CHALLENGE

Boston Health Care for the Homeless Program, a leading nonprofit that provides quality and consistent medical care and mental health services for Boston’s unhoused population, engaged Elevate to launch Rough Sleepers, a book by Pulitzer Prize-winning author Tracy Kidder which features BHCHP’s founder, Dr. Jim O’Connell. The goal was to maximize earned media for the book launch in collaboration with the publisher, Random House, to heighten brand awareness for BHCHP on the national and local levels.

SOLUTION

Our strategy focused on highlighting the book while sharing information on BHCHP’s programs and community impact to increase brand recognition and position BHCFH Founder Dr. O’Connell and the other medical staff as thought leaders in healthcare for vulnerable populations. We also created and managed content for BHCHP’s social media channels (LinkedIn, Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook) and their blog, with a focus on recruitment and promoting the earned media from the book launch campaign.

IMPACT

Our social media and public relations campaign generated extensive media coverage, including high-impact book reviews, broadcast and podcast interviews, author Q&As, and feature story placements that maximized book sales, leading to Rough Sleepers becoming a Top 10 New York Times bestseller in the Non-Fiction category. Their social media platforms also saw a 62% increase in followers across all platforms in between January—March 2023.