A Collaborative Win for Mental Health
How Iterative, Rapid Pre-Testing Unlocked Effective Messaging
Neimand Collaborative (N/Collaborative) recently took on a significant and meaningful challenge in a creative campaign for the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services (NCDHHS). The goal was to design a campaign that increased awareness of the array of mental and behavioral health crisis services offered by the state. It was critical to reach individuals who face barriers to care—stigma and systemic inequities, and to connect with individuals experiencing mental or behavioral health challenges and their caregivers. Importantly, the campaign’s messaging needed to empower individuals, affirming a sense of agency in their mental or behavioral health journey, rather than portraying them in the grips of a crisis out of their control.
The Problem: Bridging the Gap in Awareness & Access to Crisis Services
Despite grounding their creative in earlier-stage insights, the first round of tested messages didn’t land as expected. The tone was too clinical and the visuals of crisis settings didn’t strike a chord with many. “People weren’t reacting to the language or the visuals in the way we anticipated,” says Karolyn Cooper, Vice President of Research and Impact at N/Collaborative. “That was eye-opening for us.” The word “crisis” felt too clinical and off-putting for many, and visuals of medical settings didn’t resonate with the diverse group of people who might be in need.
Karolyn explains, “We were finding that people didn’t recognize their own struggles as a ‘crisis,’ and if they did, the imagery we used didn’t make them feel empowered to reach out.” The challenge, then, was how to create messaging that felt relevant and resonant for all the people who might need help but didn’t see NCDHHS services as an option for them.
The Solution: Iterative Creative Pre-Testing
To ensure the campaign would be well received by its target audience, N/Collaborative conducted message testing in English and Spanish among adults in North Carolina living with—or caring for someone experiencing—mental and behavioral health challenges. Integrating the Grow Progress Rapid Message Testing platform into their existing workflow, they learned how various messaging and creative approaches resonated—before the campaign went live.
The Grow Progress platform allowed N/Collaborative to test different iterations of the campaign, refining language and visuals to gauge which messages performed best. “We wanted to know, ‘How do we help people feel empowered and open to these services?'” says Natalie Wyss, the Social Impact Coordinator, Research at N/Collaborative. “It wasn’t just about crisis—it was about offering hope, control, and the right information.”
This iterative process led to a shift in strategy: they reworked the visuals and messaging to further humanize the tone and focus on the idea of “What to expect from crisis services, to encourage exploration and not crisis preparation.”
Testing in the Grow Progress platform was conducted for both English and Spanish creative executions.
The updated messages emphasized choice and agency, affirmed challenges while offering gentle support, rather than centering on urgency and crisis. The winning message was simple, inviting, and actionable: “It’s okay to need support. No matter your crisis, you have options. Talk to someone. Go somewhere safe. Have someone come to you. Learn more.”
The Result: A Campaign That Was Both Empathetic and Effective
The changes paid off. The revised message helped open the door to mental health engagement by increasing openness to learning more about NCDHHS crisis services. The best performing message using a less directive tone boosted net motivation to learn more about NCDHHS crisis services by +12pp, and also effectively increased the likelihood that someone would seek the support of mental health crisis services by +6pp. This represents a +2pp larger effect when it comes to increasing net motivation when compared with the best performing message on the first test. The results speak to how using a more affirming tone when encouraging people to engage in mental health services can be successful.
Topline statistically significant net increase in motivation and directional increase in likelihood to seek support
The real impact of Rapid Message Testing though, was the ability to break down responses by demographic and subgroup, giving N/Collaborative confidence in the direction they were taking. The updated messaging was especially effective in prompting positive shifts among key subgroups—including men (+21pp)—who often require a more nuanced approach to meaningfully engage in mental health conversations, and conservatives (+10pp) who are also more reluctant to engage on this topic. Among men, the winning message increased motivation to learn about mental health crisis services by +21pp. “I love using the platform because it satisfies for me all of the subgroup analyses and statistically significant confidence indicators,” Karolyn explains.
“We were able to show movement in people who were traditionally hard to reach, which really impressed our client. The subgroup analysis allows us to report results with confidence and lets us advise our teams about where we could see success with specific audiences.”
Statistically significant increase in motivation among Men subgroup after seeing Ok to Need Support
Directional increase in likelihood to seek support among Conservative subgroup
Looking at the Conservative subgroup, another group who can be tough to engage on this topic, we saw a +10pp increase in motivation to learn about mental health crisis services and a +10pp increase in likelihood to seek mental health crisis services support after seeing the Ok to Need Support message.
Net directional increase in motivation among individuals with a mental health condition and individuals with an addiction
Results also showed a net increase in motivation to learn among respondents living with a mental health condition (+12pp) and/or an addiction (+22pp)—both which are key audiences for the campaign.
While the Ok to Need Support message performed well across subgroups, it’s equally important that none of the messages tested triggered significant backlash in any group. Even among groups unlikely to shift their attitudes toward mental health services, none of the messages generated negative perceptions or discouraged engagement with crisis services.
By the end of the campaign development, NCDHHS was encouraged with the direction and more confident in their strategy. “The insights gave us a deeper understanding of our audience and how to tailor our approach. It was more than just a ‘one-and-done’ test. It was an iterative process that really moved the needle,” Karolyn says.
Key Takeaways
- Iterative Testing Works: N/Collaborative’s success underscores the importance of viewing message testing as an ongoing process, not a one-time event. Karolyn notes, “We should view this as an iterative process. It’s okay to get a C the first time—because you can get an A+ with the right adjustments.”
- Audience-Centric (and Segmented) Design: The project demonstrated that successful messaging must be rooted in real audience insights. As Karolyn explained, “It’s not about telling people what you think they need to hear—it’s about respecting where they are in their journey and offering a message they can connect with.”
- Confidence in Data: The ability to quantify reactions and segment responses gave N/Collaborative the tools they needed to back their strategy with data, making it easier to report internally and to clients. Karolyn adds: “The data isn’t just about measuring—it’s about learning what works and where we need to adjust. And that’s invaluable.” The winning message on the second test, Ok to Need Support, made respondents 3.1 times more likely to be open to learning more about mental health crisis services compared with the average message, a huge testament to the value of testing and iterating on messaging.
Looking ahead, N/Collaborative hopes to apply the Grow Progress platform on a national scale, where larger sample sizes will allow for even more nuanced insights and a broader view of how social impact messaging—including efforts aimed at promoting wellness and public good—resonates across audiences.
For N/Collaborative, the work isn’t over yet. They are committed to continuously refining their creative strategies, letting data guide the head—and passion for social impact guiding the heart—of every campaign.
