Engaging Millions Through Targeted Playoff Media Placements, Athlete Storytelling, and Web-to-Clinic Conversion Campaigns
A healthcare-focused organization needed to reach a broad, hard-to-engage population with education around a specific medical condition and its treatment options. Traditional outreach approaches were unlikely to break through. To solve this, the team turned to one of the most consistently powerful cultural events in the U.S.—the football postseason. Each year, the big game and surrounding playoff events dominate sports media, drawing millions of engaged listeners across national talk shows and local affiliates.
By the Numbers
Latest campaigns drove over 150 national and local media segments
Campaign recorded an 80.5% increase in direct traffic to the condition-specific websites compared to the same period the previous year
This approach was unprecedented in the healthcare sector. NFL Playoffs and Super Bowl week attract intense media coverage, including the famous “Radio Row” – a gathering of sports broadcasters, athletes, and celebrities for back-to-back interviews. By tapping into this existing media frenzy, the campaign aimed to engage sports fans with relatable health stories at a time when their attention was highest.
The task at hand was twofold: To educate the public on a health condition in an authentic way, and to drive those newly-informed listeners toward medical resources (websites and doctor-finder tools) where they could take action.
Educating the Public and Guiding Patients to Care
The campaign aimed to achieve three core outcomes: broaden public awareness of an underrecognized medical condition, drive sustained traffic to digital health resources, and facilitate patient connections with qualified specialists. These efforts needed to scale nationally, maintain credibility with general audiences, and deliver measurable results—while operating without direct product promotion.
Execution Across National And Local Sports Media
Russo Partners developed a specialized strategy centered around NFL Playoffs and Super Bowl Radio Row. Beginning in 2021, the agency activated seasonal radio campaigns across January and February each year, featuring a blend of athlete storytellers and medical experts. These spokespeople delivered personal, credible, and relatable narratives across sports talk platforms such as SiriusXM, ESPN Las Vegas, CBS Sports Radio, and others.
Each year over five years, the campaign secured over 30 interviews, including 8+ national segments in major media markets. Our Sports Health team prepped spokespeople to deliver a balanced narrative—pairing emotional impact with clinical clarity—and ensured each appearance pointed listeners to a trackable, condition-specific website. Over five years, Russo Partners built on its media relationships, refined message delivery, and extended reach into both national and regionally influential shows.
Measurable Impact
By 2025, the campaign had delivered more than 150 earned media placements and built sustained visibility across key playoff windows. Website analytics showed a clear pattern: playoff-period spikes in traffic and engagement. In 2024, the campaign drove an 80.5% year-over-year increase in direct traffic to the destination site, signaling high message resonance and listener intent. Web sessions during campaign months increased in tandem with interview volume, and use of the physician finder tool rose steadily, particularly in cities aligned with strong radio coverage. Over five years, the program refined its message delivery and expanded its reach—building equity and recognition across NFL media cycles.
The campaign helped redefine how healthcare organizations can drive action through sports media—turning awareness into tangible public health engagement, without relying on traditional advertising.
This five-year program illustrates how healthcare communications, when embedded in culturally relevant moments like the NFL Playoffs, can drive measurable public engagement. Russo Partners’ work at the intersection of sports, media, and medicine set a new benchmark for reaching general audiences through emotionally driven, medically grounded storytelling.
