Global health organisations are under pressure to reach more people, in more places, with less money. For many sexual and reproductive health clinics, marketing is not a formal function, it is an afterthought squeezed in between patient consultations and stock checks.

When the International Planned Parenthood Federation asked Bohemian to help, our starting point was not a single campaign idea. It was a question. How do you build a content ecosystem that a nurse in Ghana, a youth worker in Cameroon and a clinic manager in Ecuador can all use with confidence, in their own language, on their own channels, without becoming marketers first.

The answer became a modular, multilingual content system that treats content not as campaign output, but as infrastructure for sustainability.

When global toolkits collide with local realities

On paper, global toolkits look efficient. They protect the brand, keep messaging aligned and carry consistent language. The breakdown happens when those toolkits land in real clinics.

Language is a major friction point. Translations can be technically accurate but emotionally flat. Nuance and warmth disappear when sensitive topics like contraception, consent or LGBTQ+ inclusion are lifted directly from English into French or Spanish. The phrasing feels imported, not lived.

Imagery creates its own set of problems. Visuals often show cities, bodies and family structures that do not reflect local communities. At times, they drift into stereotypes that feel uncomfortable and quietly erode trust.

Digital behaviour is also frequently misread. Many assets are designed for always on data, smooth access to social platforms and endless scrolling. On the ground, people are getting information through shared phones, WhatsApp groups, radio, church announcements and clinic noticeboards.

Even the format of the toolkits can get in the way. They often arrive as large, heavy files that require design software, editing confidence and spare time to adapt. Many clinics simply do not have those resources, so content stays in folders instead of reaching patients.

Underneath all of this sits a simple insight. Content localisation is not a translation task. It is a strategic lever in healthcare marketing in emerging markets. If content does not reflect local behaviour, channels and culture, it cannot drive service uptake or sustainability, no matter how strong the original strategy looks on a slide.

From one campaign to a sustainable content ecosystem

Rather than respond with another global campaign, Bohemian and IPPF chose to build a sustainable content ecosystem.

The intention was to create something that would still be useful in a year’s time, not just during a launch period. That meant thinking in terms of systems, not hero pieces.

Across Ghana, Cameroon and Ecuador, we developed more than 800 assets, all connected by shared structures and messages. Every element was built to travel across three languages, and to move comfortably between digital and offline spaces. A piece that worked on social could become a print poster in a clinic, a WhatsApp tile, or the skeleton of a radio script.

Instead of separate, siloed campaigns, clinics received a modular multilingual marketing system. They could choose from a library of rights aligned, locally relevant content and adapt what they needed in minutes, not days.

This is what a sustainable content ecosystem looks like in practice. It is not a single idea repeated. It is a set of flexible, interlocking ideas that can be rearranged as needs change.

Designing for non-marketers inside busy clinics

Most of the people who would use this content were not communications professionals. They were clinicians, counsellors, youth workers and administrators. They understood their communities deeply, but they did not have the time or tools to navigate complex design templates.

So the system was engineered around simplicity.

Templates were structured with clear, editable fields. A clinic manager could update location details, opening hours or a hotline number without touching the core design. Suggested copy sat close to the visuals, so no one had to search through long documents to find a caption.

Guidance was practical and direct. If most of your patients use WhatsApp, start with this set of tiles and message scripts. If you are planning an outreach day with a local radio station, use this group of messages and adapt them to your presenter’s voice.

By removing friction, content localisation stopped feeling like an extra chore. It became a support function that helped teams do their primary job better.

This is social impact marketing viewed as a practical tool inside NGO marketing sustainability. When communication becomes easier, clinics are better able to keep services visible, fill appointment slots and reach people earlier.

Leveraging AI to fill the gaps

With limited access to relevant regional stock, AI imagery was used to create visuals that reflected diverse bodies, relationships and family structures in respectful, non-stereotypical ways. Everyday situations could feel familiar without exposing real individuals.

No image went straight from model to market. Every visual was reviewed with IPPF and in country partners to check cultural sensitivity, rights based alignment and context. In this setup, AI became a tool for more equitable visual representation, while keeping production viable.

What this signal for content localisation and healthcare marketing

First, content localisation is strategic. It is not simply about converting text into another language. It is about understanding how power, trust and stigma operate in a community and shaping multilingual content strategy accordingly.

Second, sustainable content ecosystems outperform one off campaigns. Organisations gain more when they invest in systems that can be reused, adapted and extended by non-specialists in the field. The value compounds over time, rather than peaking at launch and fading.

Third, AI in content localisation is most effective when it behaves like plumbing, not like a billboard. When AI sits behind the scenes, enabling image creation and workflow efficiency, it can extend equity of access without overshadowing human insight and accountability.

For Bohemian, these lessons reinforce our core approach. Combine creativity with systems thinking. Use technology to protect and extend local ownership. Treat marketing not only as a visibility tool, but as a contributor to clinic sustainability and social impact.

A closing invitation to rethink scale, sustainability and local impact

If you are working in social impact marketing, healthcare communications or digital health marketing, this is a useful moment to pause.

Consider whether your organisation is building campaigns or building content ecosystems. Ask whether your multilingual marketing systems are optimised for internal sign off, or for everyday use inside clinics with limited capacity. Look at how AI is positioned in your workflows. Is it creating noise or quietly making it easier for local teams to act.

Content can be more than messages in a feed. It can be part of the infrastructure that keeps doors open, staff supported, and rights defended. When agencies and NGOs design for sustainability, local ownership and thoughtful use of AI, scale stops meaning copying the same message into more markets. It starts to mean something more important.

Content that is adaptable, rooted in local realities and built for non-marketers, so that behaviour shifts, clinics stay open and people can access the sexual and reproductive healthcare they deserve.