Healthcare Success

Three community-minded ideas that your hospital might want to “borrow.” Plus an enjoyable, and completely unique, billboard concept that you probably won’t be able to steal. The Affordable Care Act rollout continues to inspire ideas that promote wellness and healthy living. Hospitals, medical centers—and in some instances group medical practices—are increasingly open to various ways […]

Empowered patients, engagement and satisfaction are the new watchwords of Internet marketing for healthcare. But it can be challenging to know who’s pleased with your medical website, and just as importantly, who’s not so happy. Here’s a new and useful way to test the waters in real-time. Google Consumer Surveys has extended a helping hand […]

[SHSMD13 Podcast Series] In a few months, 2014 will be the tipping point--when the most significant components of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) take effect...with strategic implications for hospitals and healthcare providers. In another in our continuing series of healthcare industry podcasts, Marc Sauve, Senior Healthcare Strategist with Gresham, Smith and Partners, talked with Healthcare Success […]

I have to admit that I have a reputation for being a bit “attention deficit,” especially in meetings with my internal team members. Like Dug, the talking dog in the Disney/Pixar movie UP, I can easily get distracted. (Squirrel!) Take 20-seconds to meet Dug in this clip from this Academy Award-winning animated feature.

We often advise our clients that a professional website requires regular “care and feeding.” To remain visible, viable and effective as a marketing tool, it’s vitally important to regularly add fresh and interesting content and remove dated material. The upkeep and maintenance allows you to stay “friendly” with search engine algorithms and avoid visitor habituation. […]

If you don’t include cave paintings (30,000 BC) or variations of ancient Egyptian picture writing (3200 BC), sometime in the 1960’s a blending of “information” and “graphic” produced the contemporary adjective INFOGRAPHIC. By definition, infographics are graphic, visual representations of information, data or knowledge. Admittedly, our thumbnail profile oversimplifies the rich legacy of—by various names—information […]

Be careful what you say. The words and images that you use might be working against you, or at least producing unexpected (and undesirable) “message meaning.” It’s elementary mar-com 101, but you might be amazed at how often some folks neglect the receiver-side of the communications loop. Sometimes it’s an innocent oversight, or unexpected consequence, […]

[One in a series of posts about finding and using free, low-cost, affordable and effective tactics to make your medical marketing sizzle without breaking the bank.] In our experience, “marketing-on-the-cheap” has never been a useful or effective solution to anything. Over the years, we’ve often received an urgent call after some well-meaning (but ill-advised) stabs […]

Two interesting items in the online news caught our attention recently. Both were serious reports from the business world about the comparative effectiveness of search engines, social media and email. Both were completely credible, widely circulated, and good fodder for strategic thinking and planning. The contrasting information asks and answers vital questions. With an equal […]

“With the diagnostic and treatment techniques available today, successful and safe treatment of venous disease conditions is the norm,” according to Dr. Steven Zimmet, President of the American Board of Venous and Lymphatic Medicine (ABVLM). “Yet many patients don’t realize this, and many physicians in other fields and disciplines are not aware of this.” In our […]

LinkedIn just keeps getting better. Early iterations of the professional networking platform were a step or two above an online resume with interactive connections. Functional and good for a start, but decidedly lackluster. Over time—particularly in the last year or so—LinkedIn has muscled its way up the value ladder as a power player among social […]

With 30 million prospective new patients just over the healthcare horizon, hospitals and other provider organizations are rethinking service channel opportunities. (And alliances perhaps.) Retail medical clinics, as one example, appear to be trending from competitive “foe to friend” on many marketing plans. A recent business study by consulting firm Accenture indicates that the number […]

A few weeks ago, when we spoke with Dr. James Merlino, Chief Experience Officer of the Cleveland Clinic, he was looking forward to the upcoming Patient Experience: Empathy + Innovation Summit. In that conversation, he told us, “Patient experience impacts all of us, and the only way healthcare organizations can get better is to share […]

[Series Installment] Our recent post in this series declared the “Gen-Y” population group to be the “biggest ever” slice of the population. It turns out that “biggest” depends on who’s doing the slicing. Take a look at the Jones crowd. Medical marketing professionals need to keep up with the Jones Generation cohort, a “sweet spot” […]

Nothing personal, but most corporate CEOs don’t have a high opinion of their own marketing team. They think operate in a “marketing-la-la-land” and don’t have their shoulders into the heavy lifting of “generating, tracking and boosting customer demand.” We’d like to hear what you think about this study. How does the working relationship among hospital […]

Broadcast advertising—both radio and television—have been evolving as choice media options for many advertisers. Placement opportunities are up, costs are reasonable, and results can be strong. To illustrate, we wrote recently about how it might surprise you to find that television is still an effective beast.   

Personally, I’d jump at the opportunity to learn about business at the right hand of Bill Gates, Chairman and co-founder of Microsoft. That would be an insightful brain-picking session. It would be on par with talking about business with Berkshire Hathaway Chairman and CEO Warren Buffet. But can you imagine a meeting between two of […]

We’ve been working on redesigning and refreshing our marketing information newsletter. And since the subject of newsletter content and construction was top of mind for us, we wanted to share a few how-to tips about the process. Not long ago we conducted a Reader Survey that was open to our 15,000+ subscribers. The responses helped […]

[One of a Series] Millennials are a significant slice of the population that’s important to healthcare professionals. And if they are not a consideration in your marketing game plan today, they definitely will be soon. Disclosure: I’m outside of the age parameters of the Millennial Generation. I’m pretty sure about that, but the trouble is […]

Our office sign contest a while ago spawned the following case study from a subscriber about success with attention-getting vehicle graphics—know in the trade as "wraps"—for healthcare marketing. Public Relations Specialist Kandice Dickinson shares the particulars in this guest post.

The numbers are simply painful. On the face of it, you’ve got to wonder if social media—and Facebook in particular—is worth the time and effort. “Only about 1 percent of fans ever return to your actual Facebook page after they’ve liked it,” according to Contagious Content, an eBook by author Brian Carter and the software […]

By Stewart Gandolf, MBA, CEO, Healthcare Success The Internet and social media presence of a physician is the sum of what most prospective patients know about you and your professional reputation. Here’s the “why-and-how” about using these tools to your marketing advantage. You’ve heard at least a dozen reasons why physicians dismiss—or steer a cautious […]

I had to look up the provenance for: “Life is what happens to you while you're busy making other plans.” The attribution—so says GoodReads.com—is Allen Saunders, American writer, journalist and cartoonist…from 1957. And, while the reformation of healthcare continues at a lightening pace, it’s a timely planning reminder for medical marketing to consider how things […]

[Podcast] Today’s installment in our continuing series of healthcare and hospital marketing interviews spotlights University of Utah Health Care, a leading academic medical center in Salt Lake City. Healthcare Success Co-Founder and Hospital Division Director Lonnie Hirsch discusses AMC marketing issues with Senior Director of Marketing Dennis Jolley. When University of Utah Health Care began […]

Be forewarned, this is an “elephant in the room” post about dealing with difficult patients. It’s a common situation and a sensitive topic. And if you’re uncomfortable confronting the problem, or dealing with challenging, dependent, manipulative, noncompliant, upset and/or time-sucking patients…then read no further.

We've noticed that the most successful doctors and executives that we work with are constantly hungry for new information. By any of various names, continuing education is part of their personal fabric, something to be exercised daily, if not hourly. But what providers and administrators do for themselves, they sometimes overlook providing the value of […]

A prospective doctor’s long and arduous education has often been all about medicine, with precious little training or experience in the business of running a business. No sooner than a newly minted MD hangs out a shingle, but he or she is hit squarely in the face with the reality that “Healing is an art, […]

There’s something a bit institutional or simply conventional about how healthcare usually connects with patients. Hospitals and providers build many of their marketing and communications efforts around engaging slices of their target audience. While there’s nothing wrong with convention, creative and successful medical marketing lessons can be found in unconventional sources. Objectives include communicating a […]

About the time the Affordable Care Act (often labeled Obamacare) was enacted a few years ago, the trend in hospital physician hiring took a distinct upswing. Various data sources that track the whereabouts of doctors generally agree that we’ve passed a tipping point. About 50 to 60 percent of physicians now work for a hospital-owned […]

While making a professional call on a doctor’s office the other day, a colleague of ours watched $5,000 walk out the door. The small-but-painful drama that unfolded in the reception area is worth retelling if our experience can save other medical practices from losing patients and revenue. It was a real-world lesson in physician and […]

[Second of two articles.] Read our previous post on the topic of transparent prices among hospitals, How to be Named the Costliest Hospital in the Nation. When the federal government opened the books to the public on hospital prices, the unprecedented transparency came as a shock to many facilities and industry executives. And this visibility […]

Editor’s note: This article covers secrets about Search Engine Optimization. It is another in our series about how to get found on the Internet. We have a personal question for you. Have you ever "Googled yourself?" More to the point, when patients from your town search online for the services that you provide, does your […]

It’s no surprise to any of us that we remember situations that have exceeded our expectations. It’s that unexpected bit of delight or reward that we experienced at a (now favorite) restaurant, in seeing an entertaining movie, or even while doing a bit of retail shopping.

The most expensive hospital in the nation is in New Jersey, according to The New York Times. “The Bayonne Medical Center charged Medicare the highest amounts for about a quarter of the most common treatments, a Times analysis of 2011 data shows.”

The fashionable (ie snooty) retail clothing industry has more than a few elite and upscale brands. Abercrombie & Fitch (A&F) is one of those labels. But in the media recently, their uber-appeal to “the cool kids” crowd sounded abrasive, and offensive to many. But nearly buried in all the negative press coverage are some valuable […]

More than a few marketing-savvy hospitals have grown from a simplistic and static Web presence to a dynamic, multi-layered Internet encounter with their many audiences and various messages. It’s getting tougher all the time to constantly juggle the competing digital demands, messages and methods. And “constrained resources” can’t be allowed to chisel away at service […]

One of the most powerful concepts we know and teach is the Pareto Principle (aka The 80-20 Rule). In1906, Italian economist and avid gardener Vilfredo Pareto established that 80% of the land in Italy was owned by 20% of the population. While gardening he later observed that 20% of the peapods in his garden yielded […]

Hospital executives say they are increasing their digital marketing budgets to reach and influence doctors. Close to 30 percent (on average, about $13,000) is aimed at physicians, and the balance targets consumers for the typical small hospital budget. This data comes from an informative report available from UBM Medica US. Among the findings, hospitals—like other […]

Have you noticed the recent wave of TV commercials for one-to-one video calling (Apple Facetime), or multiple participation (GoToMeeting) video collaboration, or one-to-many webcasting? In business, it’s all as close, convenient and immediate as your smart phone, tablet or laptop. For personal and small business uses the service is free or low cost and it's […]

At times, the wildly popular attention to Internet marketing (according to, well…the Internet) seems to ignore “traditional” media. It’s as if television advertising is a laughable relic that only your grandparents recall. What’s more, there’s no place for TV in a healthcare marketing plan. Opps...wrong! Log off the "digital darling" fixation for the next two […]

Five quick search engine optimization techniques to recognize if your healthcare website needs help with search ranking—to attract more visitors and win new patients. Here's a quick assessment tool for your healthcare website. Internet Search Engines, like Google, decide how high your site will be listed on a mountain of search results. Sophisticated computer programs-spiders, […]

On an ordinary day many small- to mid-size community hospitals struggle to compete, remain independent…or even keep their doors open at all. But as provisions and affects of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) continue to rollout, the challenges are increasingly severe.

Physicians have been quick to embrace online technology personally, but on the practice and profession side, they have approached social media, blogs, email (and sometimes Internet marketing) slowly and with an understandable measure of caution.

For hospitals, health systems and practitioners, “patient experience” has gone from trendy buzzwords to strategic imperative. In fact, the totality of patient experience and satisfaction is a top-tier issue for individual providers, hospitals, group medical practices and executive decision-makers. With these folks in mind--just about everyone--the following are 10 Top Patient Experience articles, including best […]

Human emotions are probably the strongest reason for someone to LIKE, SHARE or COMMENT on Facebook (or almost any social media for that matter.) Sure, there are many posts that inform or educate, others that reward, a few that tempt or tease the page visitor. But the lesson for healthcare and hospital marketing folks is […]

Healthcare in general—and medical practice marketing in particular—has as an over-abundance of challenges these days. How do you move forward in spite of the competitive headwinds? How do you maximize your advertising Return-on-Investment? How do you shift from “get along” to “get ahead?” Where’s the path to increasing personal and professional satisfaction? How can we […]

The second in a two-part series about intelligent individuals that allow their personality or attitudes to block their potential for success. Read part one: Staff Secretly Takes Assertiveness Training. We continue with the second of our true tales from the field about doctors who step on their own marketing toes.

The painful thing about lost business opportunity is that you often don’t know that it’s lost. It’s revenue that never happened. Here’s a sorry-scenario that we discover all too frequently:

[Podcast] For a large healthcare system or any hospital for that matter, success with “patient experience” is far deeper than “making the patient happy.” Take it from Cleveland Clinic, the first healthcare organization in the United States to appoint a Chief Experience Officer. “It’s not just about satisfaction. This is about how we deliver quality […]

Have you ever felt uncomfortable--a little jittery, perhaps--because you forgot your Smartphone? Is your Smartphone within reach right now?