If you live in Phoenix; Charlotte, North Carolina; or Hartford, Connecticut, you may be seeing some new faces around town. The real-life DOs from the AOA’s Doctors that DO brand awareness campaign are lighting up these cities’ billboards, bus stations and health clubs as part of the second year of the campaign.

After a successful rollout in Indianapolis last spring, outdoor advertising is making its debut in 36 Phoenix locations, 15 spots in Charlotte and 16 areas in Hartford/New Haven. The launch builds on the momentum of the brand awareness campaign’s highly impactful first year, which yielded 386 million impressions and 314,000 Find Your DO searches. In Indianapolis, website traffic to DoctorsthatDO.org jumped 50% within the first month of localized advertising.

“During the campaign’s second year, we’ll continue to seek out consumers ages 30-49 who are actively engaged in managing their health,” explains Charlie Simpson, chief communications officer for the AOA. “We expect the outdoor ads to achieve at least 70% market reach in Hartford, Charlotte and Phoenix, resulting in more than 48 million impressions among our target audience.”

In Phoenix, the Arizona Osteopathic Medical Association (AOMA) has contributed $50,000 toward out-of-home advertising. The association is also tracking the locations where ads have been spotted and running a scavenger hunt, #AZDOGO, for snapshots of Doctors that DO billboards around town.

DOs and students in the Grand Canyon State shared their excitement about the campaign in a special AOMA feature article. “We are proud that Arizona was selected by the American Osteopathic Association as one of three states to tell the DO story,” wrote AOMA President Shannon Scott, DO.

Noting that 2017 marks the 125th anniversary of osteopathic medicine, Jeffrey Morgan, DO, the dean of the A.T. Still University-School of Osteopathic Medicine (ATSU-SOMA) in Mesa, estimated that DOs have helped improve the health of millions of patients. “[DOs] are possibly the best-kept secret of health care,” Dr. Morgan told AOMA. “[Patients] like what we do; they just don’t know that’s what we do yet.”

Additional outreach

Even if you don’t live in Phoenix, Charlotte or Hartford, there’s an excellent chance you’ll encounter the brand awareness campaign in the coming months. At the Chicago Marathon earlier this month, DOs handed out branded items and answered questions about osteopathic medicine; they’ll do the same at the New York City Marathon in November.

The campaign’s print advertising is projected to achieve more than 147 million impressions among American adults, with nearly 50 million impressions in the target demographic of 30- to 49-year-olds. On the digital side, native advertising will be featured on premium sites such as WebMD, HealthGrades.com and Prevention, delivering an additional 48 million impressions. The campaign’s target audiences are also learning about DOs through banner ads and pre-roll video on health- and parenting-related sites, as well as through paid search.

How to get involved

To raise awareness of osteopathic medicine in your own community, start by visiting the AOA’s online store, where you’ll find educational pamphlets in English and Spanish, posters, and DO-themed apparel. It’s also a good idea to update your business contact info with the AOA to ensure prospective patients can find you when they search for a DO on DoctorsthatDO.org. The “Find Your DO” search function on DoctorsthatDO.org lists osteopathic physicians who are AOA members in active practice and have a business address on file.