The Challenge
As one of the nation's first, the Fetal Care Center had earned a reputation for complex fetal surgery. But as more hospitals launched similar programs, and as patient families began researching care options online, the competitive landscape changed.

Reputation alone wasn’t enough. We needed to provide compelling reasons for physicians and families to choose us, even if it required travelling long distances.

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The Insight
A competitive assessment compared how fetal centers described themselves and the messaging was nearly identical even if we knew the services were not similar. We were getting lost in the sameness. To grow national referrals, we had to tell a sharper, more data-driven story—one that made the case for why we were worth the travel.
 

Key Findings

• FCC’s national reputation is closely linked to its chief fetal surgeon, creating potential vulnerability.

• Most fetal centers describe themselves similarly, with limited emphasis on outcomes, making it difficult for physicians and parents to assess the differences.

• While academic ties influence referrals, ongoing relationships with physicians remain essential.

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Goals & Objectives
Increase Referrals 10%

• Grow national referrals for complex cases.

• Expand local/regional referrals for both routine and complex cases.

• Boost self-referrals from parents seeking specialized fetal care.

Sustain & Enhance National Reputation

• Solidify FCC’s position as a top-tier fetal care center.

• Achieve a Top 3 ranking among referring physicians nationally.

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Key Strategies 

• Use SEO to attract and educate potential physician and parent referrals. 

• Highlight quantifiable outcomes and proof points to distinguish FCC from competitors.

• Emphasize a team-based approach to promote the medical team, removing brand reliance on one surgeon.

• Strengthen relationships with MFM specialists in the Midwest and South while developing strategic partnerships with regional MFM groups.

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What We Did

I led the development of a new marketing and referral strategy focused on visibility, differentiation, and relationship-building:

• Repositioned the brand using outcomes and proof points, reframing our program as the clear leader in complex conditions like TTTS, CDH, and MMC.

• Created targeted content for maternal-fetal medicine specialists, including outcomes summaries, case studies, physician-authored blogs, and CME content.

• Developed high-impact digital campaigns, including condition-specific landing pages, videos, and SEO-optimized content to reach searching parents.

• Executed regional referral outreach, including CME events and 1:1 physician communications across Midwest and Southern states.

• Refreshed messaging across all touchpoints (collateral, website, tradeshow displays, and email) to reinforce credibility and specialization.

• Promoted a new national Fetology Conference to position FCC as thought leader in advances. 

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The Results

• Sustained referral volume despite growing competition.

• Our new Fetology Conference had 100 specialists in attendance. 

• 500+ video views on new treatment-focused content within months.

• Email campaigns to targeted referral sourced achieved a 20% CTR.

• 22% response rate and 10:1 ROI from direct mail campaign.

• Helped reinforce the program’s position as a top 3 national leader in key specialties.

 

The Takeaway
When everyone’s saying the same thing, you either blend in or step up. By using clinical outcomes and fact based approach to storytelling, we proved the fetal care center's quality and offerings were different.