Health system marketing leaders not only promote the brand but can directly affect patient care as well as hiring and retention, the marketing chief of Indianapolis-based IU Health, told Becker's.
For example, IU Health recently targeted more than 55,000 women eligible for breast cancer screenings as part of a push to reach patients who had delayed preventive care during the pandemic. Nearly half of them responded to the communications and got screened, according to Mike Yost, the health system's chief marketing officer.
"Marketing oftentimes is just thought of as going out and advertising and building your brand, right?" he said. "We also have a huge impact on patients and patient outcomes, and this was a great example of that."
In these times of healthcare staffing shortages, IU Health's marketing and human resources teams work hand-in-hand in positioning the 16-hospital system to maximize recruitment and retention, Mr. Yost said. One of the organization's marketing leaders now focuses exclusively on finding ways to make the brand more attractive for current and future employees.
Mr. Yost joined IU Health in 2009, becoming chief marketing officer in 2021 and overseeing a department of 95 employees. He had previously spent more than 11 years in sales and marketing with pharma maker Eli Lilly & Co. He said the two industries are both driven by data and flourish by having a deep understanding of the needs of patients.
"When we develop our brand campaigns, instead of us as marketers making the decision, we really learn to rely on the voice of the customer," he said.
Moving forward, Mr. Yost hopes to help move the $8 billion system, the state's largest, toward a more consumer-friendly approach that patients are used to getting in other industries. Nontraditional players entering healthcare are selling this more convenient, personalized model, and health systems have to respond.
Leveraging big data and artificial intelligence can help make marketing more efficient and relevant to the target audience, he noted.
"Today, we can pick up our phones and look at our bank account or manage our financials at home, all at the tip of our fingers," he said. "It's still not that easy yet within healthcare, and we've got to get there."