Healthcare Marketing

Healthcare Marketing: Even the Most Traditional Institutions are Embracing Social Media

There seems to be a rush on high-profile, epic-proportion weddings as of late. Some royal and some not (as in Kardashian), but what do they have in common other than seven figure budgets? The use of social media to promote, organize and disseminate information of course! 

Even The Royal Wedding was a social media savvy event proving that even the most traditional institutions can embrace social media.

The British Monarchy is about as traditional you can get.  Established, stuffy, outdated, staid, clinging to the past and resistant to change would be some of the was you might describe the British Royals.  And it might sound very similar to your hospital.  And that’s why you can’t fully embrace and use social media.

But the Royal Wedding certainly proved even highly traditional institutions can embrace and effectively use social media.   Shonali Burke  outlined some of the ways the royal family used social media to promote the wedding between Prince William and Kate Middleton.

  • Clarence House (named for the official residence of the Prince of Wales) released a steady and strategically timed stream of information from who’s doing the flowers to photographs of those arriving for the event.
  • Created a hashtag to keep tract of wedding wishes coming to the bride and groom via Twitter.
  • Established a Facebook page where one can like the page by sending a RSVP to the wedding.
  • Their Flicker stream was constantly updated.
  • Live-streamed the wedding on YouTube and invited viewers to leave their own video message for the couple.
  • An official Royal Wedding website.

Quite an unexpected turnabout for the kings, queens, princes and princesses of tradition.   They obviously wanted to engage the public and they certainly accomplished that.  And they used the popular mediums of the day.   Certainly there was tremendous traditional media coverage.  That was a given.  But the extensive use of social media is certainly a lesson to learn.

So your hospital and its leadership are traditional.   Let the Monarchy set the example.  True, the royal family has the resources to do it well.  But with a little time, and not much money, healthcare marketers can choose a few of the social networking tools to build relationships and reach an audience that is getting more and more difficult to reach with traditional media.

Surely if one of the most traditional institutions in the world can embrace social media, even the most traditionally-minded hospitals can say “I do.”

 

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

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.

 

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Healthcare Marketing: New Research on Effective Advertising

 

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.

 

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Healthcare Marketing: Social Media Rule One – Start Small

Success in social media is not necessarily having a complex social media strategy with multiple tactics – but it’s doing ONE thing well.

The pressure is on.  Social media is here and here to stay.  It is a new way of doing business and if you are not doing it, you are behind.  And there are so many things to do. Facebook, Twitter, blogging, YouTube and viral marketing just for starters.  And as healthcare marketers we need to be engaged in all of these to be successful.  At least that’s what we are led to believe.

But the fact is that each of these social networking options requires time and effort but few of us have a larger staff or more resources.   Healthcare marketers still have all the responsibilities they’ve always had…and more – in most cases.  And social marketing requires time.  So we are left overwhelmed and confused.  We feel the pressure to become engaged but how do we get it all done?

A bit of advice is to relax a little.  And start small.  It’s impossible to do everything at once.  Even more impossible to do all of them well.  And still keep up with your other important responsibilities.   We all have the long list of things to do and the daunting task of getting them accomplished.  And that list includes multiple social media tactics. But maybe this is the wrong approach.  Perhaps the best thing to do is to start with one thing and do it well.

Brian Sheehan, associate professor of advertising at the Newhouse School Syracuse University gave this advice in a recent article in Ad Age, “since most companies have no new people, just do one thing.  And then do it really well. Once you have mastered this, then – and only then—think about doing a second social media program.”  Forget about the list of 10 things to do to be successful in social media or the seven steps in mastering social media.  For most healthcare organizations that’s totally impractical because it will lead to either paralyzation, because you can’t get it done, or a very weak effort, because you are spread too thin.

Social media is about engaging consumers in meaningful conversations.  That’s it!  And if you do a really good job of that, social networking can be very effective.  And if you don’t do it well, you are better off not doing social media at all.  If we are trying to do too much, more than we can handle, it will not be successful.

Choose what you think would work best for your organization.  The thing you think would engage your audience and best meets the needs of your organization.  The one thing that has the best chance of success.   Choose one thing and do it as well as you can. So let’s get started.  But keep it simple.  Keep it small. Do one thing and do it well.  And if you can’t do it well, don’t do it at all.

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Healthcare Marketing: Television Having a “Senior Moment”

Television is now targeting older adults with its programming.  And is the place to reach aging baby boomers.    

For years television programming has been directed to the coveted 18-49 year olds.  They were the ones most likely to buy products and switch brands.  But that has changed in the land of television watching. The 80 million baby boomers are aging out of this demographic with the oldest ones turning 65 and the youngest ones reaching 47.  And this group is the segment of the market that has money and is willing to spend it on everything from cars to technology to vacations,  unlike other previous aging generations who decreased their spending as they got older.

Look at today’s primetime lineup with shows starring older actors like Tom Selleck, Kathy Bates and Mark Harmon.  And the inclusion of Steven Tyler as an Idol judge.   And older leading stars on House and Modern Family.  The networks are really catering to an older audience.

A recent article in the Wall Street Journal by Amy Chozich cites that boomers average watching 170 hours of television per month, which is five to six hours per day, compared to the overall average of four hours and 49 minutes.  The average age for “NCIS” (the number one rated drama) is 57.  And viewers 55+ make up over 60% of the viewers for “The Good Wife” and “Dancing With The Stars.”

So what does this mean to healthcare marketers?  It means television is a very viable medium for reaching our target audiences.  We know the heaviest users of healthcare services are those who are older.  Boomers are a huge share of the market for hospitals and they will continue to be.  And television effectively reaches them.

Although there has been much talk about the demise of television and competition for screen time from other sources, for reaching healthcare’s largest audience, television is one of the mediums of choice. Sure television’s audience is fragmented but that is actually an advantage because it allows for even more specific targeting.

Seniors and boomers are our largest market.  And in front of television screen is where you will find them.  Boomers are indeed “the TV generation”.   And as they age, television programming is aging with them.

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Healthcare Marketing: Seven Rules of Social Media

Social media success, like most everything, requires mastering the basics.

Social networking can be very helpful to hospitals and healthcare organizations.  And healthcare marketers have used it with varying degrees of success.  But there are some basic rules, which must be followed to build online relationships and leverage the power of social media.

Here are seven fundamentals for social media success:

1. Listen – Social networking for marketers is more about listening and less about talking.  Listen to discover what’s important to your target audience.  Only by listening can you create quality conversation that’s relevant and adds value to your friends and followers.

2. Quality – It’s not about quantity…how many online connections you have.  But more about quality.  It’s better to have a few relationships that value your content and who are loyal than to have thousands you connect initially but never become engaged.

3. Focus – You can’t be everything to everybody.  It’s more important to be narrowly focused providing specifically directed content.  A focus intended to build your brand instead of being too broad and general.

4. Consistency – It’s like any relationship; you can’t be a friend just every-once-in-a-while.  A friend is there consistently.  To have meaningful relationships you need to have frequent contact and dialog.  If you disappear for a while, your followers will leave you for a more reliable relationship

5. Value – People don’t like others who talk about themselves all the time.  A friend must care and bring something worthwhile to the relationship.  You can’t use social networking to always promote your brand or services. It must be about providing something of value.

6. Acknowledgment – People don’t like to be ignored.  If they are ignored for very long, they will find better friends elsewhere.  So when someone reaches out or participates in a conversation, acknowledge them.

7.  Patience – Strong relationships are not built quickly.  And social media success doesn’t happen overnight.  It takes a commitment for the long haul.

As we swim into the waters of social media it’s easy to be overwhelmed and begin to sink.  But as healthcare marketers if we adhere to these basic rules, our likelihood of long-term success is greatly enhanced.

Reference:  Susan Gunelius writing for Entrepreneur Media

 

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Hospital Advertising: Creative and Effective Ads are Not the Same

The ultimate goal of our advertising efforts is to provide information that will ultimately lead to more sells.  

The results are in.  It’s the talk of the advertising community.  The most liked spot in this year’s Super Bowl was a spot featuring a little Darth Vader.   You know the spot.  The five-year-old boy who’s dressed like Darth Vader wanders around the house trying to conjure up The Force to help him.  He has no success until he goes outside and calls on The Force to affect his dad’s car.  And to his surprise The Force is finally with him and the car comes to life.  Of course the viewer sees The Force is actually his dad using the car’s remote ignition button.

It’s a great commercial.  It was ranked as the most liked by Nielsen research.  It has created a tremendous viral following having been viewed on YouTube over 10 million times.   And it has been one of the hottest topics on Twitter and Facebook.  What a success!  But was it?

Do you remember the brand of the car?  The model?  Did it impart any information?  Did it sell anything?  Bob Garfield pointed out in an article in Ad Age that the vast majority of the conversation in social media was about the ad but not about the car.  So was it a great commercial for the brand?

David Ogilvy said, “I do not regard advertising as entertainment or an art form, but as a medium of information.  If it doesn’t sell, it’s not creative.” And there has to be some truth to that principle.  What did we learn about the car in the adorable spot?  That it has a remote ignition system?  Now that’s old news in the car industry.  That is hardly an advantage.  What else did the spot tell us?

We have to be careful we don’t make the same mistake in hospital advertising.  We need to communicate information.  Useful information.  Information that heightens the brand.   Selling is not a bad thing.  After all it is what all our advertising and marketing must ultimately accomplish. It’s not enough to be adorable.  We must sell.

The spot most liked in the latest Super Bowl could have been for any product.  Insert any brand you like.  Yes it’s well liked.  It has become a viral success.  But is that really what Volkswagen wanted to accomplish for its Passat?  If the American consumer remembers who the spot was for maybe they will rush out and buy one.  But then again probably not.

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Healthcare Marketing: 10 Tips for More Effective Social Media Marketing

Scientific research indicates that certain proven strategies can enhance social marketing efforts.

Healthcare marketers are striving to improve their social media efforts.  There are a lot of varying strategies espoused, making it difficult to know which ones are most effective.  Social networking is certainly not a proven scientific endeavor.   There are some basic competencies required, but it also involves some degree of art, intuition and luck.

Dan Zarrela describes himself as an award winning social, search and viral marketing scientist.  He is the author of several books and numerous articles about social media.   He is a noted student of social marketing and is recognized as a knowledgeable expert.

Zarrela posted an article discussing how to make social marketing more scientific. His points are excellent and are the basis of the ten tips listed below:

1.  Experiment with different strategies to discover what works. Conduct your own research.  Try different things and learn what is most effective for your hospital.

2.  Audience size is important. Certainly you want a quality audience but quantity is very important.  Hospitals need engaged followers but also need a large number of them.

3.  Find and target your influencers.  Among your fans/followers there are key influencers.  Usually it’s those who were early adopters of social media.   Extra attention and care should be given to them.

4.  Bigger and louder works – to a point. It’s possible to yell over the social media clutter but only for a limited time.   If you yell too much, you will be tuned out.

5.   Personalize the conversation with your audience.   Make it personal and authentic.  Everyone likes hearing his or her name. And to be the center of attention. Know that!  And use it to your advantage.

6.  Avoid link fatigue.  Don’t wear your audience out with too many links.  Your audience will grow tired and lose interest.

7.  Make your brand cool. I know that’s somewhat difficult for hospitals but find ways to help your audience improve their reputations and status by being associated with your brand.

8.  Avoid information voids. Rumors and misperceptions form when there is a lack of information.  Always get out in front of every potential crisis.

9.   Don’t talk too much about yourself. Take it easy on yourself.  No one wants to be engaged in conversation with someone who talks about himself all the time.   How boring is that!

10.  Use call-to action.  As is true with every type of marketing, you ultimately want your audience to take action. Compel your audience to do so.  And make it easy for them to do so.

Healthcare marketers are  still learning when and how to do social marketing effectively.  And we are learning more and more everyday.   Trial and error and experimentation will teach us a lot.  But learning from those who  have experience and who are avid students of social media can certainly improve our learning curve. That’s why tips listed here are so very helpful.

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Healthcare Marketing: Moms Have Changed… Has Our Marketing?

Today moms are older and more likely to be Hispanic and single.  And because of that our marketing to them has to change.

A key segment for healthcare marketers is women.  Women who are giving birth.  Women with young children.  And today this segment of the market is very different than they were just a few years ago.

In 1970 one in a hundred births were to women 35 and older.  Today it’s one in twelve. According to the National Center for Healthcare Statistics that continues to decline with the number of births falling another 2.6% last year.

The U.S. Census Bureau reports the medium age of marriage for women is now 25.9 years old compared to 22 years old in 1980. But marriage is becoming less of a prerequisite for having children.   Everyday Health cites that almost 40% of births were to unmarried women.  And unlike what one may think, only 23% are to teenagers.    Women in their 20’s made up 60% of unwed mothers and 17% were women in their 30s.  Just 64% of moms are married – leaving over one-third of moms as single.

Additionally, one in four births are to women who are Hispanic. The number of Hispanic births has risen 95% since 1985 while the births of non-Hispanic women has fallen 3%.  A full 20% of moms in the U.S. were not born or raised in this country.

Very interesting stats.  And especially interesting to healthcare marketers.   Traditional stereotypes of moms are basically out the window now.  The faces of moms have dramatically changed and this impacts how we market to moms and potential moms. Who we need to reach and what we need to say is changing. Mediums, tones, styles and content should be re-examined. According to the Marketing to Moms Coalition 42% of moms found ads to be ineffective and 28% found ads directed to moms as fully unappealing!

This creates a tremendous challenge to healthcare marketers.  We have to be sensitive to the changing landscape.  We have to explore new and different ways to speak to these moms.  Their needs are different.  Their perspectives and attitudes are different.  And our marketing should also be different.


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Healthcare Marketing: Don’t Shortchange Your Hospital’s Positioning Statement

Brand positioning statements need to be simple and powerful.  But they also must connect emotionally.  The best ones always do.

What are some of the great positioning statements of all times?   I bet the ones you think of are not one-word slogans.  Most of them are longer, aren’t they?  And you remember them because they tell a story and they are long enough to connect with you emotionally. It seems brand positioning lines are getting shorter and shorter.  Like we have to boil it down to the fewest words possible.  But in doing that we often miss the emotional attachment.

Here are some classic brand positioning statements:

Fed Ex: “When it absolutely, positively has to be there overnight”

Smuckers: “With a name like Suckers , it’s got to be good”

Avis:  “Avis is number 2 in rental cars. So why go with us? We try harder”

Ace Hardware: “Ace is the place with the helpful hardware man”

New York Times: “All the news that’s fit to print”

M&M: “Melts in your mouth, not your hands”

Las Vegas: “What happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas”

Geico: “15 Minutes can save you 15% or more on car insurance”

Secret deodorant: “Strong enough for a man, but made for a woman”

The list could go on and on.  The thing that makes them great is they each tell a story and they connect emotionally.  Sure, all of them could have been shortened and probably communicated the message but they wouldn’t have been emotionally appealing and therefore would have been less memorable.

Imagine these:

Fed Ex: “The overnight company”

Smuckers: “It’s good”

Avis: “We try harder”

Ace Hardware: “The helpful people”

New York Times:  ”All the news”

M&M: “Not messy”

Well get the point?  The power of a brand positioning line is not it’s brevity, but it’s emotional attachment. It doesn’t necessarily mean it has to be long but it does have to connect.  “Just Do It” is not long but connects and there is therefore memorable.  The same can be said for “Diamond are forever” for DeBeers.

Compare the positioning statements of two coffees.  Maxwell House said “Good to the last drop” and had a strong market share. But Folgers with “ The best part of waking up is Folgers in your cup” has grown to dominant Maxwell House.  There are lots of reasons for this but the emotional positioning of Folgers certainly paved the way.

Charmin leads the toilet paper category by using. Mr. Whipple to ask us to “Please, don’t squeeze the Charmin.” The simple word like “please” makes that emotional attachment.  And even President Obama was smart by not just using “Change” as his positioning line but rather the much stronger, “Change we can believe in”

There are thousands of brand positioning lines but the ones we remember speak to both the rational and emotional sides of our brain.  The right and left side.  As healthcare marketers, we too must work really hard to appeal to our audiences both rationally and emotionally. That’s usually not done with a short one or two word positioning line.  It more often than not requires more words.  Words that tell a story and connect emotionally.  Words that speak to the heart as well as the mind.

Al Ries, the father of positioning statements, once cited in an article for AdAge many of these examples and made this point very strongly.  He concluded the article by writing, “When Abraham Lincoln was asked how long a man’s legs should be in proportion to his body, he replied, ‘they ought to be long enough to reach the ground.’  How long should a slogan be?  It should be long enough to reach an emotional connection in the consumer’s mind.”

TotalCom is a full-service marketing agency helping brands like yours tell their story to the right audiences. Email Lori Moore or call TotalCom Marketing Communications at 205.345.7363 to see how TotalCom may be the right fit for you.