Dec

It’s 2011: Is your health brand all it can be?

Do you need to build more relationship and financial value back to your health brand in 2011? Have the past couple of years sapped some of your brand strength?

Start with this 10-point brand checklist for reexamining and refreshing your brand:

1. Customers. Step back to understand what they really want, and whether you’re still feeding their desires and enticing their participation.
2. Brand Idea. Do you need to refine the big idea that defines you, helps you stand out from the crowd and really matters to customers (both inside and outside the organization).
3. Brand-Business Alignment. Is your business thinking and acting differently based on #2.
4. Brand Positioning. Is it focused, compelling and distinguishing, and grounded in #1 and #2.
5. Experience. Are you delivering an “on-brand” experience (pre-during-post use) that reflects your brand story.
6. Engaged Employees. Do they understand how they can contribute to building the brand, and do they possess the motivation and tools to do so.
7. Marketing. Does your marketing reflect this positioning through every possible medium you have at your organization’s disposal.
8. Design Execution. It needs to be brilliant. Make sure you have guidelines in place to drive brand expression.
9. Creating New Value. How can you create more value for your customers — identity value, social value, time value, utility value, etc.
10. Shareholders. Are you using the power of your brand to build shareholder confidence and drive behavior.

Make 2011 the year that you unleash the full power of your brand (and your customers).

Dec

Jones Soda – a role model for health brand marketers

No one needs Jones Soda Co. But people love it.
People need your health brand. But do they love it?

In August 2000, Urban Juice and Soda Company Ltd. officially changed its name to Jones Soda Co (“JONES”). What stands out about the company is that they’ve always truly been led by, and interacting with, their consumer. While many are in the midst of evolving their “rules of engagement,” Jones has been at it for years.

They provide a great example of marketing that builds a brand around customers, on their terms – where, when and how they want. Here’s what I mean:

Where. They initially pursued an alternate distribution strategy in line with the lifestyle of their audiences. They placed their own coolers in unique venues such as skate, surf and snowboarding shops, tattoo and piercing parlors, as well as in individual fashion stores and national retail clothing and music stores. They then began a street “attack” by placing product in convenience and food stores, before achieving larger chain store listings.

When. Jones Pro Riders and Jones Emerging Riders, including extreme pro athletes promote Jones and wear the Jones logo at extreme sporting events across the country. The Jones RVs travel through cities in North America handing out soda and interacting with the people on the street.

How. From the many points of interaction and co-creation on the company’s website, to the recent MyJones Independent Music site, www.myjonesmusic.com, Jones Soda has created a cult-like following.

From their website, you can sign into the guestbook, upload a new label to the photo gallery, visit the webStore, suggest soda flavors, create fortunes found under the caps of Jones sodas, view the U.S. label map and order personalized labels.

Here are some things to learn from Jones about building brand love:

1. It’s clearly Jones. You can’t mistake their products or their marketing. Everything they do is distinctively Jones. Seldom the case with most brands.

2. Coherence vs. consistency. It’s easy to be consistent. But coherence allows Jones to deliver an overarching brand idea in all sorts of ways to the delight of their audience. And as we take in brand content at different times and on different platforms, executional consistency becomes less possible.

3. Creating a cult. Beyond loyal customers, Jones’ customers are active participants in an ongoing process of co-creating new value for themselves and the company – beyond that of other competitors.

4. Packvertising. Jones makes outstanding use of this in-store communications channel, creating real impact, distinctiveness (and advertising) at the over-crowded store shelf. Going back to 2001, they’ve featured 100′s of different fun and original customer contributed labels. FYI, here’s a portion of the label press sheet from November 2010.

5. Loving yourself first. An important driver of pride and connection, according to quantitative research from Interbrand, is “making products and services people are proud of.” By all indications, employees love their Jones brand.

Dec

What healthcare providers can learn from Trader Joe’s

How can your customers love you if you don’t love them? Hint: Experience matters.

I went for my annual physical the other day (everything’s good), followed by a stop at Trader Joe’s on the way home.

Walking into the doctor’s office, I was acknowledged (can’t really say greeted) by someone who barely looked up from her computer screen. She then asked in rapid fire succession my name, if my insurance had changed and if I filled out my pre-exam paperwork. She then instructed me to have a seat (didn’t say please) in the waiting room.

Twenty minutes later, I was shown into the examining room, asked to put on my gown (don’t forget to tie from the back), and told a nurse would be with me shortly to take some information prior to my exam. Because it’s cold (maybe 60 degrees) and the magazines are out-of-date, I actually weigh myself and set the height bar (to keep moving).

Flash forward about an hour. I walk into Trader Joe’s and am greeted by an employee who says “how are you, thanks for shopping at Trader Joe’s.” He then offers me a cookie (funny timing, right after my physical). With cookie in hand, I grab a sample cup of coffee. After walking around for a couple minutes, all five senses fully engaged, I ask an employee where a certain item is in the store. Instead of telling me where it is, he walks me over. You get the idea.

It’s amazing that if Trader Joe’s, roughly an $8 billion company with 340+ stores can treat me like a neighbor — that the physician practice that I’ve been going to for years, can’t do the same.

My advice to healthcare providers, start thinking and acting like Trader Joe’s. Because they realize that customer service and customer support are marketing. And they love their customers.

Dec

Insight for healthcare marketers: which boomers most use social media

Boomers caring for their aging parents are even more heavily reliant on sites like Facebook than boomers in general.

This was an interesting finding from Pew Internet’s most recent study showing that use of networking sites in the 50-plus demographic grew 88% between 2009 and 2010 to 47%. Use among those 65-plus doubled to 26%, making them the fastest growing segment.

Consulting firm Age Lessons partnered with ComScore to further study this result, examining the online habits of 3.8 million boomer caregivers. What they found represents a strong niche opportunity for marketers:

• Estimates of the boomer caregiver population are around 15.5 million out of the 78 million boomers (nearly 20%). Seventy percent of the caregivers doing day-to-day care tasks are women.

• They use social media for 150 minutes per month and view 70% more pages than the average internet user. They’re driven to these sites by several primary reasons, according to the study:

1) Validate and reinforce their feelings. Being a caregiver, especially for your parents, causes all kinds of relationship stresses. Finding other people in similar situations, who also might be part of larger communities, is emotionally and spiritually important for this group.

2) Maintaining and streamlining connections. Taking care of yourself is hard enough work. Taking care of your parents, especially when it happens out of the blue, is a major logistical problem. Using social media to keep up with friends and family can help maintain and streamline connections.

3) Information and advice. The study found that they are more likely to research than buy online, but that they do buy, too. They’re three times as likely as the average boomer to use sites like Yelp and Citysearch before making a purchase.

It pays to engage this demographic (15.5 million strong) through social media. But when you do, consider how you can provide the important and sought-after benefit of a break from the stresses of family-care to self-care. It will be a win-win engagement all around.

Nov

Ben & Jerry’s: insight for healthcare marketers about marketing that matters

We’re not selling you a product. If you believe in the same kind of world we’re committed to helping shape, partner with us to work on the issues together.

Love these comments about honest and authentic marketing from Jerry Greenfield, in this video interview on American Express’s OPEN Forum.

Good insight for healthcare marketers on how to build depth of engagement with your audiences – and earn their loyalty – through marketing that they actually value and want. It’s marketing that builds engagement between your brand and consumers, between consumers and each other, and allows them to see themselves reflected in your ideas and actions.

So, beyond your service lines, your best docs and your recognition – how are you tapping into the passions of your communities and patients?

Nov

Virgin Active: a health brand living its beliefs

Virgin Active Health Clubs just inked a three-year deal for the London Triathlon, to be renamed the Virgin Active London Triathlon.

Here are six brand and customer benefits that I appreciate (as Virgin Active members should) about the new relationship:

1. Brand Values. It reinforces Virgin Active’s values of challenging the norm, having fun, innovation.
2. Helping Members Do More. Virgin Active will help its members train and prepare for the event as part of its sponsorship by launching a range of classes especially tailored for the event –– alongside the clubs staging their own indoor triathlon next year.
3. Promoting Participation. Being the world’s largest event of its type, it encourages a wide range of people of all fitness levels, from beginner to elite, to get involved and try it for themselves.
4. A Different Triathlon Experience. Participants (and spectators) can expect a uniquely Virgin Active Triathlon experience and spirit beyond that of other triathlons.
5. Engagement In A Uniquely Virgin Way. Owning this event helps Virgin connect to its audiences in ways that other health clubs can’t. And it provides Virgin the opportunity to extend this engagement (in ways that are meaningful and compelling to members) for years to come.
6. Reflecting Positively on Virgin Active Members. Virgin’s sponsorship of the triathlon, while enhancing Virgin’s image, also reflects positively on Virgin Active members self-image.

Nov

Drive Savers: How to be indispensable to customers

I hope you never need Drive Savers. But if you do, you’ll be glad they exist.

Drive Savers Data Recovery helps organizations all over the planet “optimize the chances of a successful data recovery while offering the ultimate customer service experience.” Unfortunately, we needed to reach out to them last week. But the good fortune to have the company there when we needed them.

Here are some things that stand out about the company:

1. It starts with the advantage of being truly indispensable to clients, and the long-term sustainable competitive advantage this provides.
2. Commitment to outstanding customer service, despite the fact that being “indispensable” could easily translate into a mentality of they need us more than we need them.
3. Always available when you need them. You can reach a Drive Savers Data Recovery Advisor any time of day.
4. Customer empathy. Their Data Recovery Advisors know you’re at risk, and are sensitive to approaching the situation through your eyes and understanding your state of mind.
5. Telling their story through their customers. Go the website and browse their Hall of Fame where you can meet 50 or so celebrities who turned to the company to get saved. Or visit their Museum of Bizarre Disk-Asters, and read the headlines about the company’s Disaster Strikes recoveries. Both are indicative of the company’s very human and approachable voice.
6. Actions that reinforce company beliefs. Over the course of the week, a steady stream of communications reflected what the company states they believe in and care about.

Nov

Eight questions to a stronger healthcare brand portfolio

You can’t excel across all service lines. You certainly can’t support them all. But despite this (forgetting all the politics and compromising), internal teams keep churning out new branded services.

Here are eight questions that will start your organization on its way to building a stronger portfolio that builds maximum relationship value for your audiences and maximum financial value for your organization:

1. Strategic Fit. Does the portfolio help achieve and support your longer-term strategic priorities?
2. Support Priority Businesses. Does it support the businesses that contribute to driving volume and reputation?
3. Brand Value. Does the portfolio reinforce and help build brand equity?
4. Brand Synergy. Is there a clear relationship between the brands?
5. Customer Value. Does the portfolio meet the needs of your customers?
6. Customer Opportunity. Do your brands invite the customer relationships you want?
7. Other Stakeholders. Does the portfolio meet their needs; and not sacrifice business and brand priorities?
8. The Organization. Do the brands work together to build value back to the organization?

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category / healthcare

It’s 2011: Is your health brand all it can be?

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