Healthcare advertising serves a variety of purposes, from raising community awareness to driving service line revenue. Knowing where and how to spend marketing dollars is important for helping more patients and delivering growth to the organization.
This content is sponsored by Scorpion Healthcare
"C-level healthcare executives are realizing their web presence is of strategic importance and that the status quo will no longer work," Brian Davis, senior vice president Scorpion Healthcare, said during a webinar June 7, hosted by Becker's Hospital Review. Scorpion Healthcare is an Inc. 5000 digital marketing and technology firm that works with hundreds of hospital and health system clients across the United States..
Mr. Davis shared three marketing strategies he believes are integral to hospitals' and health systems' success in the digital space.
1. Consumer focus has moved online — so stop wasting limited resources on ineffective mediums.
Consumers' purchasing decisions are often influenced by brand and experience. The way they buy and shop today is different than in the past. For instance, people often go online to purchase books, clothing and groceries, alleviating the need to have to set foot in a physical store. Communication is also predominantly moving online. People are paying less attention to television, radio, magazines and billboards.
"As consumers, we are interested in online experiences with our healthcare providers that are fast, instant and reliable. And it better be on our phones, it better not be confusing and it better deliver what we're looking for, when we're looking for it, every time," Mr. Davis said.
Data corroborates this trend. On average, American adults spend more than 40 hours a week consuming digital media. Social networking sites and apps in particular now dominate the digital space. In fact, social media accounts for one of every five minutes spent online.
That the internet is an important tool for communication and consumption is not groundbreaking information. And yet many health systems continue to invest a significant portion of their limited resources in ineffective, nondigital areas.
"The attention is online. And you must either put yourself in a position to master it, or you will be mastered by it," Mr. Davis said.
2. First impressions are crucial.
Delivering a high-quality digital experience is a minor accomplishment relative to the complexity of medical services providers and physicians administer to patients every day. However, first impressions online have an outsized effect on how patients and potential customers perceive the institution. Although patients appreciate healthcare services, the everyday customer doesn't understand or isn't familiar with what clinical excellence looks like. What they are familiar with is high-quality websites and well-conceived digital experiences.
"Within the first few seconds, what we get and what our interaction is with a particular brand [online] will determine what we believe that brand is capable of," Mr. Davis said.
A positive online experience creates a foundation of trust between the patient and the institution. On the other hand, a negative or disappointing digital experience, such as an outdated and clunky website or a glitchy mobile experience, gives the patient the impression that the institution's clinical care will be substandard as well.
3. Invest in these three marketing opportunities.
Healthcare dollars are limited and margins are getting slimmer. Mr. Davis recommended healthcare executives invest marketing resources in the following areas to get the most bang for their buck.
- Stop investing in owning massive enterprise technology platforms and invest in flexible platforms and fully managed services. Within 24 to 36 months, a company's online presence can become outdated due to the fast pace of changing consumer behaviors. Managing and rebuilding a brand's consumer web infrastructure in-house is extremely costly, especially as in-house marketing teams must also be strategic about a number of other important tasks. Instead, Mr. Davis suggested hospital organizations invest in fully managed services that combine technology and service delivery so that marketing teams can accelerate the pace with which they deliver value to the organization. This not only lowers the hospital's total cost of ownership, but also gives the marketing team time to focus on building strategy and confidence in their ability to execute at a high level of speed.
- Invest in new partners and skill sets. The world has changed and it will require new types of partners and skill sets on your staff. The most successful healthcare systems are looking outside of the traditional advertising companies who are incentivized to maintain the status quo. Traditional marketing methods aren't as effective as they used to be. Mr. Davis recommends asking tough questions about how current marketing channels may be consuming an outsize portion of your resources without generating a proportional result.
- Invest in accountable marketing channels. Senior executives should expect accountability when it comes to marketing investments. There are still millions of dollars that are spent with no discernable return or results. Measuring return on investment and tracking marketing effectiveness is key to ensuring limited dollars aren't going to waste and are actually serving the patients and the organization.
To watch the presentation, click here.
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