We Got You/Estamos Contigo – Health, Wellness & Inclusion Campaign by Birk Creative Named a Finalist in Fast Company’s 2021 Innovation by Design Awards


We Got You – Advocate Healthcare Multi-Cultural Campaign

“This familiar phrase in both English and Spanish anticipated the varying needs and questions of historically ignored communities caught in a pandemic, and curbed fears and confusion with its inclusive approach.”

We Got You,” the multicultural COVID-19 campaign by Birk Creative, was honored in Fast Company’s Innovation by Design Awards for 2021 in the Health, Wellness & Inclusion category.

The awards, which celebrate a 10th anniversary, can be found in the October 2021 issue of Fast Company magazine. The awards recognize people, teams, and companies that transform businesses, organizations, and society through design. One of the most sought-after design awards in the industry, Innovation by Design is the only competition to honor creative work at the intersection of design, business, and innovation, recognizing the people, companies, and trends that have steadily advanced design to the forefront of the business conversation.

With low levels of trust in the healthcare system in underserved Black and Latino communities, Advocate Health Care and the Illinois Department of Healthcare and Family Services (HFS) launched a public awareness campaign to promote a range of COVID-19 informational and healthcare options.

“We Got You” uses its familiar phrasing to blend the informality of close friendship with trust in the medical profession and bridge the communications gap among dozens of communities with just three words.

Understanding that Hispanic families had to be reached intentionally, Birk Creative conducted a robust survey across the United States with a concentration in Chicago to create a synergistic messaging strategy for the Spanish-speaking community: “Estamos Contigo,” evoking family, care, and togetherness.

“This familiar phrase in both English and Spanish anticipated the varying needs and questions of historically ignored communities caught in a pandemic, and curbed fears and confusion with its inclusive approach,” says JinJa Birkenbeuel, CEO, Birk Creative.

The multilingual, integrated brand and content strategy includes naming; visual identity; campaign themes; diversity strategy; digital and programmatic media buys; creative for all ad channels; social media; traditional OOH, including direct mail, television, radio, and billboards; custom multicultural memoji and emoji development (representing Black and Latino audiences); Snapchat and IG Stories animations; and newsletter articles.

“Design is not just a beauty contest,” says Stephanie Mehta, editor-in-chief of Fast Company. “It’s something that can change the world and create solutions in a time when we face pressing global issues such as systemic racism, climate change, and a global pandemic. Many of these entries showcase these challenges while providing hope for the future through their steadfast commitment to elevate design.”

Honorees for the 2021 awards were selected in the following categories: Apps and Games; Cities; Data Design; Design Company of the Year; Experimental; Fashion and Beauty; Finance; General Excellence; Graphic Design; Health; Home; Learning; Mobility; Packaging; Products; Retail Innovation; Social Good; Spaces and Places; Sports and Recreation; Students; Sustainability; User Experience; Wellness; Workplace; Best Design Asia-Pacific; Best Design Europe; Best Design Middle East; Best Design Africa; Best Design Latin America; and Best Design North America. New categories included Advertising, Branding, Impact, Materials, Pandemic Response, Real Estate, and Years in Business.

The judges include renowned designers from a variety of disciplines, business leaders from some of the most innovative companies in the world, and Fast Company’s own writers and editors. Entries are judged on the key ingredients of innovation: functionality, originality, beauty, sustainability, user insight, cultural impact, and business impact.

Winners, finalists, and honorable mentions are featured online and in the October issue of Fast Company magazine, on newsstands September 28, 2021.

To see the complete list, go to: https://www.fastcompany.com/innovation-by-design/2021

ABOUT BIRK CREATIVE

Birk Creative, a benefit corporation based in Chicago, is one of the country’s premier multichannel brand strategy, digital transformation and visual identity agencies helping global and mid-market companies launch brands. With a team of 10-plus, Birk Creative’s clients include Facebook, Tesla, CPASS Foundation, Advocate Health Care and Google. CEO JinJa Birkenbeuel is also the founder of The Honest Field Guide (™) podcast, where she hosts discussions dedicated to winning in business.

ABOUT FAST COMPANY

Fast Company is the only media brand fully dedicated to the vital intersection of business, innovation, and design, engaging the most influential leaders, companies, and thinkers on the future of business. The editor-in-chief is Stephanie Mehta. Headquartered in New York City, Fast Company is published by Mansueto Ventures LLC, along with our sister publication, Inc., and can be found online at fastcompany.com.

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