At age 45, many people are preparing their kids for college or working toward their next big promotion. But Texas Colon & Rectal Specialists, part of Texas Oncology, wanted them to be ready for something else: their first colonoscopy. 

The Arlington, Texas-headquartered practice has nearly 40 locations across the state, including Austin, Dallas/Fort Worth and San Antonio.

Its “Milestones” campaign, created with the Loomis Agency, captured silver in the Digital Campaign of the Year among providers and insurers by creatively reminding people the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force in 2021 lowered its recommended age for the first colorectal screening from 50 to 45.

The campaign needed to convey a sense of urgency, since members of Generation X are at twice the risk of developing colon cancer than previous generations. But it also needed to be engaging.

It targeted Gen X members by tying life milestones, such as learning to drive at age 16, to the idea of “taking the wheel” for their health by getting a colonoscopy. The campaign launched March 1 and leveraged digital media with display ads and paid social media ads.

The campaign exceeded its goal of 6.1 million total impressions by 3.7 million and drove more than 26,000 clicks to the organization’s website, according to the medical group. But perhaps most important, appointments for screenings in April, one month into the campaign, increased 82% compared with the same period the previous year.