the “Life…supplemented” has generated 3.59 billion “earned” media impressions, communicating key campaign messages. 
• Nearly 90,000 “My Wellness Scorecards” have been completed.
• The HCP Impact Studies Years I, II and III all revealed and proved that “doctors take and recommend supplements.” Overall, the studies showed that 72 percent of physicians and 89 percent of nurses personally take dietary supplements. This is a higher percentage than even the 68 percent of American adults who report taking these products. Moreover, the studies revealed that of the 28 percent of physicians who do not use supplements, 62 percent still recommend them to patients.
• CRN’s 2010 “Consumer Confidence” study revealed that confidence in supplements held steady at 82 percent compared to 84 percent in 2009 and 81 percent in 2008. In 2007 and 2006, consumer confidence in supplements was 80 percent and 79 percent, respectively.
• The supplement industry has experienced strong growth in recent years.  U.S. sales of supplements were $28.7 billion in 2010; $26.9 billion in 2009; $25.4 billion in 2008 and $23.8 billon in 2007.  Growth projections are for more than 5 percent annually through 2015.