A Conversation with Exchange Leaders: Part Three—Communications Directors

As exchange policy and operations staff are busy building and refining state-based exchanges (SBEs), communications teams are hard at work developing robust marketing strategies to educate and engage consumers about the coverage opportunities newly available to them. In this third installment of our blog series with SBE officials, we’ll hear about best practices, challenges, and plans for open enrollment 2015 from two communications directors: Linda Kanamine, Director of Communications for Connect for Health Colorado, and Joe Campbell, Director of Communications and Marketing for MNsure. For more lessons learned from state-based exchange officials, read our recent interviews with exchange directors/CEOs and policy directors.
Reflecting back on the 2014 open enrollment period, what were the top successes from your perspective as a communications director? 
Joe (MN): In March, we put together “March to Enroll,” holding over 1,000 enrollment events where consumers were able to receive face-to-face enrollment assistance. In the last week of March, we held a “Young Invincibles Week” during which we targeted young people where they were: happy hours, college campuses, and beer tastings, etc. We did whatever we could so that young people knew how to gain access to insurance through MNsure.
Linda (CO): We achieved a significant jump in brand awareness. We went from non-existent to being in business on October 1. Our team took a very strategic marketing approach to determine our brand, test it, launch it, and then evolve it. By December, awareness of Connect for Health Colorado had jumped to 60 percent on average across the state.
Can you describe something you learned mid-course that turned out to be very important? 
Linda (CO): We learned what resonated with our Colorado audience broadly, and specifically, what worked for different audiences. For example we have newer immigrant Hispanics who found it helpful to learn why insurance is important. For 5^th or 6^th generation Hispanics, who are already integrated, messages of inclusion and diversity resonated better. We also learned how much young people procrastinate. And, I don’t think we really appreciated in the opening weeks how vital face-to-face assistance would be to complete enrollments. It’s more labor and time-intensive, but necessary. We opened five stores in the Denver area in March and those were hugely successful and incredibly effective for consumers, navigators, and brokers.
Joe (MN): We had a unique marketing campaign with Paul Bunyan that did a good job of making people aware of MNsure. But as we made our way through open enrollment, we realized those ads weren’t having as strong a connection with our audience as we wanted. We pivoted in January and February to using testimonial ads from consumers about the money they saved, the process they went through on our website, and the importance of affordable coverage.
Linda (CO): We also learned that you have to be flexible with messaging. We shifted gears in January so that about 90 percent of our ads were testimonials from real people.
What are some best practices that you will carry forward into 2015 and future years? 
Joe (MN): We feel strongly that Minnesotans react positively to testimonials from consumers and face-to-face interactions. We’re designing new advertising and planning new outreach that will carry those practices forward. We’re also gathering information now from a survey to gauge peoples’ opinions about how to better reach them.
Linda (CO): One of the things that we eventually did well, and will continue improving, is collaborating with brokers. Particularly toward the end of open enrollment, we brought brokers and health coverage guides (navigators) together in our storefronts. They worked very well as a team and individually, and are important for both the SHOP and individual side.
From your perspective as a communications director, can you discuss your priorities and upcoming opportunities you see as you plan for 2015 and beyond? 
Linda (CO): Last year, we had an onslaught of media coverage, which put us in reactive mode. In the future, we want to be proactive and get real people’s stories out to the public and media. We’ve had good success in terms of getting people coverage and we want that to be publicized. We need to figure out the best ways to collect stories we know are out there, through brokers, assisters, and our call center.
Joe (MN): Minnesota had one of the lowest uninsured rates in the country prior to the ACA, and since open enrollment, the rate has been cut further in half. The low hanging fruit is pretty much gone, so going forward we have to work harder for enrollments, with less money. We need to be smart about targeting resources. We’re holding events this summer to stay visible and raise awareness of public programs and special enrollment periods.
Linda (CO): I’ve come to realize the value of having many different types of “arms and legs” out there: brokers and assisters, and the nonprofits and other organizations that haven’t received grants, but whose work aligns well with ours. We also want to improve our coordination with the provider and carrier communities. Overall, having a lot of different types of partners to work with regularly is important.
This blog series is produced by the State Health Exchange Leadership Network, a project that supports exchange leaders and staff, housed at NASHP. The State Health Exchange Leadership Network is supported by state contributions and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.