Breaking Through the Teletherapy Noise—at Record Speed

LifeStance Health is the leading insurance-backed mental health services provider in the US. It operates both online and in person to treat patients across the acuity spectrum, and employs over 3,000 clinicians who serve patients with conditions from anxiety and depression to bipolar disorder and schizophrenia.

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Challenge

LifeStance Health came to Mission North three weeks before their June 10th IPO. Working against an accelerated timeline, the team had to balance traditional account onboarding with intense IPO prep: developing media strategy, talking points, pitch narratives, and a list for targeted media outreach by the week of IPO. 

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Strategy

To ensure LifeStance Health made a big splash with business and trade press on listing day, Mission North tapped into its media network and existing relationships. The team went after media friendlies who could provide quick feedback on whether they wanted to cover LifeStance's news, or point us in the direction of a colleague that did have bandwidth to cover the IPO. When pitching new reporters, our team leaned into LifeStancet's backing by private equity giant TPG Capital—this approach landed interest with financial reporters at CNBC and Reuters. 

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Impact

The IPO news moment resulted in 116 total stories, including 24 features, and 11 media briefings. The campaign reached a total potential audience of 1.6 billion, and forged new relationships with top-tier reporters like Katie Jennings of Forbes and Bob Herman of Axios. The coverage not only boosted LifeStance’s brand recognition, but it also positioned them as a leader in the teletherapy space and a key part of a significant trend: increased investment in mental health.