Reputation Management and Crisis Communications

Client

John Knox Village of Florida, inc.

PR Isn’t Always As Planned

The pandemic changed the world as we knew it, but for one population in particular it instilled feelings of isolation and fear. Given that the 65+ community is especially susceptible to contracting COVID, senior living communities had to reimagine how they operate, what services they provide and how they interact with their residents; always keeping in mind that their community is someone’s home. John Knox Village of Florida, Inc. has managed the pandemic with grace, strength and humility, resulting in powerful stories well worth the share.

Rein Communications works with John Knox Village closely on thought leadership for executives, national media relations, social media management, blog and newsletter creation and more. Our work had to be more intentional and articulate than ever before, being sensitive to what was happening in the world and to how many lives were being affected. Whether it was working alongside our client on internal campaigns to connect their residents to the outside world via technology, or cultivating heartfelt and eloquent thought leadership pieces for the CEO and CMO, or managing media relations when the Delta variant posed a threat to the community — none of this has been easy.

We, like the rest of the world, have learned more and more about the virus over time and have helped John Knox Village share their insights as a trailblazer in their industry. Their dedication to the safety of their residents has resulted not only in shockingly low positive test rates, but countless stories told on national news outlets, podcasts, industry and trade publications, local broadcast outlets and more.

Industry Recognition

As Florida’s second-largest senior living community, John Knox Village of Florida has been a beacon of light during the pandemic with shockingly low mortality rates and a positive test rate among residents of less than 1.5% since COVID began. Their caution and attentiveness, along with some PR magic, earned them coverage in both a digital piece in McKnight’s Long-Term Care News and a podcast with Senior Living Foresight to discuss learning nuggets from the frontline.

National Media Relations

John Knox Village was the first senior living community in the state of Florida to receive doses of the COVID vaccine, marking a huge milestone in the pandemic. We worked with our client to get the governor of Florida to attend an on-campus ceremony for the occasion. As the recent surge of the Delta variant has spread across the country, our client has reimplemented many precautions and taken steps to ensure the safety of the community’s future. Our team helped coordinate national media relations with outlets such as CNN, The Wall Street Journal and more throughout the past year.

Thought Leadership

Our agency curated thought leadership pieces for two executives at John Knox Village: Chief Executive Officer, Gerry Stryker, and Chief Marketing and Innovation Officer, Monica McAfee. One of Stryker’s pieces on leading through a crisis with humility was published by Senior Living Foresight. McAfee was invited to be a C-Suite panelist for Senior Living Foresight’s “Evolve 2021 Virtual Summit” in a conversation on prioritizing life enrichment and measuring ROI.

Internal Campaigns

We worked hand-in-hand to create a week-long campaign to help residents get comfortable using technologies like email, social media, streaming platforms and more; all in the effort to help them connect to the outside world during the pandemic. We created scripts for each day’s video tutorial and challenge, posted on the client’s social media pages and engaged with comments regularly.

Partnerships

None of our crisis response work could have been possible without the help of John Knox Village’s proud partners: GroovyTek, Everside Health, Johns Hopkins Healthcare Solutions, the Florida Department of Health and many more.