Aspen Pharmacare || She Taught Me

Iron deficiency is a silent epidemic that affects 1-in-2 healthy South African women. If left untreated, this condition can lead to a decline in brain function, major heart problems, and serious pregnancy complications, which can result in premature birth and foetal death. The problem is that the symptoms of iron deficiency are nonspecific, meaning that they overlap with other deficiencies like Magnesium, Vitamin B, and Vitamin D.

Knowing the potential severity of the condition, Ferrimed, the market leader and #1 prescribed iron treatment in South Africa, have taken the responsibility to raise functional, symptom focused awareness. However, due to strict South African regulations, the pharmaceutical category often fails to shed light on the emotive and human-side of these deficiencies.

Although we are the only registered medicine specifically designed to treat iron deficiency, we face competition from iron supplements promising short-term solutions rather than long-term treatment.

While our mission has always been to create awareness of iron deficiency so that it can be diagnosed and treated effectively, we recognised that we needed to cut through the clutter of competition and daily pharmaceutical ads. To do this, we needed to move beyond our functional, symptom focused communication approach and find a new way to educate and empower those most at risk. Knowing that this is not the category norm, we were entering into unexplored territory.

This campaign was never briefed. It was an idea I developed from scratch, rooted in personal experience and a deep belief that the issue of iron deficiency deserved more than clinical comms and boxed-off claims. I worked on it independently, built the concept, wrote the film, and presented it to the client. Initially, there was no budget. Then they found R2 million to produce it. That’s the power of a story that truly resonates.

This made our challenge clear: To be impactful, we would need to change how we communicate in order to emotionally resonate with our target audience, while emphasising the debilitating impact of iron deficiency, maintaining our credibility as #1, following medical marketing regulations, and working within a tight budget.

With data revealing that 1-in-2 healthy South African women suffer from iron deficiency, and understanding its debilitating impact, we recognised an undeniable urgency for awareness and education around the symptoms. However, our goal was to foster a deeper, more emotional connection among those most at risk – women and children, turning statistics into stories that resonate and inspire action.

Our approach was rooted in the truth that women are not just patients but pillars of our society and custodians of generational knowledge. This belief guided our strategy to a novel understanding that allowed us to change the way we raise iron deficiency awareness in South Africa. We moved away from a purely functional, medical narrative towards a more human approach.

We recognised that to truly make an impact with our new approach, we needed to position our target audience as influencers, understanding that the most relatable influencer is 'a person like you or me'. This, combined with the reality that 1-in-2 healthy South African women suffer from iron deficiency, led us to focus on resonance and empowerment.

Our mission became about more than health; it was about acknowledging women as societal pillars, equipping them with knowledge, and empowering them to impart this knowledge onto future generations. This approach allowed us to establish a meaningful connection between our target audience and the cause, turning a medical issue into a societal issue. Our strategy formed the platform for a powerful campaign that didn't just educate, but resonated emotionally, highlighting a woman’s role in the broader context of well-being.

So, we launched 'She Taught Me'; a celebratory Women’s Month flexi-film that spoke to women about iron deficiency in a way that was relatable, de-medicalised, and non-pharma.

We started by tapping into the human truth that if you educate a woman, you educate a generation. The narrative follows the voiceover of a young woman sharing life lessons passed down from the women around her of various ages, each representing different stages of life impacted by iron deficiency: An elderly woman symbolises iron deficiency in the elderly and menopause; a woman of reproductive age represents the impact of iron deficiency pre-pregnancy; a new mom embodies the dangers during and post-pregnancy; a teen signifies the challenges around menstruation and heavy menstrual bleeding; and a pre-teen highlights the impact of growth spurts on iron levels.

To reach as many women as possible, we amplified the emotional connection across social media and PR channels. We leveraged the fact that 78% of our target market is active online and on social media. By crafting targeting parameters based on gender, age, and interests, we ensured maximum relevance and impact. To boost brand awareness, improve perception, and drive effectiveness, we utilised the emotional power of sequential short and long-form videos on Meta and YouTube to promote awareness around iron deficiency and education around symptoms, in a way Ferrimed had never done before.

To further extend the reach of our message, we crafted thought leadership articles, which were featured on Bizcommunity, iAfrica, and The Citizen, ensuring our campaign resonated far and wide while remaining a credible source of information around iron deficiency.

The film ends with the narrator imparting wisdom onto her younger sister, symbolising the transfer of generational knowledge. By blending human insights with data, we managed to shake up the category and do what had never been done by a registered medicine in the health and wellness space; take an emotive approach that de-medicalised and humanised the iron deficiency conversation.

This campaign was a category first. It demonstrated that even in a highly regulated and controlled marketing environment, it is possible to create a powerful and emotive narrative that resonates deeply with the target audience. Despite facing extensive competition from unregulated brands and operating on a small budget, Ferrimed successfully positioned itself as a brand who understands and empathises with South African women. By taking a bold and novel approach, Ferrimed managed to cut through the clutter of daily pharmaceutical ads and connect with their audience on a personal level. This was not just a marketing campaign; it was a movement that empowered women and transformed the way medical brands communicate. Ferrimed exceeded their business objectives, proving that creativity, empathy, and authenticity can drive both emotional engagement and business results. But for me, the true success came in a message from a woman who watched the film and said,
"I see myself in this." That’s the kind of response you can’t measure in reach or views. That’s why we do the work.

This campaign reminded me that our most powerful ideas don’t always come from a brief. Sometimes, they come from something deeper - lived experience, empathy, and the belief that our words can create change.