Published October 2001

March of Dimes has message for business community

By Kimberly Hilden
Herald Business Journal Assistant Editor

This fall, as many as 500 Snohomish County businesses will receive something in the mail from the state chapter of the March of Dimes Birth Defects Foundation: little packages with a big message about premature births.

On the top of the box are the words: “The last thing a baby should be wearing 7 months after conception.”

Open the box, and there’s a hospital bracelet for a 3-pound, 5-ounce baby girl and the message: “7 months after conception, she should still be in her mother’s womb.”

And then the facts: “This year, more than 7,000 babies will be born premature in Washington state. Many will be critically underweight ... and unable to breathe on their own.”

It’s a different, starker marketing approach for the organization, said Christi Ball Loso, State Director of Marketing and Communications.

But it’s a style a survey showed would be successful in reaching business decision makers — the people who have a say in sponsoring WalkAmerica or putting together a team for the March of Dimes fund-raiser, which last year raised $1.4 million in the state, $66,000 of that in Snohomish County.

The informal survey, issued by Kirkland-based Hodgson/Meyers Communications, asked current March of Dimes sponsors why they continue to sponsor March of Dimes events and how to attract new sponsors.

“The general consensus was that we need to talk about how businesses are affected by prematurity,” said Gerald Ostlund, Senior Account Manager with Hodgson/Meyers, which developed the campaign for its pro-bono client. “However, our research also showed that we needed to lead with something more compelling than business numbers, raw ‘ROI’ stats, etc. — these folks see and hear ads all the time that lead with business stats. Instead, we needed to get the attention of the reader with something more powerful.”

But the bottom line does come into play. The direct-mail piece also notes that the March of Dimes’ goal to reduce the state’s premature birth rates by 13 percent by 2010 not only saves lives but also helps businesses with lower insurance rates and fewer employee absences.

“Companies pay a high price when employees have unhealthy births,” Loso said. “Physician and hospital charges for premature and low-birth-weight babies range from $12,000 to $50,000 for the baby’s first 21 days of specialized care. The average cost of a normal newborn is $3,700.”

The direct-mail piece is just part of an ad campaign designed to make business people aware and receptive to receiving a telephone call this fall from the March of Dimes about taking part in WalkAmerica. There will be radio, TV and print ads as well.

“Many of our community’s decision makers serve on local March of Dimes boards and committees, and have involved their companies and employees in WalkAmerica,” Loso said. “But there’s always room for more companies to help March of Dimes in its mission of saving babies’ lives, and we want every manager and CEO to know how the March of Dimes’ work helps their companies, too.”

The upcoming Snohomish County WalkAmerica will be April 13 at American Legion Park in Everett, and March of Dimes is aiming to raise $85,000 from the event, Loso said.

For more information, call 1-800-291-DIME or visit www.pleasetakethecall.org on the Web.

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