It is no secret that we live in the age of everything digital, and that extends to health care. The notion of telehealth (or telemedicine) is quickly gaining popularity. According to Cisco, in 2013 there were 350,000 telemedicine patients, and by 2018 that number is expected to reach 7 million.
By the end of this year, there will be more than:
- 1,250,000 online patient consultations.
- 550,000 ICU (intensive care unit) patients monitored remotely.
- 125,000 patients diagnosed via telestroke.
It’s not just telehealth that’s driving the trend towards digital – more people are searching online for healthcare related information and healthcare providers, making a strong digital presence a necessity.
Unfortunately, healthcare marketers across the board are struggling to leverage the latest digital marketing technologies as much as they should. Like many other industries, healthcare providers’ challenges in successful marketing are due to money, silos, and managing change. The fact of the matter is, by not embracing the digital marketing trends, these organizations will quickly fall behind their competitors.
Getting your organization in the digital marketing game could be a challenge, but taking the right steps – like the ones we’ve outlined below – could reap some major benefits.
Be Transparent
It’s a fast moving world out there, and when people are looking for information, they want it immediately. Patients don’t want to waste their time searching for information about your organization. They want everything to be upfront and clear. Make sure that consumers can easily find information on your services, location, pricing, and quality of care. These simple tasks will help your patients know who you are, which is the first step to building a relationship with them.
Promote Content
Content marketing makes all the difference in the healthcare industry. Healthcare companies can create great content that is useful and interesting to patients, and that will keep them coming back for more. Educational videos, humanizing stories (that, of course, comply with HIPPA), and informational social media posts are great ways to reach your target audiences. Promote content to connect your brand with people by a blog, social media, or ads. Google conducted a study that shows brand reputation plays a crucial role, for 94% of patients, in selecting a facility, so capitalize on content to help build a great reputation for your healthcare organization.
Encourage Loyalty
Driving consumers to be loyal to your healthcare services will allow you to see an increase in your return-on-investment (ROI). One way to drive brand loyalty is to promote your community in their inbox. Sending personalized ads and information through email enables you to reach patients efficiently and effectively; 91% of consumers check their email at least once per day on their smartphones. If you have a CRM system, sending out email campaigns is a breeze, if not, you are going to have to do it the old-fashioned way. Think of your email marketing as an IV drip—send it in small, controlled amounts, and adjust the dosage if needed. Check out our article “7 Reasons Why Email Marketing is not Dead” for more about email marketing.
Utilize a CRM system
A study completed by Greystone.Net and Klein & Partners revealed that only 50% of healthcare providers have a customer relationship management (CRM) system. The majority of those that do utilize a CRM system do not have it integrated well with their website. Why are CRM systems important to healthcare providers? They allow providers to capture data from across the enterprise and consolidate the information, they allow you to determine the best marketing opportunities, and they allow you to identify the ROI on campaigns.
Have you set some digital goals for your healthcare organization to reach? Let Advance Ohio guide you down the right digital path to reach those goals. Contact us today and let’s discuss strategy.
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