Mining PR Gold: Being Human and Going Red

As a tool for quick conversations, networking, research, etc. Twitter is a must-use tool for me. Every so often Twitter is another time-suck and not very worthwhile. And then some days, the serendipity of Twitter lead to the remarkable. Today was one of those days.

A PR colleague in health care, Laura Van Hoosier, APR, retweeted Reace Alavarenga-Smith, APR who works for Texas Health Resources:

RT @ReaceS: It's Go Red week--check out what @texashealth FW did to increase awareness: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UjHz-ErKqlg

Why this video is PR gold
The team at Texas Health Resources were able to come up with something informative on heart disease and quite endearing through an otherwise amateur video. By interlacing key messages about heart disease within scenes of dancing, laughing, and playful employees, the medical center created a great example for communication professionals.

The video is not too heavy or preachy with its important facts about heart disease (even though it's the #1 killer of women in the United States). Hospitals, like many large organizations, can have a tendency to be faceless. This group opted to be human and share a bit their organization's personality.  I especially loved the laughing older gentleman in his office (minute 3:20 in the video) spinning around his chair in red socks with a huge smile. Don't know who he is, but that's just awesome.

I can also imagine this was a huge undertaking to organize and set-up for the medical center staff. Members from all around the building in hallways, offices, conference rooms, even medical areas were all included.

At a time when health care issues, debate, politics, and general problems are the looming messages, this group has shared a glimpse into their culture along with a desire to inform their community about heart disease. (Plus, big props for using one of my favorite Michael Jackson songs.)

What do you think? Could you use this tactic in your organization? How might a video like this help from an internal communications standpoint? The comments are yours.

Oh, and here's a hint for my PR friends, Laura and Reace are worth the follows on Twitter if you aren't already.

Now Go Red for Women and Beat It.