ViiV Healthcare: Making HIV History

Challenge

ViiV Healthcare’s ambition is to be recognised as the authority in HIV treatment and prevention and as the leader in long-acting injectable (LAI) innovation.

While awareness of HIV has improved, understanding of newer treatment and prevention options remains limited among healthcare professionals and the general public. This presented a clear communication challenge, amplified by the need to work within a modest budget.

HIV care has historically been shaped by a daily oral treatment paradigm. For many people living with or at risk of HIV, awareness that alternative options exist remains low. LAIs offer the possibility of less frequent dosing and greater choice, but their role in reshaping HIV care is not always clearly understood.

ViiV is the first company to bring LAI products to market for HIV treatment and prevention. However, innovation alone is not enough to shift perception or behaviour. The challenge was to clearly explain why these options matter, how they work, and what they enable, without relying on large‑scale production or high‑volume media investment.

Phase Two of the campaign needed to build directly on the awareness generated in Phase One, ensuring continuity of message while deepening understanding. The objective was to increase positive perception of ViiV, raise awareness of LAIs, and encourage engagement with ViiV content among influential audiences within the HIV ecosystem.

Brand:

Entered by:

With a limited budget, success depended on making strategic choices. The campaign had to prioritise clarity over coverage, credibility over volume, and relevance over scale. It also required close collaboration between ViiV and CNN to ensure content and distribution were aligned to clear brand and marketing objectives. The task was to deliver measurable impact and meaningful engagement by using human based storytelling in trusted environments, demonstrating how innovation in HIV care can translate into real‑world choice and progress.

Content Solution

The content strategy for Phase Two was designed to maximise impact through focus and relevance rather than scale. Under the campaign title This Is What Innovation Looks Like, the approach centred on clearly communicating ViiV’s leadership in long‑acting injectables and their role in reshaping HIV treatment and prevention.

The programme consisted of two lifestyle films and two bespoke digital articles, supported by social content and short‑form video cutdowns. The hero asset was a ninety‑second lifestyle film exploring how innovation in HIV care is experienced in everyday life.

Production was intentionally streamlined. Filming took place in real, everyday locations using a documentary‑style format with off‑camera interviews. This ensured authenticity while keeping production efficient. Contributors included healthcare professionals, activists, and individuals with lived experience of HIV treatment and prevention, allowing the content to bridge clinical authority and personal perspective.

A multi‑generational narrative contrasted how HIV care has traditionally been experienced with the options now available, including long‑acting injectables. This framing made innovation tangible, showing how expanded choice can support shared decision‑making between patients and clinicians.

Structured questions ensured key messages were communicated clearly within a short runtime, while allowing contributors to speak naturally. The film focused on themes of innovation, access, impact, ambition, and determination, reflecting ViiV’s values and long‑term commitment to leaving no person living with HIV behind.

The accompanying digital articles extended the story for audiences seeking greater depth. They reinforced ViiV’s authority in HIV research, treatment, and prevention, while directing audiences to further information.

By concentrating investment on a small number of high‑quality assets, the campaign ensured each piece worked hard against business objectives. The lifestyle format delivered emotional resonance and credibility without requiring costly production treatments. This focused approach allowed the campaign to communicate complex innovation clearly, build trust, and encourage engagement, demonstrating that effective branded content does not depend on large budgets, but on thoughtful execution and strong client–media collaboration.

Media/Content Amplification Solution

The media strategy was built around efficiency, precision, and relevance. With a limited budget, the goal was to place content in environments where audiences were already engaged with health and HIV‑related topics, ensuring high attention and engagement without unnecessary spend.

Activity focused on the United States and select European markets. Execution was market‑tailored to meet regulatory requirements while maintaining a consistent core message. Rather than running continuously, the campaign was deployed in short, targeted bursts aligned with key industry moments, including ID Week and the European AIDS Conference.

Amplification included:

30-second and 15‑second pre‑roll cutdowns across CNN Health and CNN International.
Fourteen CNN Health homepage takeovers, native display placements and high-impact bespoke banners.
Social video distribution across CNN LinkedIn, YouTube, and Instagram channels.
Geotargeted paid media reaching healthcare professionals and influential public audiences.
Retargeting using CNN first‑party data to prioritise high‑intent users.

Close collaboration between ViiV and CNN ensured that each placement served a clear purpose. CNN’s trusted editorial environments helped position the content as credible and informative, increasing the likelihood of sustained engagement.

The strategy prioritised contextual relevance, specifically reaching audiences relevant to ViiV. Health‑focused placements ensured the audience was receptive to discussion around treatment innovation. Social distribution extended reach efficiently while driving traffic to the content hub.

First‑party data and retargeting were used to improve efficiency, ensuring media spend was concentrated on users most likely to engage. This approach maximised performance within budget constraints.

The amplification plan reinforced continuity with Phase One while introducing the next chapter of the story. By focusing on the right moments, platforms, and audiences, the campaign demonstrated how thoughtful media planning and strong client-media collaboration can deliver meaningful impact on a small budget, supporting awareness, understanding, and engagement with ViiV’s innovation in HIV care.

Small Budget, Great Impact | Highly Commended

"The campaign successfully demonstrated how living with HIV has changed with different treatment options available based on authentic storytelling in everyday locations. The campaign delivered key messages while allowing contributors to speak in their own worlds, which ensured high levels of engagement despite commercial messaging at the core."

– Judges comments.

Campaign impressions.

Total video views.

Pages views, with an average dwell time of 2m15s.

Results

Despite its modest budget, the campaign delivered strong engagement and meaningful brand impact across CNN platforms, demonstrating how focused branded content can achieve disproportionate results.

Reach and engagement results included:

4.8 million impressions.
1.1 million video views.
21 thousand article page views.
Average dwell time of two minutes fifteen seconds compared with a benchmark of one minute fifty seconds.
On average, 43% of users had an article scroll depth of 75% or more, nearly double the benchmark.

These metrics indicate high levels of attention and sustained interaction with the content.

The campaign also delivered positive shifts in perception and understanding:

91% reported a positive shift in perception of HIV treatment companies like ViiV, fourteen points above the CNN benchmark.
94% said the content helped them better understand work being done to address HIV‑related stigma.
80% found the content informative and engaging.

These outcomes demonstrate that the campaign achieved more than visibility. Audiences engaged deeply with the human-led content, absorbed key messages, and developed clearer understanding of innovation in HIV treatment and prevention.

By concentrating on credibility, relevance, and clarity, the campaign reinforced ViiV’s position as a leader in HIV innovation while increasing awareness of long‑acting injectable options.

The results show how a tightly focused content and media strategy, supported by strong collaboration between client and media owner, can deliver meaningful brand and social impact within a limited budget.