Hospital Marketing: Politics Teaches Valuable Lessons about Social Media

February 17, 2012

 A “like”, “follow” or “re-tweet” is not necessarily a brand endorsement.  

As healthcare marketers begin to experiment and utilize social media, questions arise about how to measure its effectiveness.   Some would argue that a “likes” and  “followers” are an indication of brand endorsement.   Well politics may be teaching us that’s not necessarily true.

Micah Sifry reporting for CNN,  examines the impact of social media on the current GOP presidential campaign.  What he discovered is there really is no valid correlation between twitter buzz and Facebook followers to a candidate’s success at the polls.

There is a lot of monitoring of each of the candidate’s social media activity.  It is natural to assume a growth in the number of followers and a high occurrence of re-tweets are both indicative of support and success.  But actually, the actual votes at the polls show that social media activity appears to be more an indication of notoriety and celebrity.

Herman Cain had a great following on Facebook and created a tremendous amount of social network activity (although admittedly some of it was negative) but he is no longer in the race.  Newt Gingrich’s 1.4 million followers on Twitter would indicate strong grassroots popularity and support. But a closer view shows half of those accounts are outside the US and half the accounts are inactive.  His number of accounts is a function of longevity and notoriety.  Rick Santorun’s early success came from social activity but not the online kind.  His support came from social activity even more local and personal than online social networks.  It was the work of the evangelical church.  And his surprise showing overloaded his website and he was not ready to fully take advantage of his success.

Clay Johnson seems to be prophetic by stating in his book The Information Diet, there are empty information calories and to eat them is to do so at your own risk, for they can make you really dumb. In other words a link, or a follow, or a retweet is about as meaningful as a glance or a nod and certainly not an endorsement.

As healthcare marketers we are tempted to believe the notion that social media activity or likes or links are indications of brand endorsement and loyalty.  We often tout our social media success by citing such numbers. But if the current political campaigns teach us any thing, it’s that these conclusions are not necessarily true.

We shouldn’t ignore social media.  We should embrace it as a legitimate marketing tool.  But the numbers for number sake shouldn’t fool us. The effectiveness of social media is difficult to measure.  We are still learning how to interpret the data and how viable the data actually is.

“Likes”, “followers” and “re-tweets” may just simply indicate a fairly low level of interest.  The real challenge is converting those glances or nods into something useful.

Leave a Comment » | Branding, Social Media | Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Permalink
Posted by Jimmy Warren

Healthcare Marketing: Online is NOT for Branding

November 21, 2011

Online advertising has proven to be effective as a direct response medium but not so much for brand building. 

More eyeballs are turning to the web.  No one can argue that.  And they are spending more time looking at the web.  So does it make sense to follow those numbers and try to build a brand with internet advertising?  Probably not.  Online advertising is great at direct response.  We all look at the web to find where to buy something or where a business is located or how to contact a business.   That’s why the yellow pages are now on the web and is replacing the printed book.   But is it effective building a brand?

Alan Pearlstein, president of Cross Pixel Media wrote in Ad Age that the “internet sucks as a branding medium.”  And he makes some compelling arguments.  He argues that brand building is an emotional endeavor.  The desire for every brand is to build an emotional connection with the consumer.  Television does that very effectively.  Print can do it.  But not internet advertising.   Because online advertising is limited in size and format, it’s not effective at brand building.   He argues that no advertising medium has proven to be effective at both direct response and branding.  And online is no exception.

It’s important as healthcare marketers, to understand that each advertising medium has their own strengths.   TV creates an emotional impact, magazines provide the environment for stunning images and print provide the opportunity for long copy and storytelling.   Direct mail is great at direct response.

So what are the strengths of online advertising?  It is great at building name recognition.  It has a low cost for exposure.  It reaches a very wide audience.   It’s great for supplementing a campaign with reach and frequency within a target audience.  But branding is not one of its strengths.  Online advertising, limited in size, not very engaging and usually within a cluttered environment is not strong for brand building.  It is complimentary to more emotional and engaging mediums.

Share

Leave a Comment » | Branding | Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , | Permalink
Posted by Jimmy Warren

Healthcare Marketing: 5 Ways to Improve Your Hospital’s Brand

October 25, 2011

Your hospital will live or die by its brand.  What can help make your brand stronger?  Here are five tips to improve your hospital’s brand.

Here are excerpts from an article from Becker’s Hospital Review by Lindsey Dunn after interviewing Steve Rivkin, founder, Rivkin & Associates, a healthcare branding and communications consultancy, and co-author of Repositioning: Marketing in an Era of Competition, Change and Crisis (McGraw-Hill, 2010).

1. Think of your brand as a promise. A hospital’s brand is a promise of what the consumer should expect and how the hospital will perform.  Think about a brand in the same way as a person’s reputation. You earn a good reputation by doing the right thing, doing it well, and doing it consistently. And just like a reputation, a brand is a living entity — it evolves, and it is enriched or undermined by your actions.

2. Understand your strengths, weaknesses. Any hospital’s branding efforts should begin with an understanding of its market share, strengths, weaknesses and consumers’ perception and beliefs about its services. Consumer research should ask community members what they think is important when choosing a hospital, how the hospital is perceived and how it compares to competing facilities.  This research will reveal if the hospital is preferred, and if it isn’t preferred, will give some indication of why it’s not preferred.

Mr. Rivkin notes that consumer perceptions don’t always match reality, but it’s perceptions that influence volume.
It’s action first, communications second.  Eighty-five percent of changing a perception is what you actually do, and only 15 percent is what you say about it.

3. Differentiate. After identifying areas of strength and improvement, hospitals should determine what differentiates it from competitors and whether that point of differentiation is important to consumers. Potential differentiators include:

•    The patient experience— for instance, best customer service/patient satisfaction scores in the market;
•    Centers of excellence for specific service lines;
•    Heritage/history in a community;
•    Highest rated physicians;
•    Industry awards received (top hospital lists, Magnet status, etc.);
•    Newest technology/cutting-edge procedures; and
•    Widest range of services in market area.

4. “Sell” the brand to employees first. After determining how a hospital will position itself, hospital leaders should sell that identity or brand first to its employees. “Your workforce is a critical part of a branding program. Everything starts with your own people. Don’t expect to persuade the folks outside about much of anything, unless the people inside believe it first.”

5. Market the brand and connect it to the bottom line. After gaining buy-in from employees, hospitals should take their branding messages to the public through public relations efforts, advertising, direct marketing and other methods. Hospital marketers should be careful to quantify the results of all efforts.  Measuring return on investment will direct hospitals toward the most effective marketing tactics.

Your brand is one of your hospital’s most valuable assets.  Great attention should be given to its care. The stronger the brand the more successful your hospital will be.

 

 

Share

Leave a Comment » | Branding | Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Permalink
Posted by Jimmy Warren

Healthcare Marketing: 10 Myths of Social Media Marketing

October 24, 2011

Healthcare executives have many misperceptions about social media.  Here’s debunking 10 of the most common ones that commonly undermine business strategies according to  Garreth Bloor, writing for memeburn.

It’s worthwhile to look at these myths as they apply to healthcare marketing.  

  • Myth 1: “Social Marketing is great because it’s free.”

Even if social media doesn’t cost very much, it does require a tremendous investment of time and energy.  And healthcare marketers have very little time to commit to new projects.  Especially ones that will be ongoing and continual.

  • Myth 2: “Everyone’s doing it, so I need to.”

Even though so many have jumped on the social media bandwagon, many are not doing it well.   Doing it half-hearted or without a clear objective and strategy could do more harm than not participating at all.

  • Myth 3: ” I can just post our press releases on social media.
”

Not really.  It requires much more. The social environment is not another platform for you to promote your hospital.  Rather it’s a place to take part in a conversation, in people’s everyday conversation and be there to provide useful information to your readers on their terms.

  • Myth 4: “I need to be everywhere, dominating every type of social media.”

Not true.  Be present where your patients and potential patients are.  And do only what you can do well.  The best thing healthcare marketers can do is to invest your time and energy into one or two sites your audience use regularly.

  • Myth 5: “Twitter is a tool for egomaniacs to tell people what they had for breakfast.”

This a myth coined accurately by journalist Eric Rice. However, as her research has found, tweeting gives your hospital a more “human” face.  They can see your brand personality.  Twitter helps turn your organization.  Appealing and engaging.

  •  Myth 6: “Facebook is more for my kids, not for my business.
”

Facebook ‘ fastest growing audience is women 40+ It has become a very adult medium. It allows you to enhance that “human” feeling with photos, helpful healthy tips and ongoing discussions with your customers.

  • Myth 7: “Social media won’t take much time.
”

An estimate of 1-2 hours per day may be required to actively participate in the conversations being conducted and created on social media. A busy healthcare marketing director will not likely be able to effectively maintain a social presence if it becomes just another task on the “to do” list.

  • Myth 8: “The threat of receiving negative public posts and complaints is too high
.”

Consumers are already commenting in their offline and online social circles. It’s better to be part of the conversation so you can strategically defend your brand and respond in a timely way to problems. Being where the discussion is allows you to address existing problems and discover brewing issues before they get out of hand.

  • Myth 9: “This thing’s useless – I tried it for a month and it didn’t work.”

Social marketing doesn’t give you instant, measurable results.  It will take time for people to find you, warm up to you, and start adding to your conversations.

  • Myth 10: “Our customers don’t use social media sites.”

The audience is there and they’re going to have their conversations with or without you.  Take your primary target demo and look how many within your marketing area use social media.  It’s easy to research and you might be surprised.

For healthcare marketers, participating in social media is not easy.  It requires a commitment of time and energy.  And perhaps dispelling some of the myths will be helpful. 

 

Share

2 Comments | Social Media | Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Permalink
Posted by Jimmy Warren

Hospital Marketing: An Ad is an Ad is an Ad, Right?

October 12, 2011

Placement of web ads greatly influences effectiveness.

Ads that appear on the first screen of a user’s browser window above the fold have been found to be most effective.  Research by Casale Media has shown that ads above-the fold can be seven times more effective at generating click-through than ads below the fold.

Casale analyzed nearly 2 billion ad impressions and found that users were three to four times more likely to act on an ad if it is the first or second ad they see during their session.   As the consumer continues to browse, ad effectiveness continues to diminish.

As reported in Media Post, repetition is proven to increase effectiveness. Ads seen five times or more by a consumer were 12 to 14 times more effective than ads seen less than five times.

The research also indicated that ads appearing on cluttered sites lose effectiveness.  Ads surrounded by photo galleries or clusters of other ads were much less effective.  And ads may not be seen at all when displayed on a web site that uses auto-refresh mechanisms to inflate impressions.

As hospital marketers we have long known the importance of ad placement.  We are careful which radio stations to buy and what time periods.  We buy the most watched or most cost effective television programming.  We buy specific placement in magazines. We ride outdoor locations to choose the very best addresses. And we often complain about the placement of our ads in the newspaper.

But many times in placing our hospital’s adverting on websites we have been much less particular.   That is partially because we have not known much about ad placement and the ad effectiveness on the web.   We have had our intuitions but research like the kind conducted by Casale is beginning to give us the reliable information we’ve needed.  And what we are finding is ad placement on the web is just as critical for effectiveness as every other medium.

So as hospital marketers increasingly utilize web advertising it’s important to know where the ad will be seen and in what type of environment.  There are many websites with lots of traffic but designed in such a way that makes the ads placed on the site much less effective than sites with less traffic.

And it’s still true that frequency matters.  Repetition and frequency is just as important on the internet as it is in other mediums.  It’s only effective if we commit enough to make sure it is seen and seen often.

 

Share

1 Comment | Internet | Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , | Permalink
Posted by Jimmy Warren

Healthcare Marketing: Is it Best to be a Hospital or Medical Center?

July 29, 2011

How many hospitals are left?  Scores of hospitals over the past decade or two have changed their name from hospital to medical center.  The thought was that the term “hospital” was old-fashioned and outdated.   Therefore many rushed out and changed their name to the much-preferred and trendy “medical center”. 

But what do consumers prefer?

A national survey of 1027 adults indicated that hospital is the preferred term.   This is very interesting.  Obviously hospitals changed their names without checking what consumers thought.  It’ll be interesting to see if the trend turns back toward medical facilities being referred to as hospitals.   Who knows?

This is really not a major issue.  But it does point out how hospital marketers, administrators and marketing consultants sometimes make recommendations without understanding the attitudes and perspectives of the consumer.  Decisions that do not  consider the consumer can  sometimes prove quite costly.

 

Share

2 Comments | Branding | Tagged: , , , , , , , | Permalink
Posted by Jimmy Warren

Healthcare Marketing: New Research on Effective Advertising

July 19, 2011

 

It’s been said that half of the advertising we do is wasted.  Research proves that’s true.  But which half?  

Research conducted by Gerald Tellis and colleagues, and reported in Advertising Age, attempted to discover how advertising works. And its effectiveness.  Their findings are very interesting and provide useful information for healthcare marketers.

  • About half of all ads are simply ineffective.  This means the ads that are effective are twice as effective.
  • Advertising v. Sales. A 10% increase in advertising generally leads to a 1% increase in sales.
  • Short-term vs. long-term. There is no need to start a new campaign until the old one has completely run its course.   It is also true that advertising is ineffective in the short-term it will be ineffective in the long-term also.
  • Advertising is more effective in a recession than in expansions. The likely reason for this is that many advertisers cut back during recessions so therefore there is less noise.
  • TV advertising is more effective than print advertising. Television is more visual and outperforms print.
  • Advertising remains a powerful means for reaching consumers. Advertising has helped launch new products and services, created new markets and built great brands.

As all healthcare marketers know, advertising is effective but it’s always interesting to examine the findings of advertising research.  The strongest testaments to advertising are the times we have effectively used it to accomplish our marketing goals.  It is a very dynamic yet imprecise discipline.  But when used correctly it can render outstanding results.  At least half the time.

 

Share

1 Comment | Hospital Advertising | Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , | Permalink
Posted by Jimmy Warren

Healthcare Marketing: Social Media or Traditional Media? The Answer is “YES”

July 16, 2011

Pepsi committed to a heavy investment in social media and they not only lost ground to Coke, they fell to third place behind Diet Coke.

Coke or Pepsi?  That is an age-old question.  The battle between the two soft drinks has been the longest running and, at times, the most competitive marketing battle in the history of branding.  And last year the battle took an interesting turn.

Pepsi announced that after 10 years they were dropping their investment in the Super Bowl and were putting half their budget into social media.   The strategy was their Pepsi Refresh Project.   They committed to Facebook, Twitter, live Ustream video and iPhone apps and encouraged consumers to suggest social causes that would “refresh the world”.  Using social media, consumers could vote for their favorite causes and Pepsi would donate millions to the ones chosen and use social media to promote the positive impact of those donations.  Traditional media was used to promote the social media effort.

Mark Ritson recorded the results for Marketing Week  and they were impressive.

Eighty million votes were cast; Pepsi accumulated 60,000 followers on Twitter and 4 million “likes” on Facebook.  In contrast Coke stayed with traditional media and advertised in the Super Bowl and on American Idol.

Great success right?  Well after all the conversation about Pepsi’s revolutionary marketing approach, Pepsi’s sales began to decline.  And Coke’s didn’t.  Pepsi lost 5% market share which translated into a decline of a half billion dollars in sales.  And perhaps for the first time in history, Pepsi gave up the number two position and fell behind Diet Coke. 

So what does this mean for healthcare marketers?  Does it mean social media is worthless?  No.  There are far too many social media successes to make such a conclusion.  But I think it does mean the advantages of social media have been significantly exaggerated.  And it also means traditional media is not dead.

Social media is a tool, a very useful one – in a brand’s integrated marketing mix. It should be considered, and in many instances, part of the marketing mix.  But social media is not the ONLY real thing.


Share

Leave a Comment » | Social Media | Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , | Permalink
Posted by Jimmy Warren

Hospital Marketing: Word of a Bad Patient Experience Travels Fast…

July 13, 2011

Bad news travels fast… How fast? Who is most likely to talk negatively about your brand?

There is a renewed emphasis in healthcare today on patient experience.  And there should be!  Because if a person has a bad experience at a hospital, they will most likely spread the word.  Over 75% of consumers tell about bad experiences to their family and friends.  Certainly more than the 42% who would recommend a product or service they really like.  This according to LoyaltyOne’s COLLOQUY report.

The study also found that even 31% of loyal advocates of a brand would pass along information concerning bad experiences they’ve had with that brand.   “One lesson is clear, hell hath no fury like a Champion scorned,” stated COLLOQUY managing partner Kelly Hiavinka.  News about bad experiences travels and travels fast.  In fact, less than one-fourth of all bad experiences are kept quiet.  Affluents are more likely to spread the bad news than any other group.  Seniors are the least likely.  Young adults and women are strong spreaders as well.

There’s just little chance a bad experience won’t make the rounds.  So each bad experience is multiplied.  And a series of bad experiences can certainly damage a hospital’s image and reputation.  And note that it takes many more positive experiences to make up for the bad ones.

Marketing of your hospital is essential.  And very useful.  But it can’t make up for bad experiences.  And the consumer has so many avenues to share the bad news.  It’s not just word of mouth anymore; it’s all the conversations in social media that can quickly spread the unhappy news about a brand.  Hundreds or even thousands of others can read one bad word on a social networking site.   Much more than just a casual conversation with friends or acquaintances.

So the best thing a hospital can do for its brand is minimize the bad experiences. Even in healthcare, customer service is essential to a brand’s health.  A hospital can have the latest technology, the best doctors and the finest facilities, but if it delivers bad service the brand will suffer.  It will create a chain of conversation that will be difficult to counter and overcome.  Today’s emphasis on customer service and customer satisfaction is certainly well placed.

 

Share

Leave a Comment » | Branding, Patient Experience | Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Permalink
Posted by Jimmy Warren

Healthcare Marketing: Six Steps to Break Through Social Media Clutter

April 29, 2011

Here are six basic strategies for using social media effectively without being overwhelmed. 

Healthcare marketers are wading in and getting their feet wet in social media.  There is a very large audience on social media and many of them are open to establishing meaningful and useful relationships with brands.  Especially around topics that are important to them.  And healthcare is certainly one of them.

But there is so much noise in social media.  Like practically all mediums, it’s difficult to be noticed, to be heard above all the noise.  And marketers are also finding, as they begin to utilize social media, it can be all consuming.  It can become a monster that constantly needs to be fed.

So how can you establish or enhance your brand and build meaningful relationships, breaking through the clutter but not letting it consume you?  Dave Olsen, the Community Marketing Director at HootSuite,, writing for TalentZoo.com, outlined several tips for social media effectiveness.  Here are six strategies drawing from his comments.

1.    Start by Listening

Listen to those active on social media.  Listen to what they are saying.  Learn about their desires, concerns, behaviors and attitudes.  Listen with a discerning ear to learn.  And you can respond to relevant comments with advice, information, tips, concerns, etc.  Do not try to sell.  Just engage them when appropriate.

2.    Reach out to Influencers

Engage those who can be influencers.  Build relationships with them and then ask them to share their experiences with others.

3.    Instant Focus Group

You can get instant feedback to just about any question you may have.   New service, proposed changes, patients’ concerns can all be discovered by asking for feedback.  It can provide very valuable input.

4.    Learn about Competitors

Listen to what’s being said about your competitors.  Set up a system to retrieve comments being made about your competitors.  This information can be very helpful intelligence alerting you to changes, new initiatives and issues concerning your competitors.  And it can help you identify new opportunities.

5.    Early Warning System

Rumors, negative comments, criticism, bad reviews can all be very damaging.  You need to be listening to the conversations and weigh in appropriately.  By being aware of what being said about your brand, you have the opportunity to address falsehoods, correct misconceptions and squelch rumors.

6.    Play Party Host

There are all types of people who comment on social media.  Your role is to keep the conversation going.  Make sure everyone is civil and behaves appropriately.   Create the tone.  Make sure it’s helpful and consistent with your brand.

These tips are simple strategies that can help you utilize social networking sites.  They can be implemented without requiring a burdensome amount of effort – but yet be very effective.


Share

Leave a Comment » | Social Media | Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , | Permalink
Posted by Jimmy Warren

« Previous Entries
Follow

Get every new post delivered to your Inbox.

Join 78 other followers