Several ways communicators can keep their campaigns appealing to consumers are addressed by Golin global president of healthcare Cori McKeever in the latest “PR’s Top Pros Talk” video interview with Doug Simon.

McKeever says that many clients “come to us and ask for specific communications and integrated strategies for how they can maintain their relevance and continue to attract their audiences and keep people coming back.”

One essential, she tells Simon, is “understanding the end audience and what the motivating factor is.” She also says that “being able to tap into the cultural context of the moment” is a key skill that communicators need to have.

McKeever also stresses the role that data plays in putting together communications that will remain effective. “The core of everything that we do as it relates to healthcare communications goes back to data and to insights about the audience and really understanding at the most granular level that's possible,” she says.

She also talks about the particular challenges of executing effective pharma communications. “Pharma represents an entirely different challenge than other health and wellness clients, given the regulations of the industry,” McKeever says.

For pharma clients, PR pros must master “scientific storytelling and being able to break down the incredibly complex into something that's simple to understand, whether that's in the written word or in some other way of bringing it to life.”

To get out the word about general health and wellness clients, communicators must learn to “treat any journalist as a health care journalist.” Following the emergence of COVID, she says reporters who were “covering things that were completely unrelated to healthcare became healthcare journalists in their own right, because they had to be.”

The importance of local news is stressed. “The audience continues to grow and rely on those local news sources as a source for their information,” McKeever tells Simon.

There also tips about what PR pros—in any sector—need to succeed. “You can never discount grit,” she says. “That is showing up every day with an attitude of I'm going to work really hard and prove my value. Never resting on your laurels is really important.”

View all of the interviews in the “PR's Top Pros Talk” series. Subscribe to get notified when new episodes are available.

Interested in taking part? Contact Doug Simon at [email protected]

D S Simon Media helps clients get their stories on television through satellite media tours and by producing and distributing content to the media. The company also produces live social media events.