When trust in media, institutions, and public health drops, scientific organizations have to reconsider how they reach the public. That topic led to a recent Coalition for Trust in Health and Science (CTHS) Learning Lunch with Anthony Shop, co-founder of Social Driver and Chairman of the National Digital Roundtable, and Matt Lamb, Director of Communications at the American Association of Immunologists (AAI). They walked through lessons from Immunology Explained, a public campaign built to make immunology accessible, relatable, and clear for everyday audiences.

The Trust Crisis

Anthony opened the session with a sobering reminder of the landscape. Citing data from the News Literacy Project, he noted that 84% of teens view the news media negatively. Gallup polling shows trust in media and institutions at historic lows, and confidence in public health departments and hospitals has not been spared.

Anthony pointed to the current information environment to set up the discussion. Data from the News Literacy Project shows 84% of teens view news media negatively, while Gallup polling places trust in traditional media and public institutions at historic lows. As Anthony often shares in National Digital Roundtable discussions on executive presence, institutional channels alone no longer cut through the noise.

"When you go specifically to young people, what do they say about news? They say biased, boring, and bad," Anthony observed.

Even with broader skepticism, science remains a trusted sector. Insights from Social Driver and the National Digital Roundtable highlight that connecting with audiences requires human-driven storytelling and authentic individual connections rather than corporate statements.

Anthony outlined a practical model centered on personal connections to help organizations reach people where they spend time online:

A New Framework: Attention, Intention, Mention

The approach centers on three core elements:

• Attention (Push): How do we target the right audiences on the right channels with meaningful messages? "Data makes us credible, but stories make us memorable," Anthony emphasized.
• Intention (Pull): How do we intercept people who are actively searching for answers on Google, ChatGPT, or YouTube? Your audience now includes algorithms and AI assistants, not just people.
• Mention (Proof): How do we leverage existing trust and give people a reason to share our story? Trusted messengers, including digital creators and partner organizations, reach communities that institutions cannot.

To describe community-led engagement, Anthony used a lightning analogy: "It's not top-down, it's bottom-up. There's all this energy in the earth, and lightning creates a channel to harness it." Effective digital strategy helps organizations tap into active grassroots networks and existing digital communities.

Measuring Success: See, Say, Do

Anthony simplified impact measurement into three key questions to help communicators evaluate where engagement truly lives:

• What did people see? (impressions, reach)
• What did people say? (engagement, sentiment)
• What did people do? (shares, sign-ups, registrations)

The Immunology Explained Case Study

Matt Lamb walked through the Immunology Explained campaign, which AAI launched in October 2025. During the COVID-19 pandemic, immunologists faced public questioning around health guidance, vaccines, and complex research. AAI members asked the organization for science communication training and a direct, modern public presence.

The campaign was built on three pillars:

1. Building Visibility

AAI trusted Social Driver to establish a compelling brand identity, an intuitive and accessible digital platform covering immune system fundamentals, and standalone social media channels designed with an inviting visual tone. A targeted paid media strategy across search and social platforms backed evergreen awareness campaigns and high-impact micro-campaigns.

2. Establishing Credibility

Starting without established consumer recognition, AAI focused on partnering with established voices. The plan included:

• Patient organization partnerships: Co-developing and co-branding social media videos with trusted voices in patient communities, such as the Sjogren's Summit.
• High-reach influencers: Partnering with creators like Dr. Nock and Dr. Beach, who each have over 5 million followers, to introduce Immunology Explained at launch and add nearly 3,000 followers immediately.
• Targeted micro-influencers: Working with niche creators (5,000 to 100,000 followers) in specific health communities without paid placement fees, as partners saw value in sharing reliable medical information.
• Member influencers: Tapping AAI's own members who already had significant social media followings, such as Dr. Nick Jackson (100,000+ followers) and Dr. Amy Bernard.
• The Ambassador Program: A volunteer network of 150 members who write articles, record videos, and share content, gaining communication experience and public exposure.

3. Practicing Intentionality

AAI planned its content sequence intentionally by starting with clear, broadly accepted topics like cancer research and allergy management before covering subjects with more debate, such as vaccine guidelines. Building credibility on foundational topics helps maintain engagement when addressing complex discussions.

The team also invested in SEO and AEO (Answer Engine Optimization), recognizing that audiences now include AI assistants and search algorithms. Social Driver helped optimize paid search and ad creative to maximize budget.

Results So Far

• Website: ~15,000 monthly users and 22,000 page views (spiking to 35,000–40,000 during micro-campaigns), with 54% of traffic from Google search
• Engagement: Average session time of 1:18 with a remarkably low 37% bounce rate
• Social media: ~30,000 monthly reach, 50,000 organic impressions, 200+ comments, ~250 post saves, and ~400 social shares per month
• Growth: 7,600+ followers across all channels, with Instagram leading at 4,600+ followers
• Media citations: News outlets regularly cite Immunology Explained as a primary source for medical reporting.

Getting Leadership Buy-In

Addressing internal buy-in, Lamb shared that while members were eager for public engagement, leadership required a compelling strategic case. The team delivered a "Dragon's Den" style pitch to council members before budget allocation, advocating for an influencer-driven, digital-first presence. Anthony added that executive thought leadership plays a crucial role in alignment: showcasing AAI's CEO, Loretta Doan, on the Chief Influencer podcast provided leaders with a clear model of authentic executive voice.

Execution With a Small Team

With a team of three and one person focused full-time on Immunology Explained, AAI established clear workflows early. After an earlier initiative faced delays due to slow review cycles, the team hired science communicators and integrated their public outreach committee directly into the editing pipeline to maintain speed.

Key Takeaways

• Partner with established voices. Work with creators, patient advocates, and community leaders who already hold trust with target audiences.
• Your audience includes algorithms. Optimize for search engines, AI assistants, and YouTube, not just traditional channels.
• Start with common ground. Focus on clear, high-consensus topics before introducing subjects with more public debate.
• Invest in the process upfront. Internal workflows and the right hires are what enable rapid execution with a small team.
• Track key actions. Measure reach, responses, and direct actions rather than relying only on surface metrics.

You can explore Immunology Explained at immunologyexplained.org or find them on TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, and YouTube

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