Client: SpineSmith

SpineSmith—a leading provider of spine stabilization products and innovative cellular therapies.

The Business Goals

Create a relevant brand and marketing materials.
Launch SpineSmith and create national awareness of the brand among spine. surgeons, physicians, hospitals and industry publications.
Drive traffic to the SpineSmith website.
Generate sales and attract partners.

The Situation

SpineSmith Partners, LP develops and markets innovative spine stabilization products and stem cell therapies that pool the talents and findings of leading scientists, engineers and spinal surgeons. The company’s unique approach gives spine surgeons a way to directly impact product research and development, ultimately arming them with the tools they need to provide better medical care to their spinal patients. In 2007, the firm’s founders turned to Aha Communications to help them introduce their unknown start-up to a crowded and very competitive industry.

Aha Insight

Doctors want to make a difference.
We began our Intentional Branding process with in-depth interviews with the SpineSmith team and industry experts who actually use SpineSmith’s products. They were enthusiastic about working with a company that was listening to their needs as medical experts and actively soliciting their help in pioneering new solutions. They talked about the importance of tissue regeneration and bone growth, and even about the ways the company’s packaging affected inventory management and the way products were stored in hospitals.

Aha Solution

Highly skilled, highly professional.
Our research showed that SpineSmith would need a unique brand personality to reflect its commitment to high standards and innovative approach to healing. Because the industry is awash with long-established companies that are resistant to change, we focused on fine design and clean modern aesthetics to help SpineSmith stand out. A clear and relevant tagline along with a set of brand standards for all communications and messaging formed the cornerstone for a full suite of launch materials.

Armed with a graphically impactful tradeshow booth, a new website, printed brochures, and ads, SpineSmith made its official debut at the National Association of Spine Surgeons (NASS) in 2007. The new materials, which Aha developed, helped introduce a fairly new medical treatment to an industry that embraces change very slowly. We also helped emphasize SpineSmith’s unique collaborative business model by crafting press released and other announcements that helped generate professional buzz for the company. 

Once the company has formally launched, Aha went to work to develop educational materials, surgical guides, product spec sheets and a myriad of other marketing materials that were needed to fill the demand for information about SpineSmith and its suite of innovative products.

Outcome

SpineSmith’s brand has achieved the professional reputation the founders were seeking. A leading industry analyst described SpineSmith’s presence at the National Association of Spine Surgeons Convention as “impactful and relevant.” Attendance at the company’s trade show booth exceeded aggressive projections and the company has enjoyed steady growth over the last two years.

Materials Produced
Marketing plan
Brand positioning strategy
Logo
Website design and development
Capabilities brochure and product inserts
Print ads
Sales promotional tools, including trade show presentation materials
Media releases

Aha Services
Brand strategy
Customer research
Full creative services – concept, graphic design, copywriting, production
Interactive – website