Objective

The Chicago Dental Society’s (CDS) annual Midwinter Meeting brings more than 30,000 dentists, hygienists, lab technicians and other dental professionals to learn about new products and techniques, network with other leaders and attend workshops and seminars about dentistry. CDS turned to CG&A to generate publicity and visibility about the meeting in order to enhance local recognition and raise the Society’s profile as a leader in the dental community.

Action

CG&A developed an integrated communications strategy that included public relations, paid media, social media and special events. Media outreach focused on interesting, quirky results from a CDS survey of dentists and patients. CG&A coordinated public engagement partnerships with Chicago Wolves hockey team and the RedEye newspaper that reached more than 2.2 million people. CGA also led a robust social media campaign, connecting CDS to dentists from around the country via YouTube, Twitter, Facebook and the CDS Open Wide Blog. And, through two Meetup sessions at the Midwinter Meeting, CDS and CG&A hosted more than 60 guests who learned about applying social media to their dental practices.

Results

CG&A generated a substantial amount of buzz around the Midwinter Meeting in both the dentistry community and general market with media placements including RedEye, Associated Press, and Chicago Sun-Times. The CDS Facebook and Twitter pages saw increased growth and participation, creating platforms for ongoing dialogue with dentists, dental professionals and vendors. Overall, CG&A’s work led to impactful results, created new relationships and developed lasting content for CDS beyond the Midwinter Meeting.