Healthcare-related · bereavement support
How strategic PR made a digital service for bereaved families visible in the Netherlands and during its launch in Belgium.
Executive summary
A digital service becomes relevant when people understand the problem it solves. For Closure, the story centred on the administrative burden bereaved families face after a death. Rob Lagendijk and the DitisgeenPRbureau.nl team worked on news creation, press materials and media relations around Closure’s growth and expansion into Belgium. The campaign period generated coverage in titles including FD, Quote, LINDA., De Vlaamse Ondernemer and De Tijd.
The challenge
After a death, subscriptions, contracts and online accounts often remain active. Closure helps bereaved families manage that administration. The communications challenge was to explain a relatively unfamiliar digital service around a personal and sensitive subject, for both consumers and business partners. Expansion into Belgium also required a new media approach.
The strategic question
How do you make the societal value of a digital bereavement service understandable and newsworthy, and translate that story to a new market?
Our approach
We worked with several news triggers: the July 2022 funding round, the founders’ story and the launch in Belgium. This allowed both the company and the significance of the service to receive attention. For Belgium, we developed the press story with input from Closure and the local country manager, sharpened the message for the Belgian market and combined targeted outreach with personal follow-up. A French-language campaign was prepared but paused by the client.
Results
Coverage in FD and Quote around Closure’s growth
Interview in LINDA., 17 July 2022
Publication in De Vlaamse Ondernemer, 12 December 2022
Press narrative around administrative support after a death
Timeline
July 2022: news around the funding round and Dutch coverage.
October 2022: preparation for the Belgian launch and press materials.
December 2022: Belgian coverage and continued media outreach.
January 2023: reporting on publications; the French-language campaign remained paused.
Strategic impact
Closure became visible in financial, entrepreneurial and consumer media in the Netherlands and in Belgian media. The coverage highlighted relief for bereaved families, a digital solution for administrative handling and a company with international ambitions. The demonstrable result is media visibility; no direct effect on revenue, customer growth or market penetration was established.
Media & evidence
The selection is based on the publication list from July 2022 to January 2023. This case concerns support for bereaved families with administration and contracts; the service is not presented as medical treatment.
Our contribution
News creation · press materials · international media relations · founder positioning · market-entry communications
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