Problem: Medicare had spent millions building health care information resources and consumer education services for its 39 million customers. Now, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) wanted an advertising campaign that would promote its 1-800-MEDICARE phone number and www.medicare.gov Web site.

Challenge: In 2001, CMS needed to show that it was more than a colossal bill payer, positioning Medicare as an information resource rather than an unruly insurer. And CMS wanted to work quickly. The agency's first-ever national media campaign, including a separate Spanish-language effort, had to launch in October, barely three months after AED got the job.

Action: Building on the existing Medicare brand character of reliability and security, AED used humor to reframe Medicare as human and helpful, while offering clear reasons to use the toll-free number and Web site. AED rapidly developed the overall strategy for the $30 million campaign with CMS, and then managed a process of consumer research, message development and testing that produced four television ads, two radio ads, two print ads and Internet banner ads. The TV ads took a risky tack by featuring comic actor Leslie Nielsen as a Medicare customer service representative and as a patient in a doctor's office. Working around a three-week delay because of the September 11 tragedy, AED oversaw a campaign launch on October 19 and the placement of $23 million in network television, radio and print advertising in both English and Spanish. AED also designed and managed a three-wave tracking survey to assess campaign recall and impact. In 2002, CMS again turned to AED to develop and manage its $23 million national Medicare advertising campaign. The second campaign featured a softer, more emotional appeal, centered on the interactions between grandparents and their grandkids.

Results: For the 2001 campaign, the television ads clearly broke through. Target audience recall peaked at close to 60 percent and remained in the 40 percent-50 percent range. Calls to Medicare's toll-free number increased by 70 percent throughout the life of the campaign. In 2002, with a smaller media budget, recall levels were lower, closer to 30 percent-35 percent. The great majority of people who saw the ads liked them a lot and remembered the messages more clearly. Calls to the hotline again increased by 70 percent. By the end of the second campaign, more respondents cited Medicare's "customer service" or "education materials" or "helplines" as part of the core services the program offered.