Category: Healthcare

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Healthcare
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When establishing a positive reputation in the highly regulated, highly saturated healthcare market, your social media agency can transform your brand into a go-to source for information and wellness. Beyond traditional social media management, your agency can tap into digital education techniques — such as webinars and groundbreaking thought leadership through blogs and digital posts – that will break through the clutter in your market. Here are our top six favorite ways you can get started with a social media agency today.
1. Use market research and big data to understand your audience

Because your patients may not be the same people who are choosing your home health services, it’s important to understand how your audience is finding information about your services and what criteria they are using to make decisions. A good social media agency can offer a unique look into where people start their journey (perhaps via a magazine ad or radio campaign), and how they migrate across platforms from their mobile devices, map and GPS apps, and onto their desktops. By using proprietary data and mapping that against third-party information, these agencies can paint a clear picture of who your audience is, and what is most important to those individuals.

2. Give customers something they can’t find anywhere else

Online learning opportunities, guest speakers, and panel discussion can transform the home health education and shopping experience through highly shareable, personalized content. Host a webinar with the founder of your organization, a leading specialist in your health field, or customers willing to share their testimonials. In addition to the potential customers you touch during that event, online events generate a substantial amount of buzz with very little effort. The best part is that these events also serve as mini focus groups where you can learn about the issues your customers care about most, what information they aren’t getting in the broader marketplace, and reveal key areas where you can differentiate yourself as a provider. By listening to your attendees’ questions, evaluating the type of people who sign up, and following up with a post-session survey, you can take your market research to the next level.

3. Practice makes perfect

Once you think you’ve found a niche, begin testing content that appeals to your audience. You might not nail your social media, content, or marketing strategy the first time so we recommend testing everything. Use your social media agency to prioritize the big swings against small improvements to balance revolutionary ideas against critical, business updates. If you don’t get something right the first time, try it again. Web tests allow you to expose only a small part of your digital audience to certain content or ideas, giving you freedom to break outside the traditional healthcare box.

4. Grab their attention

The healthcare industry is not always known for its cutting edge social presence and interactivity. By keeping your content fresh and on the cutting edge, you can unlock new client potential. A good social media agency knows what trends are emerging and how to use them effectively, so you can find the right balance between staying ahead of the curve and veering too far away from your target audience. Your social media agency can look at where your customers are spending their time online, understand the devices they are using, and build custom-made marketing campaigns around these individualized behaviors.

5. Embrace the second screen

Understanding that most customers are searching for information across multiple devices at the same time can be a huge benefit to home health marketing professionals. Geo-based, local apps complement broader SEO initiatives, and mobile app development that create a seamless customer and prospect experience. The better your agency understands the organic migration across platform, the more easily you can be at the right place at the right time for your customers.

6. Use a social media agency to solicit feedback

Some customers may be reticent to provide feedback to their home health provider in fear that their service may falter or that they don’t have other options. If your organization is truly dedicated to improving, you can use your social media agency to solicit open, honest (or even anonymous) feedback about your marketing outreach, and service experiences. Social listening and customer management are critical mechanisms your agency can support to compile this feedback and turn it into actionable items.

Your social media agency can serve as an extra set of eyes and ears to get to know your clients better. Sure, they can support your Facebook and Twitter pages, but there is a lot more to social media management than meets the eye. Check out some of our work and see how we can help.

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Consumer & Healthcare Creative & Production Digital Targeting Services Healthcare Media & Analytics Retail Tourism Hospitality Convention Website Development
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photo 1417733403748 83bbc7c05140 1200x600 c default

Retargeting has been described as “turning window shoppers into buyers,” something that every business craves.
But this actually isn’t the best analogy – perhaps more of an overeager sales clerk who helps you in the store, then accompanies you to several other stores, all the while telling you what you’re missing out on.

You may call it a little creepy. The sales associate may call it being pleasantly persistent. Digital marketing experts call it a smart, effective method to encourage customers to learn about a product or business, and then be reminded about it later, and once again for good measure.

For those aren’t entirely sure what retargeting is, the short version is that it’s the ability for an advertiser to “follow” you when you visit their site, and have their ads appear on other pages you visit after you’ve departed. The frequency varies, but it explains why ads reappear for places you just visited on the Web or social media, even though the site you’re currently connected to may not have anything to do with that particular topic.

Far more than mere coincidence, (or in case you might have envisioned an advertiser with an unlimited budget who is keenly aware of the sites you visit), retargeting is a way to constantly remind customers about a particular business.

It also works: according to CMO, Adobe’s marketing blog, businesses typically see a 2 percent rate of people visiting and buying. But when retargeting is in place, all sorts of good things can happen, including a 400 percent increase in ad response, and 3 out of 5 buyers saying they notice ads on other sites. Those are impressive results.

Retargeting also isn’t terribly annoying – 25 percent of people surveyed had a positive or very positive reaction to seeing extra ads, compared to 19 percent who dislike them, and 57 percent who are neutral on the notion of retargeting.

For marketers considering adding the practice to your greater digital strategy, here’s what you should know:

How retargeting works

The mechanics of retargeting ads are pretty simple. On your home page or any inside page, you include a bit of invisible Javascript code at the footer. When visitors arrive at your site, your script will send a browser cookie to their phones or desktops. When they visit other pages in the future, the cookie will instruct the page to call and display your ad in one of the page’s available ad slots.

Retargeting requires working with a remarketing company, which usually is a member of common digital ad exchanges, and can help you craft your message. Social media channels like Facebook have their own process for targeting or retargeting, which can include ads on the right –hand column, or in your news feed.

When you establish your retargeting campaign, you’re able to configure how often your ad is displayed, be it every time visitors go to another page; or possibly, every fifth site they visit; when a certain keyword shows up (such as shoes). This also begs the question, “Does that style of ads end if the customer goes back to your site and buys something, or does it expire after a week or longer?”

AdRoll, a popular online provider, has confirmed that different subjects can require different timing when setting-up your unique campaigns. It recommends that people seeking travel info should be retargeted immediately, while those who are more interested in specific retail goods may not need to see these ads as frequently.

Some retargeting services allow you to get even more hands-on in your ad. ReTargeter, another option, said some people prefer self-serve campaigns, where they design all the aspects of their program, from the sizes of ads to where they appear. This may be better for your budget, however it may elicit more of a technical challenge than seeking a full-serve provider. The following include different types of retargeting, with varying strategies for various industries:

Health Care Retargeting

A Pew Research study stated that 72 percent of Internet users tried to find health info during the past year. To counter the sometimes “iffy” results on various sites, there are also a variety of useful resources that have a stake in providing searchers with adequate details, including community health providers, along with plenty of pharmaceutical companies who don’t want anyone to forget their product.

According to HealthCareCommunication, retargeting allows health info seekers to do their homework, while returning slightly more educated about a specific topic. For instance, an individual may visit a site for their local doctor or hospital to learn about a particular procedure, and then, in turn, visit other sites to explore the topic further. Following all of this research, seekers will be prepared to be return to their initial site, hopefully with more knowledge.

Providers are advised to include a call to action – ask people to do something – and not have a retargeting campaign last longer than 30 days.

Hospitality/Tourism Retargeting

We’re all familiar with the frugal traveler who goes out of his/her way to spend as little as possible when on the road. On the other hand, there are those who stimulate the local economy with plenty of purchases of food and lodging, car rentals, souvenirs, and other expenditures. Either way, much of a traveler’s research is performed online, especially when comparing prices and making reservations.

If you’re a travel business, Trooz, a travel marketing site, suggests that a retargeting service can help you partner with other related businesses, especially of the higher-priced variety. That way, if you represent an inexpensive B&B, you may still target customers who visit airfare or local travel sites. In addition, you might also consider a service that includes international visitors.

Restaurants, another part of the industry, also have the potential to reap benefits. Restaurantnews.com confirms that those who click on your ads will already be familiar with you and what you offer, resulting in a stronger lead, rather simply than trying to tell the world that your brand exists. Throw in a coupons or a deal, and position your company in an even more exciting manner to fellow restaurant fans.

Retail Retargeting

Here’s where retargeting/remarketing really is a winner. If an item catches a shoppper’s eye, but he/she say “better not,” retargeting gives brands a second, third, and even fourth chance to talk the potential buyer into their purchase. Since so much of shopping can be deemed an impulse buy, a merchant can retarget shoppers by frequency alone, with phrases such as, “Are you sure?”, or, “Are you still thinking about these snazzy boots?” In addition, retargeting can be used to highlight items in an online shopping cart that that a prospective purchaser may have abandoned. With a reminder that the items are still waiting to be purchased, it’s not as difficult to successfully complete the transaction.

Based on the popularity of retargeting, there’s plenty of potential to include it as component of your marketing plan. Some experts warn not to rely too much on this singular service at the expense of other marketing options, but it has the potential to help extend your reach and politely nudge your audience in a desired direction.

Still have questions about retargeting, and considering a potential partner to lend industry expertise to your campaign? Contact our team of digital marketing experts to help close more sales – and drive-up revenue – for your brand.

To check out more of our media planning strategies, visit our Media services page.

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Audience Audience Analysis Consumer & Healthcare Healthcare Media & Analytics Media Analysis & Measurement
4 reasons why digital... Blogheader 1200x600 c default
4 reasons why digital... Blogheader 1200x600 c default

It’s definitely a challenging time to be working in healthcare.
There are political pressures – and competing agendas – to expand or undo the insurance structure. Along with increases in billing, every insurance provider requires their own rules and paperwork, and regulations are constantly evolving regarding the best practices for discussing or sharing patient information.

On the brighter side, there are also more tools to help patients, such as information that can be easily accessed or shared on mobile devices. And the economic outlook for the industry as a whole is nothing but positive – the Bureau of Labor Statistics predicts the medical and health services workforce to grow by 23 percent by 2020. More Americans are now eligible for care, which is good for them, but it may create challenges for providers who already have been feeling stretched thin. Consumers are also increasingly interested in managing their own care, which also is a noble goal but can create concerns about quality.

So healthcare marketing is especially critical – providers need to get the word out that they’re available to assist. And they also need to connect with audiences who no longer seek their services in the same places that they used to, such as newspapers or phone books.

For those who follow current healthcare marketing trends, the industry is increasingly going digital. Here are 4 reasons why you need to secure an online presence via a sound digital advertising strategy:

1. It’s where the audiences are:
According to the U.S. Census, 83.8 percent of households owned computers in 2013 – and jumped to 87 percent the next year. Of these, 78.5 percent own a desktop or laptop and 63 percent have a handheld computer. As of 2015, 84 percent of households reported regular Internet use, and 73.4 reported high-speed connections. The Pew Research Center said that up to 80 percent of Americans have also tried to look up health info online, especially specific conditions or diseases for themselves or others. Whether you’re promoting your medical services on social media or online ads on other sites, your healthcare advertising can reach a significant amount of the general population. Ad programs also can let you drill down and target certain age groups or geographic areas who will especially receptive to your message.

2. Audiences want health info:
The same Pew study showed that 70 percent of surveyed adults received healthcare information from their health provider, which is good. But 60 percent said they also get health info from friends and family, which may be riskier. With the power of the Internet, people can now learn about any sort of ailment, no matter how uncommon. It’s also an easy source to self-diagnose, from basic sniffles to a new blemish. According to the U.S. Library of Medicine’s Medline Plus site, teens are especially prone to seek out their information online first, even before talking to their parents, their teachers or health providers – 58 percent usually start with a Google search. Your healthcare digital marketing can focus on you as someone who can help find answers quickly and easily.

3. To counter the bad stuff:
Though an online community that’s increasingly aware of basic health can have its advantages, the downside can be that they may wind up at questionable, unreliable, even dangerous sites. However, you can portray yourself as a health professional who will always provide accurate information, or dispel some of the half-truths or outright lies they may run across online. Your healthcare digital advertising can drive people to your site to get our perspective, and you can even reinforce the point with web content or blog posts telling why some online claims aren’t quite true.

4. To build your brand:
Whether you’re a sole provider, part of a group of physicians or even part of a hospital community, you need to claim your online presence and find a way to stand out from the other area providers. A hospital marketing itself online can portray itself as the community’s prime source for all levels of medical needs. Consider allowing visitors to do everything at the site from learning about the facility to paying a bill to finding out about area health resources and even job openings. Even though an established local health center may have good word-of-mouth by nature, a comprehensive site and an online hospital advertising campaign can increase its presence – and the perception that it is the local authority.

Though it’s easy to want to focus on performing healthcare services well, today’s consumer desires even more. At this least, prospective patients are seeking assistance to educate themselves on a specific service to determine if it might be the right avenue to pursue in treatment. It’s easy to receive unqualified advice from one’s well-meaning friends, but there’s no substitute for reliable, qualified medical opinions.

Are you a healthcare marketer in need of some digital advertising prowess to positively impact your strategy for success? Contact our team of experts today for your own “check-up,” and to learn more about reaching prospective patients online.

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Branding Campaign Creation & Development Creative & Production Healthcare Messaging Personal Care
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shutterstock 221581510 1200x600 c default

Looking back at ad campaigns with lasting impact, one could safely gauge that the past year-and-a half has undoubtedly been that of taking an honest look in the mirror (naturally, pun intended) through judgment-free eyes – at least that’s been the mantra according to Dove. From the brand’s “Real Beauty Sketches” to the short video “Evolution,” I have to admit that Dove has been a breath of fresh air when it comes to empowering women. Continuing this message on to Super Bowl XLIX, Dove challenged us all to think differently about doing things “like a girl” – with the basis of running, throwing a ball, and the larger impasse – showcasing the differences in how young women, boys, and young girls respectively perceive the phrase. The Super Bowl ad won significant online kudos for changing the conversation, and again, during the 87th Annual Academy Awards, the brand started an entirely new conversation — this time on Twitter.

As part of a hashtag campaign, #SpeakBeautifully, Dove teamed up with the social media platform to add a positive spin on some of the negative tweets about beauty and body image on awards night. Arguably one of the chattiest (and often, cattiest) nights on social media, Dove created a Twitter tool that identified hateful keywords, and responded to them with non-automated tweets during the show. When someone tweeted a nasty comment about someone else, Dove’s Twitter accounted tweeted back constructive advice to encourage more positive online language and habits.

The campaign is based on a study done by Dove, which found that 50% of women are more likely to post something negative about themselves on Twitter, rather than positive. Even more upsetting, four out of five women encounter negative tweets commenting on other women’s appearances. Twitter CEO Dick Costalo has addressed the issue that seems to run rampant on Twitter, saying “We stink at dealing with abuse and trolls on the platform and we’ve been bad at it for years. It’s no secret and the rest of the world talks about it every day.” Through a strong partnership with Dove – viewed as having changed the paradigm in the industry – on this social media campaign, he endeavors to encourage positivity towards women, and on a grander scale, initiate changed perceptions on the Twittersphere.

It’s no surprise that the significant, lasting impact of social media’s oft-unmonitored commentary and postings may prove to be incredibly damaging to women’s self-esteem, especially for young girls. As a caveat to that, the anonymity of the Internet, including insults easily shared regarding appearance, can be even more hateful and significantly more widespread. “Ideas and opinions about body image are now fluidly shared every second through social feeds, and sometimes we do not fully realize the resounding impact of the words in even one post,” says Jennifer Bremner, director of marketing at Dove. [quote]“The power to #SpeakBeautifully is in the hands of us all – we can positively change the way future generations express themselves online.”[/quote]

The campaign, Dove says, will continue long after awards season is over. Social change doesn’t happen overnight, but the #SpeakBeautifully campaign sends an inspiring message – that hopefully social media will serve as the catalyst to create a less hostile online environment for women.

Although it’s early in the year, (and admittedly, this national brand has tried to make me cry twice already), I’m growing to realize that there can be true societal beauty in a brand’s social media presence. We at BIGEYE admire a company that uses such a highly televised event to promote genuine, positive change – and not to simply push a product to consumers. Dove, if we could present you with an Oscar for that, we most certainly would.

View the #SpeakBeautifully ad.

If we’ve left you feeling inspired to generate an innovative social media strategy for your brand, contact our team of digital experts today! We have significant expertise in consumer packaged goods (CPG) marketing – like the folks at Dove – and really understand the value of differentiating through the creation of a brand strategy and presence that truly generates lasting emotive impact with your target audience.

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Audience Audience Analysis Audience Segmentation Consumer & Healthcare Healthcare
Rational vs. Emotional – The Differing Appeals of the Healthcare Field in the Mom Market
Rational vs. Emotional – The Differing Appeals of the Healthcare Field in the Mom Market

Once a marketer has addressed the proper mom segment for his product or service, it becomes time for him to create an approach that reaches out to her. Finding an appeal that works to address the target helps generate brand preference down the line.

Just as there are multiple methods for subdividing the moms market, there are multiple appeals that are effective within the moms market. These may be appeals rooted in emotions, practicality, humor, fantasy, adventure, or a number of other types of appeals that relate to the needs, wishes and desires of the mom.

Different industries will see success with different appeals. A heartfelt appeal may be of less value to a luxury goods manufacturer than an appeal that offers a notion of adventure or fantasy. Industry-specific appeals can help drive the audience’s imagination, thereby beginning the process of instilling brand preference. Below, we will examine the appeals of the healthcare field.

People need healthcare services throughout every stage of their lives. Therefore, healthcare organizations tend to be family-friendly, fostering an environment of care and support, much as the family unit does. This also leads to marketers to hone in marketing to moms within this sector by emphasizing a commitment to care and service.

However, because of costs, service quality, expertise and other factors, moms have innumerable choices when it comes to providing healthcare for themselves and their families. Healthcare marketers may wish to convert new customers and retain existing ones by marketing in a manner that speaks to either the mom’s rational side or her emotional side.

Rational Appeals

[quote]Reaching out to moms by addressing their rationality is a strong tactic for healthcare marketers.[/quote]A rational appeal is a grounded approach that backs up marketing information with data-specific information and expertise in order to help sway the mother into making the “best” choice for her family. For example, when a marketer notes that four out of five doctors recommend a product, this appeals to rationality – if the doctors agree that it is the best product, then certainly it’s good enough for a mother and her family unit.

  • Statistics. Statistics are great ways to create a rational appeal. If studies show that your child will be 90% safer with a certain type of car seat, it is likely that a responsible mother is going to be willing to spend extra money to ensure her child’s safety.
  • Expertise. Backing up claims with expertise is also a great tool that marketers in the healthcare field can use to create rational appeal. A product endorsement from a noted physician or health care organization can help increase sales, as people are inclined to respect the product as they respect the noted professionals. An endorsement or testimonial assures the viewer or reader that the marketed product is effective, safe and useful.

Emotional Appeals

[quote]Designed to reach the mother at a greater level, the emotional appeal should elicit a deep feeling in the mother.[/quote]By nature, mothers are protective and offer a safety net for their children, as a mother is expected to help keep her child away from harm and to foster an environment of education and care. Touching on aspects of the child’s life that may jeopardize those elements will prompt the mom to act in a certain manner, and brands can recreate these feelings to help appeal to the mom, particularly when it comes to healthcare marketing.

  • Fear. No matter how brave we might seem, there are some things that we fear on a daily basis. In the world of healthcare marketing, these items may be as broad as increased risk of illness, or keeping a child away from injury. It may also involve continual monitoring of a child to ensure that he or she is in good health. Marketers can help warn of the potential dangers by using a tactic designed to instill fear into mothers, thereby causing them to take action. Demonstrating dangers and then providing solutions is a solid way for healthcare marketers to make sure that they are sending their messages loud and clear.
  • Comfort, Security and Safety. On the other hand, a strategy that incorporates comfort, security and safety may also provide a powerful incentive for moms to invest resources into healthcare. A hospital that idealizes itself as a caring environment may appear to be better suited for a sick child than a competing hospital that does not offer a feeling of comfort.

To learn more about how you can market to moms in order to create brand preference and instill brand loyalty, contact us today! Our team at BIGEYE is prepared to share tangible strategies for segmentation, creating appeals and assessing your own brand to determine the right moms for your business!

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Consumer & Healthcare Healthcare Personal Care
Think Pink Why Businesses Should Support Breast Cancer Awareness Month 1200x600 c default
Think Pink Why Businesses Should Support Breast Cancer Awareness Month 1200x600 c default

Breast cancer is the second leading cause of death among women with more than 220,00 women in the United States diagnosed each year. And every October, people around the world come together in support of Breast Cancer Awareness Month to raise awareness of issues pertaining to breast cancer symptoms and treatment options.
At our Orlando ad agency, we’re constantly impressed with the marketing efforts we see that help build awareness of the breast cancer throughout the month. These efforts stretch far beyond 5k races and marches, and actively produce partnerships that result in additional funds for charitable causes, as well as increased sales for brands.

For instance, Mike’s Hard Lemonade, which produces sweetened malt beverages with the same alcohol content as beer, also sells a seasonal product called Mike’s Hard Pink Lemonade. The product’s pink packaging recognizes breast cancer awareness, in support of a Mike’s employee who lost the battle against breast cancer in 2009. Sales of the product support The Breast Cancer Research Foundation, and the product continues to be a favorite of Mike’s customers to this day.

Sales of this product benefit the business in several ways. First of all, people may be attracted to this product over competitors’ due to its support of breast cancer research. In this instance, more sales not only means more money for charity, but also more money for Mike’s to continue supporting this initiative. Secondly, Mike’s demonstrated support of charitable causes builds goodwill within the community. Finally, the company’s act of recognition prompts emotional responses from breast cancer survivors and their loved ones, as well as people who may have lost family members and loved ones. These people in particular may then become lifelong Mike’s customers, even expanding to try other flavors upon recognizing the business’s commitment to breast cancer awareness.

Companies that are considering supporting breast cancer awareness should be wary of doing such just to garner a profit, as marketing efforts will not seem genuine and may possibly seem sleazy. Instead, these companies should focus on their commitment to social good as part of their overall mission statements, and should tailor marketing efforts to incorporate the act of supporting causes such as breast cancer awareness.

It’s all too common for businesses to engage in “Pinkwashing,” which is the act of a business aligning itself with pink during October to boost sales, without actually supporting any breast cancer awareness initiatives. [quote]Fortunately, businesses that stick to ethical and genuine practices should not expect to receive such backlash.[/quote]

Supporting Breast Cancer Awareness Month is a great way to get your company to “think pink” and get involved with a worthwhile cause. Even simple acts such as running charity drives, selling promotional products to help support breast cancer survivors, and using products to raise awareness are great ways to align a business with a worthy cause while also promoting goodwill for the company.

The team at our Orlando marketing agency hopes you will consider these tips when planning your marketing efforts for October. Even just a few dollars in support of the cause can do great things.

In honor of Breast Cancer Awareness Month, join us to support MD Anderson Cancer Center by making a donation.

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Consumer & Healthcare Creative & Production Healthcare Personal Care Video Production
BigEye Video Team Proud To Be A Part of Karlis Story
BigEye Video Team Proud To Be A Part of Karlis Story

The BIGEYE video production team was proud to tell the story of the amazing Karli.  Her story of fighting her cancer is an inspiring story.
After being diagnosed with bone cancer, Karli’s world was turned upside down. Since completing her treatment, she has become a warrior in the battle against childhood cancer. Having fought and overcome this disease, Karli and her family are forever grateful to those who support the place that gave them hope and healing. This year, Karli’s family will be leading Arnie’s March at the Arnold Palmer Invitational. Join them in the fight against childhood cancer at http://ArniesMarch.com.

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Consumer & Healthcare Healthcare
Physician Marketing Techniques to Help Grow Your Practice
Physician Marketing Techniques to Help Grow Your Practice

Let’s face it – there are entire industries dedicated to physician marketing tactics.  Men and women across the country attend conferences to help learn about strategies for growing their practices.  But how many of these ideas are actually good?
If your current physician marketing strategy involves simply creating Facebook and Twitter accounts that you don’t use, then you may want to take some of these tips for marketing your physician practice.  These tried and true tips from our Orlando advertising agency can help you steer your marketing efforts in the right direction.

Make a Plan: Develop a strategic plan for your practice by setting goals for your business.  If you want to reach out to a particular demographic, then work to ensure that you’re reaching them where they are – and they may or may not be on social networks.  If they are, then target them where they’re active – young mothers may spend hours on Facebook, while you may be more likely to engage with professional organizations on Twitter.

Remember the End User: In the end, marketing your practice should be about your patients, whether prospective or returning.  The more you can connect to them directly, the more they will feel connected to you, and will feel inspired to return to you time and again.  

[quote] When developing a marketing strategy, think about your patients – would they rather see a vague marketing postcard mixed in with their junk mail, or would they instead prefer an appointment reminder to be sent to them from your office directly through Twitter? [/quote]

Blog about It:  It’s true that blogs require substantial effort to create and maintain, but particularly for physicians who love to write, blogging can be a great way to connect with your readers.  Loyal patients will almost always want to know your opinions on subjects directly related to your line of work, and will be interested in the news and things that are around your office.  Plus, building a blog is a great way to create search engine optimized content, so that your practice will appear early in Google searches related to your field of practice.

Be agile:  The term “agile” made our Florida advertising agency’s list of marketing buzzwords, and with good reason.  As the term implies, an agile marketing solution allows flexibility within your strategy.  Once you implement your strategy, pivoting courses allows you stay on top of trends to remain up with the times.  Mistakes are par for the course; if you’re not making mistakes, it typically means you’re not trying something new and innovative.  And, as the group at our Orlando ad agency knows, new and innovative is going to be what sets you apart from other physician practices.

As your practice continues to grow, you will likely see more and more of a need to adequately market your business.  If your business has an administrative staff, you may wish to train one of those individuals for the role of marketing coordinator to help oversee your company’s marketing efforts.  And, if you need to bring some fresh perspective to marketing your physician practice, our Florida marketing agency is happy to offer some additional ideas on making effective use of your marketing resources.

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Consumer & Healthcare Healthcare
Patients are a Virtue Hospital Marketing Should Be About the Patient 1200x600 c default
Patients are a Virtue Hospital Marketing Should Be About the Patient 1200x600 c default

Hospital marketers are in a tough position when it comes to pleasing physicians.  Doctors, surgeons and specialists typically have years and years of expertise, and often believe that their ideas and personas warrant marketing and publicity recognition.  Many times, this is true – a long list of award-winning services may entice people to choose your hospital’s services over another’s.
However, at our Florida advertising agency, we’ve noticed that physicians and other hospital service staff are quick to jump on opportunities to recognize their own accomplishments, but sometimes neglect outreach efforts to potential and returning patients.  Hospital marketers may find it difficult to strike the balance between pleasing physicians and engaging in effective outreach.

The team members at our agency recently wrote a white paper titled Marketing to Meet Hospital Business Objectives While Keeping Physicians Happy, addressing how hospital marketers can effectively please hospital physicians while also meeting their own marketing objectives.  We suggested that there should be dual service lines; one of which addresses the needs of the physicians, and another other that involves creating marketing objectives at the executive level and analyzing the success of such initiatives.

There are entire industries dedicated to physician reputation management, which encourages physicians to find effective ways to tout their accomplishments, particularly against any potential negative publicity.  But hospital marketers must remember that, while marketing to maintain physicians’ reputations is important, it is but a single slice of the pie.

At our Florida marketing agency, we believe that hospital marketing will see greater success with marketing toward patients.  In this digital era, there are numerous ways to reach out to potential patients, and many of these methods may not involve touting the merits of your hospital’s physicians and staff.

In engaging in effective hospital marketing, you are trying to persuade potential patients to believe in your message, and to think of your organization first when they are sick or injured.  In order to do this, each piece of content you create should be in service of your audience.  What is your hospital staff doing to differentiate itself?  Why are your hospital’s services better than a competitor’s?

Notice how a strategy that emphasizes these efforts aims to reach the potential patients at an emotional level.  These efforts tend to work much better than efforts that simply offer a long list of physician credentials.  One way to frame the difference is, rather than asking whether the physicians are happy with marketing efforts or whether the efforts are serving the needs of the hospital as a brand, to ask whether the efforts are serving the needs of potential patients and of the community as a whole.

If your hospital marketing is struggling to reach patients in a meaningful way, perhaps it is time to revaluate your strategy to put more emphasis on patient needs.  Go to where they are, find out what they’re seeking and speak to them on their terms.  While meeting the needs of physicians is important, the team at our Orlando marketing agency believes it is even more important to meet the needs of the patients who will keep coming back, year after year. Contact us for more information, we’d love to help!

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Consumer & Healthcare Digital Targeting Services Healthcare Media & Analytics
The face of your hospital
The face of your hospital

Hospital marketers face challenges unique to their profession.  Marketing often entails informing the public of staff accomplishments, explaining new physician services, or simply building awareness within the community.  Successful hospital marketers integrate both digital strategies and direct contact within their locale.  Such hospitals may also need to focus on hosting events and building direct relationships with their patients.
At our Florida marketing agency, we typically advise hospital marketers to treat their Facebook pages as extensions of their community marketing.  While marketing should always be about the people, hospital marketers should be particularly inclined to build relationships in order to maintain lasting physician-patient relationships.  [quote] Hospital marketers must also account for the needs and desires of the physicians they service, whom we often see pushing marketers toward more publicity-related roles. [/quote]

Facebook can be an excellent tool to help facilitate these relationships.  Below are some tips for hospital marketers to use to help get the most out of Facebook marketing.

Keep It Positive:  Facebook is designed to foster a positive environment, which is allegedly why there’s a “like” feature but not a “dislike” feature.  Posting good news about patient recoveries, information about recent awards and news about new procedures help keep your patients and followers engaged and excited about your work within the community.

Post a Photo:  What’s cuter than posting a birth announcement featuring an adorable sleeping infant?  Just make sure you have the adequate permissions before posting anything that might infringe on individuals’ privacy.

Create an Infographic:  Want to try to explain a new service in detail?  Use an infographic to relay important information about how the service will provide benefits to patients.  Make sure that any data that you use in your infographic is verified and footnoted, and you’ll not only secure your team leaders within your community, but will also solidify your expert knowledge of patient services.

Involve Your Employees: Facebook marketing doesn’t necessarily mean sticking to providing information about day-to-day hospital operations.  Instead, humanize your brand with information about the staff, including everyone from surgeons to administrative staff to the marketers themselves.  Reaching out to your staff in this way may also encourage sharing behavior on your staff’s pages – plus, who doesn’t like to be recognized for their contributions?

As hospital marketers know, there are important legal restrictions in terms of hospital marketing.  Legal counsel often requires legal waivers and consent forms from anyone whose identifying information they may post online.  Hospital marketers should hold themselves to the highest standard of integrity in this capacity, as hospitals have extensive access to highly sensitive confidential materials.  Any new Facebook marketing initiative should undergo legal review in order to prevent the possibility of legal complications.

That said, there are still plenty of fun ways for hospitals to use Facebook.  For more ideas as to how hospital marketers can use social media to help create innovative marketing campaigns, reach out to our Florida advertising agency to help you create an intelligent, interactive Facebook campaign.