For healthcare marketers, there’s a new set of rules for connecting your brand to your employees, caregivers, communities and patients. And it requires you to let go of what you think you know.
Continuing to try to persuade audiences through traditional campaigning about why you’re better (in the absence of other efforts), with the use of rational information and comparative data, is just not that important to those you’re trying to connect with.
There are two reasons for this. First, because the harsh reality is that people really don’t care about your organization, per se. What they do care about is how you make them feel about themselves and their decisions, and how much value you add to their lives. It’s their stories that are important, not yours. Second, because those who used to be your “passive audiences” are now “engaged participants” and content creators through social media.
The future of healthcare marketing is not about saying things to caregivers, communities and patients. It is about saying and doing things with them. It is about ATTRACTION MARKETING , compelling them to become more deeply engaged with your brand, while letting you (the healthcare marketer) actually spread your commercial message more effectively.
Today, brands are products of two-way (social) conversations. These conversations are personal and honest, living and breathing. With each conversation made stronger by other conversations, and building value for all parties involved. They result in competitive advantage for your organization, and significant advances in knowledge for your audiences. Each helps the other to reach their full potential.
Yet many in healthcare haven’t embraced this new reality. The reality that it pays from a relationship and financial standpoint to engage in two-way dialogue (i.e. social media). So what’s holding you back? Maybe you’re afraid of the unknown, or that your world is changing. Maybe you’re not comfortable with these new Social tools, or you don’t think you have the time. But to borrow a phrase from Cher in her movie Moonstruck when she slaps Nicholas Cage – “snap out of it”.
Because while you or your organization is hesitant to use social media, consumers actually become more invested in brands that welcome their participation. Simply put, conversations between people do more to build connections beyond your one-way campaigns. And what’s great about Social, and why it’s such a wonderful adjunct to traditional media, is that people can engage in these conversations whenever it’s convenient for them.
Integral to the future of healthcare brand building will be shared, “real-time” interactions and conversations between providers, caregivers, patients and communities. You have the opportunity now to benefit your healthcare organization by involving and empowering these audiences in conversations by being where they are and making it easier for them to connect, get informed and take action.
It’s not a matter of “if”, but “when.” So what are you waiting for?
Social media is bringing us back to the days when conversation, not one-way communication, was the better way to relay a message. I agree that the health care industry is a bit baffled by the best way to use these new tools. I also hope, however, that they embrace them sooner rather than later because they have so much to benefit from them. Even in current campaigns that I’m seeing, health care providers emphasize the importance of the patient relationship. What better way to reinforce that than having a conversation with said patient? Social media is intimidating, but it is definitely executable!
Nicely put, Eric. Wouldn’t it be great if everyone at the top of the food chain would understand the reality of the truth within your post? I’m sure it would make life easier for the hospital / health care marketers we know.
Good stuff.
Kindly,
- Jim
Jessica,
Thanks for stopping by and for taking the time to respond. Much appreciated. Agree with your comments about how social can be a wonderful channel to enhance the patient relationship. Not a matter of “if, but “when.”
Agree. Very well said. “Campaigns” are about manipulating, while conversations treat people with respect. The days of campaigns being successful are dwindling, as the payoff will continue to diminish. Much better to be real.
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Thank you for your insightful blog. What really resonates with me is the need for deeper engagement. It all comes down to trust. If marketers spin a promise that isn’t fulfilled in every encounter, they only end up eroding patient trust. Organizations that manage the patient experience at every moment of truth stand to be far more successful. As for social media, their patients and visitors are talking. Listen and learn.