Public Health Marketing: How Indianapolis transformed crisis response through customer-first marketing, increased calls 295%

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I really like this case study because it’s a good reminder of what the core of marketing really is – connecting the ideal customer with value.

That can get lost in technology and databases and the need to hit revenue or lead targets.

While the subject of this case study is not a for-profit company, the same lessons in hear hold true even if you don’t work in the public sector.

In this case study, learn how The City of Indianapolis transformed public health marketing by shifting to a customer-first objective, resulting in a 295% increase in crisis response calls.

BEFORE: Limited visibility from grassroots marketing

In July 2023, The City of Indianapolis Office of Public Health & Safety teamed up with Stepping Stones Therapy Center to launch a pilot project called Clinician-Led Community Response (CLCR). CLCR responds to 911 calls with licensed behavioral health professionals instead of law enforcement, when appropriate.

The pilot focused only on downtown Indianapolis, and the team relied on in-house grassroots marketing of flyers and brochures passed out downtown.

Creative Sample #1: CLCR flyer

The grassroots, in-house team struggled to get the word out. The campaign faced limited visibility and failed to capture the urgency required in crisis response scenarios.

For your brand, unoptimized marketing might mean lower sales. In this case, people in crisis continued defaulting to traditional law enforcement responses – an outcome that wasn’t ideal for the citizen or for the police.

AFTER: A strategic shift to a CTA with a customer-first objective

The CLCR team brought in a professional agency to launch a true marketing campaign with:

• A full rebranded messaging framework
• Hyper-localized media buys (since the pilot only targeted downtown)
• Trauma-informed messaging focused on trust and safety

The new team reframed CLCR as a non-police crisis response option for people experiencing mental health challenges. They anchored the messaging around three core themes:

1. Care over confrontation
2. Support without stigma
3. Community-centered crisis response

They ran billboards, digital ads, and transit ads targeted to downtown Indianapolis, supported by radio ads and earned media. “The IndyGo had a central bus hub in the heart of downtown Indianapolis, a key strategic location as buses came and left the hub, as well as a high area known for those individuals with mental health crises to congregate,” said LaMar Holliday, Chief Executive Officer, The Holliday Collaborative Agency.

Creative Sample #2: Transit ad

The ads’ language focused on empathy and reassurance with a calming visual identity focused on human-centered photography.

But I think the real beauty in this case study – and what every marketer can learn from – is the customer-first marketing approach the team took with the call to action. These ads had a customer-first objective, not a company-first objective. They removed the ultimate conversion they wanted from the customer (‘Call 911’) and inserted a trust-building step in the process that would help the customer come to the conclusion that they should ultimately take the desired, final conversion action.

They chose this strategy because many residents have deep concerns about how law enforcement responds to mental health crises. In fact, CLCR was launched after Herman Whitfield III was tased by police during a mental health episode and died. Placing ‘911’ front and center on a billboard might have turned people away out of fear or mistrust.

Instead, the call to action was to visit a webpage that explained the program (since it was a city program, the webpage had to be on the city’s website). They only mentioned 911 on the webpage once they had explained the program and built trust.

The rearrangement of CTA from ‘Call 911’ to a webpage visit is an example of a nuanced understanding of customer anxiety.

Creative Sample #3: Billboard

RESULTS: Building trust and driving impact

“The marketing campaign helped transform CLCR from a little-known pilot into a trusted lifeline. The visibility from the billboards and targeted outreach made people aware that there’s a compassionate, non-police option for mental health crises – and that awareness has directly driven our growth,” said Yvette Wilson, CEO, Stepping Stones Therapy Center (the organization running the Clinician-Led Community Response team).

From its initial program launch in July 2023 to November 2023, CLCR received an average of 20.4 calls per month.

During the campaign, the average monthly call volume more than doubled to nearly 41.6 calls per month (December 2023 – February 2024). After the campaign, the demand continued to grow with an average of 80.5 calls per month (March 2024 – June 2024), a fourfold increase compared to the program’s early months.

In December 2024, CLCR and the city announced expanding the program across the city due to demand for the service.

“This was more than a brand – it became a symbol of safety and trust for people who have historically feared calling for help,” Holliday said.

This article was distributed through the MarketingSherpa email newsletter.

Related resources

Customer-First Objective Builder (select CFO Builder in the right-hand column) from MeclabsAI, MarketingSherpa’s parent company

Customer-First Marketing: How to shift to a customer-first strategy (3 case studies)

Marketing Chart: Does customer-centric marketing fall short of satisfying the customer?

Help, Don’t Hype: A guide to customer-first marketing

Customer-First Objectives: Discover a 3-part formula for focusing your webpage message

Customer-First Objectives Application Session: See real webpages optimized for marketing conversion