Washington Health Plan Finder
Don’t leave it to chance.
In fall 2013, state-run healthcare exchanges went live nationwide. In Washington, it was Washington Healthplanfinder. Our job was to cut through the noise with an integrated campaign that grabbed attention, made the confusing feel human, and spoke directly to young and low-income audiences who had every reason to side-eye both healthcare and the government.
So we met them where fate was already in charge. When luck was on the line, stakes were real, and the universe felt slightly rigged. Because if you’re going to talk about health insurance, you might as well do it at the exact moment people are already thinking, “Well… here goes nothing.”
Here’s to the farless ones
The success of this campaign proves what fearless clients make possible. By trusting bold, strategic, creative, they didn’t just approve the work, they championed it. That kind of belief turns ideas into action, and action into impact. It’s rare, and it matters.
And the impact was real. More than 600,000 Washington residents gained coverage, driving the uninsured rate down from 14% in 2013 to 9.2% in 2014, and then to just 5.8% by 2015. Washington didn’t just keep pace with other exchanges; it lapped them. While the national uninsured rate dropped about 19% in 2014, Washington delivered a 41% decline that year and a 61% drop in the first three years. Not bad for taking on healthcare, government skepticism, and the odds all at once.
To the fearless ones!
Yes, that’s yours truly, right behind Governor Jay Inslee, announcing the campaign.
Washington Health Plan Finder II
Coming off the heels of our first successful campaign, Washington Healthplanfinder asked us to spotlight real people who had signed up for insurance. Strategically smart, yes. Sexy, not exactly. So instead of dry testimonials, we flipped the script and celebrated their wins in style. The result was the Washington Healthplanfinder Sessions.
A little Ali G, a little Macklemore, and a whole lot ridiculous. But at its heart, it was about showing genuine love to regular people getting health insurance for the first time. And it worked. In the first week alone, sign-ups among young people jumped 10%.