The future of healthcare is going to look different. Which means healthcare marketers have to think differently.
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What does great B2C healthcare marketing need to move at the speed of the future? Data-driven strategies. A full understanding of the audience. A balance of institutional and individual priorities. And emotional thrust to stay competitive in an overcrowded landscape.
Data must guide marketing decisions. At Aha Media Group, we use “The Decision Triangle.” Data, politics, and common sense should inform every decision you make. How many decisions do we make using only politics?
Often, stakeholders (typically academics and scientists) want to make marketing decisions based on intuition — their own preferences, language, and viewpoint. Marketers need to bring data to change this conversation.
Present stakeholders with evidence-based strategies and insights from digital platforms like Google, TikTok, and patient forums to demonstrate what patients are looking for. This approach ensures that marketing efforts align with actual patient needs and behaviors.
Practical and detailed information helps patients solve their problems. However, so much online healthcare content is vanilla and seems to have been spawned in the same sea. If we don’t create variety and texture in our content, it starts to bleed together for our audiences. We want to stand out and be memorable.
To be memorable, however, risks are necessary. How will you build trust and engagement? By being brave.
Every year, we rate the best hospital commercials. We look for those who eschew the classic shots of surgical robots, the white coats, and the pulsing heartbeats. Instead, we reward those who show us the human side of healthcare: Families, loved ones, and caregivers, all seeking the peace of mind that good health can bring. It’s easier to just show your product. But to show how it can transform people’s lives? That’s brave.
We acknowledge the financial pressures and challenges faced by healthcare institutions, especially considering post-pandemic changes and emerging competitors. But we must maintain a balance between meeting institutional goals and patient needs.
Create content that satisfies both the formal requirements of healthcare executives and the practical needs of patients and their families. Don’t let doctors and healthcare practitioners tell you how to market. Instead, build their trust and learn the valuable information patients are looking for. Patients ask their doctors questions every day. So ask the providers: What does your audience need to know? Then, craft the messages and visuals — and, most importantly, create and manage the strategy.
As the marketing expert, you know the most effective way to reach your audience. Collaborate with your executives to get their insights and buy-in.
Need the Easter Bunny, Santa Claus, and Batman to approve content? We recognize the potential bottlenecks in working with physicians. Tap into other healthcare professionals, such as nurses, techs, and administrators, for content insights. Additionally, existing internal documents and online patient forums can be valuable sources of content ideas and patient questions.
Healthcare isn’t something you casually shop for. You don’t pick a doctor like you pick a coffee table. When someone needs a doctor, especially when facing a life-changing diagnosis, they’re not thinking about your billboards — they are thinking about who will be caring for them.
Optimize online doctor profiles to highlight not just professional qualifications but also personal traits that resonate with patients. This approach helps build trust between patients and healthcare providers, crucial for successful patient engagement.
75% of people read a physician’s bio before choosing a doctor, and doctors with profile photos are viewed twice as often as those without. To stand out, include engaging photos, personal quotes, and video interviews to humanize your doctors and connect with potential patients.
There’s an ongoing debate in the healthcare industry: Should we call them “patients” or “consumers”? Doctors prefer “patients” because it implies care and empathy. Marketers sometimes lean toward “consumers” to remind us that healthcare is competitive, and people have options.
Whether you call them consumers or patients, they are real people seeking healthcare. Our job is to make that process as easy and empathetic as possible.
Thriving in today’s healthcare landscape requires a future-forward mindset. Lead with data. Be brave! Create memorable content. Balance institutional goals with patient needs. Focus on empathy and personalization to make the healthcare journey smoother and more meaningful.
Ready to elevate healthcare marketing? Let’s make it happen together.
Ahava Leibtag, founder of Aha Media, is passionate about making healthcare information accessible and easy to understand. Ahava’s personal experience as a patient informs her approach to creating content that prioritizes patient needs, improves health literacy, and empowers individuals to make informed decisions about their health.
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