Using Influence
for Good

Geben was pulled in to help the CDC develop a messaging framework and influencer campaigns to raise awareness among Millennial moms about developmental milestones in an initiative called “Learn the Signs. Act Early.” The campaign involved providing free digital tools created by The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to help parents monitor their child’s progress and ask their pediatricians the right questions along the way.

Tapping into influencers in online parenting was essential to building broad awareness around the “Learn the Signs. Act Early.” initiative.

During our discovery phase, we conducted a landscape analysis to analyze the current social media landscape around parenting and developmental disabilities. We then conducted a focus group with a diverse group of eight influencers that write about parenting and early childhood to discuss the most effective ways to reach and engage their audiences. The final step was a pilot campaign followed by several months of weekly influencer content.

Our campaign, #MilestoneMonday, provided a pipeline of fresh original content with a new influencer posting each Monday and modeling the desired behavior: to check and track milestones at regular intervals.

The campaign reached over 40 million parents with resources, generating excellent engagement in the form of shares and comments.

Content included regular features such as:

• Development Diaries: parents sharing diary-like accounts of their child’s development.

• Real Babies of Instagram: Influencers shared cute baby photos, utilizing popular parenting hashtags, while including information about the importance of checking milestones.

• Ask the Expert: Facebook Lives featuring pediatricians.