How Takeda has chosen a sustainable relationship with its target group

Building a relationship with your audience is one of the most important goals of content marketing. Pharmaceutical company Takeda proved that it understood patients’ problems and won their trust.

Respond to the needs of your audience

Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis – two chronic inflammatory bowel diseases – have a huge impact on daily life. A full-time job, enjoying a meal with friends, playing sports or travelling without a care in the world… nothing is clear-cut anymore. Patients quickly become isolated and come up against a lack of understanding because so few people know about their condition.

A content hub with personal stories

To support patients and inform those around them of the impact and consequences of the disease, we have launched two content platforms (or content hubs).

What is it like to live with Crohn’s or colitis? This question became the sweet spot of our content. We opted for a very warm approach with personal stories from patients and people close to them.

Build up reach with clever distribution

There are an estimated 35,000 patients with Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis in Belgium. Last year, more than 119,000 people visited the content hubs. We can safely say that we have reached the entire target group, but also the patients’ close network (family, colleagues…) and the medical community.

The distribution plan combines segmented ads on Facebook, monthly newsletters, posters in hospitals, an ambassador programme and PR.

A close-knit and engaged community

In just 1.5 years, we gained the trust and respect of patients and the medical community. With a sweet spot that touches people, a lot of patience and hard work, we built an audience that rewards us with their loyalty and commitment.