Avantis Medical Systems is a leader in cancer screening and detection. Avantis recently launched their FDA-cleared Third Eye® Panoramic™ device, a wide-angle visualization tool that provides gastroenterologists (GIs) with a 330-degree view to better see where cancers and pre-cancerous polyps may be hidden from the view of a traditional colonoscope alone.
GIs use adenoma detection rate (ADR) as the quality metric to determine effectiveness of colorectal cancer screenings. Standard colonoscopes offer a 170-degree view and miss at least 24% of adenomas with two-thirds not visible because of placement behind folds in the colon and over 50% of interval cancers result from missed lesions during a colonoscopy. Avantis believed that by helping GIs improve their ADRs, they would create a new paradigm in colon cancer screening. They also needed to demonstrate demand to secure a strategic partner for commercialization.
Grey Matter Marketing led Avantis through the formal process of Category Design to determine a new space and way of thinking that their target audience cared about—which ended up being way more than improving ADRs. The deliverables included:
"It is obvious that Grey Matter chose their name to describe how they go about their business. Holley, in particular, is a very experienced professional who has refined a process of getting the most out of her clients so she can deliver the most value back to them. The Category Design process is very disciplined and keeps the management team thinking hard and challenges them to stay ‘out of the box’. I have worked with more advertising/marketing agencies over the years than I care to remember but am pleasantly surprised that young companies are still being founded by bright people who truly care about what they do."
~ Anthony DiTonno, Chairman of the Board
