Meet Amino, the Oncology Agency Connecting With Multiple Audiences

Saving lives by starting reactions

Amino takes a story-driven approach to a sensitive area of healthcare marketing: oncology.

It’s goal, in deeply-felt work such as a recent breakthrough campaign for cancer-screening test Guardant Shield, is to provide timely information in a deeply compelling way in order to help save lives.

“There’s been an explosion of treatments for people with cancer. But there’s also been an explosion of noise,” says Amino chief Josh Righter. “Noise isn’t just the sheer number of treatments. It’s a host of modern issues sapping HCP and patient attention: burn-out, misinformation, and more. Noise stops life-giving treatment from reaching patients.”

Most Aminos—as those who work there call themselves—spent years working in bigger networks (Righter included), but pivoted to build something better. They’re dedicated to ensuring that the right oncology treatments get to the right patients.

It’s a task easier said than done, even for an agency dedicated solely to oncology. But former creative director Righter and his team believe they’re up to the task.

“We’re a full-service oncology agency. HCPs. Patients. Caregivers. Community. You name the audience, and we’ll name 100 ways we can connect with them,” adds Righter.

Doctors and patients make decisions with their hearts and their minds. Emotion plays a significant role. Nothing builds emotion more than connecting with an audience with a story that elicits a reaction. Amino saves lives by starting reactions. Amino’s offices are located in Philadelphia and New York, but their staff and clients are everywhere.

“We’re in phases and all places,” Righter says. “Pre-launch, post-launch, or established brand? U.S. or global? Super common or ultra-rare? The answer in all cases is ‘yes, we do that.’ From brand building to engagement and analytics, we’ve seen it all.”

Case in point: Guardant Shield, which detects colorectal cancer via bloodwork. 

Amino’s “No S#!t” campaign, targeting medical professionals, launched for the brand in select markets via banners, journal ads and email outreach, with plans to expand throughout the year.

“The campaign concept, including the headline, was part of our original pitch to Guardant,” explains Righter. “Our creative team explored a wide range of angles, but we kept coming back to humor. Potty humor is one of the great uniters of the human race. Doctors are people just like the rest of us. Their attention spans are shrinking from being online.

“The campaign is a bit surprising, and it’s cheeky enough to be memorable,” he says. “But it’s not purely shock value—it’s communicating vital information about the product, about getting patients screened, and turning the tide of this terrible cancer.”