The Challenge
Gidget Foundation Australia plays a vital role in the perinatal mental health landscape, but must navigate a complex environment of corporate updates, sector shifts, and changing public awareness. As demand for services grows, the organisation must build widespread trust and visibility to secure government funding, which remains closely tied to demonstrated impact.
To succeed, the Foundation needs to engage a diverse audience ranging from expectant parents to policymakers through a sustained communications approach. This strategy must balance education, advocacy, and accessibility to effectively shift both public perception and professional awareness.
The Strategy
The strategy centres on an always-on PR engagement designed for consistency and long-term impact rather than one-off campaigns. By aligning corporate milestones with lived experience storytelling, the Foundation creates a cohesive narrative that reinforces its position as both a service provider and a national advocate.
A three-tiered spokesperson model underpins this approach. The CEO leads policy and funding conversations, clinicians provide evidence-based authority, and lived experience voices humanise the issue. This structure ensures the organisation appears consistently across different media platforms with the most appropriate voice leading the discussion.
The Execution
The execution involves a steady level of media engagement, utilising proactive storytelling and reactive commentary to maintain relevance. The team amplifies organisational milestones and leverages national awareness days to keep perinatal mental health in the public eye, prioritising human impact to create emotional connections.
To strengthen media cut-through, bespoke consumer research is developed to generate newsworthy, data-driven insights that anchor the organisation’s authority. This integrated approach allows for tailored messaging across various audiences while maintaining a consistent overarching narrative.
The Outcome
Through this sustained PR approach, the Foundation has become the dominant voice in the sector, achieving an 85% Share of Voice by mentions and an average of over 110 pieces of coverage per month. This activity reaches over 11 million people monthly across top-tier national, metro, and regional media outlets.
Since the partnership began in 2020, the organisation has successfully scaled from fewer than 20 locations to more than 40 sites nationwide. This growth has significantly increased recognition of the Foundation as a trusted service, ensuring more parents know where to seek help for perinatal depression and anxiety.