Video: Cepheid Receives EUA for FluVid - a combination test

The Challenge

In January 2020, the world faced the start of a global pandemic unlike any in recent history. The outbreak of the new coronavirus strain, SARS-CoV-2, put significant pressure on healthcare facilities—and the need for an accurate test with rapid turnaround time was urgent.

On February 10, Cepheid announced the development of an automated molecular test for the qualitative detection of SARS-CoV-2. Just six weeks later, the Federal Drug Administration (FDA) issued their first Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) for a point-of-care diagnostic for the Cepheid Xpert® Xpress SARS-CoV-2 test.

With a test rollout planned for late March, Cepheid’s Marketing and MarCom teams were challenged with planning and implementing an impactful COVID-19 campaign with limited time and resources in a dynamic and supply-constrained environment.

The Solution

A multi-faceted and highly coordinated campaign was quickly rolled out to customers and the public. The goal of the campaign was unique: not only to educate customers and the general population about SARS-CoV-2 diagnostics but also to align customer expectations through regular and transparent communication to reinforce Cepheid’s position as a trusted industry resource.

The primary goal of the overall messaging for the COVID-19 campaign was to communicate how Cepheid’s new, FDA-approved test enabled rapid, accurate, actionable results for doctors and healthcare workers in 45 minutes or less—without quality concerns that plagued some tests on the market:

Cepheid COVID-19 Rapid Response Campaign—Every Moment Matters

With the foundational message established, a multi-faceted and highly coordinated campaign was quickly rolled out to customers and the public. The goal of the campaign was not only to educate customers and the general population about SARS-CoV-2 diagnostics, but to also set customer expectations through transparency to reinforce Cepheid’s position as a trusted industry resource and community partner.