The rise of the healthcare consumer has had far-reaching effects on how doctors and other medical professionals advertise and provide their treatment to patients. Patients anticipate a healthcare system that is just as cutting-edge and technologically sophisticated as any other sector. To keep up in today's market, hospitals, health systems, and medical facilities must adapt to satisfy patients' expectations.
Customers no longer need to visit the nearest choice as more healthcare experts give convenient online services and reduce bureaucracy between physician and patient contacts. Patients now have the freedom to shop for a healthcare provider that provides service that lives up to or exceeds their expectations rather than settling for less. No matter how satisfied you are with your present patient volume, healthcare marketing requires a well-thought-out medical marketing strategy to succeed.
What exactly is healthcare marketing?
Marketers in the healthcare industry use various methods to reach out to potential customers, educate them about the benefits of their services, and keep them interested in what they offer. Health systems, hospitals, multi-site providers, solo practices, pharmaceutical and medical device manufacturers, health insurance carriers, consumer healthcare services, and many other healthcare businesses engage in marketing today.
Successful healthcare advertising strategies use a variety of online and offline tactics that are highly targeted and tailored to the target audience. All of which are tuned to KPIs and ROI that matter in the target market.
Healthcare marketing trends and insights you should know
As new research, tools, and strategies emerge, the medical marketing industry is always evolving to keep up. Healthcare providers should take advantage of the most recent developments in healthcare marketing to design agile strategies that set them apart from rivals.
Below are the current marketing trends in the healthcare industry.
Digital signage
Healthcare 4.0, with its rising digitization and networking, is generating fresh ideas and presenting several new possibilities. In recent years, digital signage systems have emerged as one of the most powerful tools available to healthcare professionals for enhancing the individual experience of their patients.
A growing number of hospitals are using digital signage as internal and external communication and an emergency management tool to boost the satisfaction of hospital staff, patients, and visitors. Likewise, digital signage is helping significantly with healthcare marketing. For instance, messages delivered at the perfect moment might be broad in scope or tailored to a particular demographic. These include advertising messaging, public acknowledgment, and philanthropic, communal, fund-raising, or health-related activities.
You can also use digital signage to display Google reviews. Not only can happy customers bring in more cash, but they may also supply one of the most effective marketing tools: testimonials from other buyers. As credibility evidence, they encourage your leads to make the best possible decision. Online reviews, therefore, are akin to the gas that drives your company. If you get positive client feedback, why not broadcast it on your digital screens?
Telehealth
The usage of telehealth has expanded dramatically since the beginning of the pandemic. Telehealth is still in high demand, even when life has returned to normal elsewhere. Although there was a minor decrease in the demand for telehealth services in 2022, many patients still anticipate having at least some of their treatment delivered through telehealth. Patients may prefer live conversations with medical personnel to discuss test findings, for instance, or telehealth appointment reminders.
When promoting these services in your marketing materials, make it clear that they are not the only choice for medical treatment. Instead, it would help to tell your patients that telemedicine is only one of several available treatment options. This method of putting it demonstrates openness about your treatment approach while maintaining a focus on the quality of the patient's experience.
Make use of unified healthcare branding
You may believe your superior knowledge and skills set you apart from competing medical facilities and corporations. Let's face it, though: to the average person shopping for medical treatment, one white coat looks like another, and shoppers hesitate to purchase from strangers. Marketing your established brand name may significantly impact your cost-per-acquisition and return on investment.
Patients will remember your healthcare organization because of the one thing that sets your medical staff apart from the competition. Because you're asking customers to entrust you with their health, you must highlight any honors or recognition you've received for this work. It might take some time until you find the optimal approach for your brand. A healthcare marketing plan emphasizing consistent branding and marketing materials will ultimately provide positive results.
SEO methods develop further
Search engine optimization (SEO) is not simply about stuffing your web pages with keywords. To enhance the user experience and reach the top of the search engine results page (SERP), you need to prioritize content that answers users' questions. You can take advantage of this shift in healthcare marketing by creating content for FAQs and blogs that answers common inquiries, establishes your expertise in your field, and encourages readers to stick with your brand.
Search engine optimization (SEO) terms like "near me" or "in City" might help with urgent queries (such as "bariatric surgeon in Topeka, Kansas"). Also, if you haven't done so already, create your Google Business Profile to boost your company's local SEO and appear higher on search engine results pages.
Leverage the power of social media and video
The present pinnacle of marketing success involves both social media and video content. Your company is missing out on potential customers if it doesn't use social media outlets extensively in its advertising initiatives. You need to provide high-quality, creative, interesting material consistently and actively connect with your audience.
If you want to tap into the full potential of social media platforms, video content is the way to go. You can fast expand your social media audience and get more interaction through video content. Putting an engaging video on your homepage is a great way to get your message out and establish yourself as an authority on your subject while improving the patient experience.
Patient engagement
Traditionally, healthcare marketers' primary goal was increasing the number of new patients. Today, their attention is also properly directed into keeping, influencing, engaging, and caring for their current patient base. Patients, meanwhile, desire improved communication, greater resources, and simpler access to healthcare. They want to understand their healthcare alternatives and expenses to make well-informed selections. Better in-office amenities, increased access to information, and more candid dialogue with doctors can help win them over.
Online appointment booking, text messages, in-app messaging, live chat, social interaction, recall systems, reminder series, and more can set you apart from the competition and increase patient engagement.
Conclusion
These healthcare marketing trends will still greatly affect the field in 2023. In the coming year, it will be especially important for healthcare groups to focus on the user experience and offer more telemedicine services. Digital signage will also have a massive role, and reliable software such as the LOOK DS can easily incorporate the former into your healthcare facility.
