For the past few weeks we’ve had a lot of fun presenting our seven-part educational video series of successful marketing strategies for healthcare practices and hospitals. Lonnie Hirsch and I (Stewart Gandolf) decided to make these fast-paced and informative presentations available to our readers at no cost, but for a limited time only.
Some important national surveys about patient satisfaction have been in the news lately. The company credentials are highly respectable, and the healthcare marketing implications are significant. First on the street was the PricewaterhouseCoopers Health Research Institute (PwC, HRI) data that concluded, for healthcare consumers, personal experience is the number one reason for choosing a doctor […]
This year’s Mindset List from Beloit College has relatively little to do with healthcare marketing, at least directly. It’s informative, amusing…and a little sobering. But for healthcare providers and medical marketing professionals, this annual look into the value system of college freshmen helps keep us painfully aware of the life experiences and “cultural touchstones” of […]
We spoke with Kim Reynolds, Vice President, Marketing Services at LifePoint Hospitals at SHSMD Connections 2012 about her talk today, "Patient Development as a Marketing Strategy." (Chis Fenoglio, who is on her web team joined her.) Kim's challenge has been to tie marketing programs from over 23 rural hospitals into a comprehensive program that gets […]
Camille Baxter, Director, Health Enterprise Marketing, University of Illinois Hospital & Health Sciences System, recently spoke wth Lonnie Hirsch about her 2012 SHSMD Connections speech, "Squeaky Wheels and Other Approaches to Strategic Service Line Marketing." During this preview podcast, Camille shares her thoughts about how service line marketing should be an extension of the hospital […]
Healthcare marketing is having a milestone moment. Because the nation’s healthcare delivery system has experienced sweeping changes in the past few years, the textbook list of medical marketing fundamentals needs a significant adjustment. Henceforth, PATIENT EXPERIENCE joins the classic “Seven Ps” of a marketing mix—PEOPLE, PRODUCT, PRICE, PROMOTION, PLACE, PACKAGING, and POSITIONING—for a new total […]
A Bruce Willis tough-guy character might say this—it’s one of those edgy little quips that circulates via the Internet: “I’m only responsible for what I say, not for what you understand.” This cheeky advice plays OK as a just-for-fun Twitter message. But it’s obviously a joke. In the real world of healthcare communications and doctor […]
PODCAST: Prior to his SHSMD 2012 talk, R. Kelly Myers of RKM Research shared a few insights with us during an audio interview. Kelly's research has shown that traditional customer service strategies don't really compare to patient experience strategies, because the stakes are so much higher in healthcare. Additionally, he cautions hospital marketers to go […]
In preparation for her upcoming talk at SHSMD, we interviewed Donna Teach, Chief Marketing Officer for Nationwide Children's Hospital in Columbus, Ohio. In this audio interview Donna shares insights about the various reporting tools and metrics she and her team use. Donna also discusses how to apply return-on-investment data to convince upper management of the […]
Maybe you first met AIDA in a creative writing class. And that could have been long before there was an Internet, Internet marketing, social media…or the constant challenge to engage your audience. Digital media is contemporary, but customer (patient) engagement is a marketing fundamental that’s been around for years. So, although AIDA is decades old, […]
In the greater Cincinnati area, The Christ Hospital Health Network has a novel idea to capture testimonial-type comments from patients, employees and friends. In fact, it’s a healthcare and hospital marketing idea that literally speaks for itself. (Really.) This idea may also be suitable for some group practices and other provider situations. Here’s how it […]
When it comes to doctor referrals, most primary care offices either 1) hand their patients a piece of paper and HOPE they make an appointment with the specialist, or 2) fax the referral directly to the specialist's office. The trouble is, up to 70% of patients never make their way to actually see the specialist. […]
Bill Oakes, Chief Development Officer for Johnson Memorial Hospital, recently spoke with us about why he and his executive team decided to collaborate with one of their hospital's major competitors. In this audio interview, Bill gives us a preview to his SHSMD Connections 2012 speech, and shares some of the positive results they have seen […]
We’re always watching for new healthcare and doctor marketing tools. But only a few “new, online startup” companies get the necessary business traction to be successful. That said, we spotted something unique from Clear Health in Minneapolis called Clear.MD. [That’s clear-dot-md, not dot-com.] It’s a startup—presently in online Beta testing—but Clear.MD shows some genuine promise […]
There's one vital step in shaping a positive patient experience that is often forgotten or neglected. In healthcare marketing terms, it's the one step that can make or break everything else you do to put the patient first and grow your brand and reputation. The nature of healthcare delivery is, more than ever before, focused […]
Our first post about Happtique—the Greater New York Hospital Association’s (GNYHA) mobile application store—was just prior to its launch in 2010. Much has transpired in the subsequent couple of years. There are some important trends here for forward-looking healthcare and hospital marketing professionals. Including—just this month—a pilot program for an app for issuing prescriptions.
One of the secrets to creating a successful healthcare marketing program is to simply identify and use the strategies and tactics that work. There's less risk in knowing and using the right “proven” strategies. All you need to do is to collect many years of direct knowledge, practical experience and documented resullts from doctor and […]
Our Big Book of All Things Marketing has a page devoted to the symbiotic relationship between content marketing and healthcare. Few strategies and tactics in healthcare marketing combine as easily and appropriately. Here’s why “content” and “healthcare” are natural marketing partners. And why Content should be a key ingredient in the marketing plan for hospitals, […]
OK, let’s just say we borrowed our headline from Lee Aase, director of the Mayo Clinic Center for Social Media. (It’s flattery, not plagiarism, when the role model is the Mayo Clinic.) Our point is that social media has taken a leadership role in healthcare marketing, and while some doctors remain distant to the idea, […]
In our marketing consultations with doctors and hospitals throughout the nation, there’s usually a moment when we talk about the need to work from a marketing plan. While this seems like a fundamental concept to many, it’s surprisingly common for some people to ask us: “Do I really need a plan? Can’t I just market?” […]
We'd like to hear about your experience with Facebook ads. The popular social media giant is experiencing considerable challenges in rolling out its advertising revenue model. By many accounts its present form seems to be a Facebook Fail. Has that been your experience? Holy Timeline, Zuckerberg Fans! Healthcare and hospital marketing and advertising will want […]
The digital and technological tools of healthcare marketing are increasing in importance and opportunity. And, if you haven’t done so lately, right now is probably a good time to weigh your “connectivity goals” against the technical nuts and bolts needed to get the job done.
Who's this guy Vilfredo Pareto and what makes him a partner in my practice? Anyone with a specialty healthcare business –one that is primarily fueled by referrals from other professional practices–should recognize the business rule named after a turn-of-the-century Italian economist. The "Pareto Principle" is better known as "the 80-20 rule." And, as it turns […]
The Patient's Champion helps work all the options that bring services within financial reach Nearly all of our highly successful professional practice clients have at least 1 person on staff whose singular mission is to find ways to make elective procedures affordable. The staff member (often more than 1 person) takes the role of counselor […]
There’s a temptation to forget that effective medical practice public relations begins and ends with the individual patient, client, consumer and/or customer. Although professional communicators use “mass media,” the essential mission of PR is far more singular…and it travels under the label of “customer service” or the “patient experience.” And lately we’ve observed how a […]
We don’t want anyone to miss this insightful “best practices” marketing resource. And, for a short time, it’s free for the asking. Presented by HSS founding partners Lonnie Hirsch and Stewart Gandolf, this new seven video series for doctors and hospital executives is titled, How to Profitably and Ethically Attract The Patients You Want.
Does anyone still need to be convinced that Pinterest should be part of your hospital marketing plan? The typical objections might be that this social media platform is still too new…it may not deliver any value…or they’re still in a beta test phase. A conservative approach to online fads and fancies is reasonable. (This morning’s […]
We’re not sure that we can say this any stronger. Up and down the nation’s healthcare delivery system, professional referrals are the essential lifeblood of business for many practices. In the world of hospitals and specialty practices, doctor referrals are an indispensable factor in the function of the practice. When a professional referral system is an […]
How to know if the 30-minute format should be part of your marketing mix...and get it done right An "infomercial" is probably not what you think it is. Put aside any image of a rapid-fire, late-night TV demo of a Japanese knife set and let me tell you how this long–form of direct response has […]
The core concepts of Likeonomics are so essential to successful healthcare branding and marketing that every doctor, dentist, physician, surgeon, provider (and their staff) will find value in this powerful little business book. Healthcare delivery is a highly personal transaction that primarily occurs while a provider and patient are face-to-face. And if this intersection does […]
We do it all the time…often without thinking much about it. To convince, collaborate, entice or persuade, everyone is “selling” something. It can be as casual as nominating a place for lunch, or presenting an idea. And doctors, dentists and virtually all healthcare providers regularly seek agreement and compliance from patients about a course of […]
Number-crunching executives, administrators and business-minded IT folks will love the remarkable detail in Hospitals & Health Networks magazine’s 2012 Most Wired survey of the nation’s hospitals and health systems. The social media and hospital marketing slice of data is important and informative. But this is a big report, so let me guide you a little.
Who says marketing can’t be fun. Here’s a brief post about two lighter-side ideas from dental marketing that you can steal. Look at these little case studies as idea starters for many other healthcare marketing situations. In each, take your inspiration mainly from the exceptional execution. Dr. Rich’s Patient Picnic: Western Pennsylvania orthodontist Richard Ribarevski […]
Some old-school ideas needlessly linger on. There’s a tired notion that sometimes whispers in the back of a physician’s brain and says: “Doctors shouldn’t advertise.” Or, more specifically, they fear: “My professional peers will think less of me. Physician advertising will hurt my relationships with referring doctors.” In fact, the reverse is often true today. […]
The dues you pay to become a doctor are high. After investing ump-teen grueling years in education and training—not to mention a fortune in expense—one would hope that the average young physician would be happy with their chosen profession. But it doesn’t look like that’s the case. And the provider business model and physician marketing […]
Two snippets of recent healthcare news look like they are likely to collide with the next patient-physician encounter in your office. What’s more, they are loaded with potential physician marketing and communications challenges. We’d like to hear about your experience and what you think about these two conflicting issues: Google’s Symptom Search: aka “Doctor Google.” […]
As we write this, several million people (and counting) have already seen the compelling and compassionate video on YouTube. The larger story here is that this is also a case example and healthcare marketing and public relations lesson for a range of healthcare providers. Watch the video and let us know what you think.
Like the sound of fingernails scraping a chalkboard, bad hospital advertising drives us a little crazy. In our line of work, we see a lot of external hospital ads—in magazines, billboards and TV/video work. And frankly, much of it probably does a decent job—in fact, some of it is inspired. But then there are the clunkers and […]
The people you see on the nightly TV news make appearing on camera look easy. Study them for a few minutes. The anchor desk types—the particularly good ones—are calm, collected and confident. And, with years of training and experience, they deliver a sense of authority, sincerity and believability. So there you have it. As a […]
It seems that at least some dental practices in the United States are doing OK, business-wise, in spite of the down economy. We’d like to hear if you agree with this market assessment. In the numbers-filled environment of research publisher IBIS World, the Dentists Industry—in the collective perspective—“performed well during the economic recession and is […]
There aren’t many healthcare providers who are unaffected or unaware of challenges all around them. The parade includes reform requirements, the “soft economy” with rising costs and shrinking margins, shifting medical marketing goals and demographics…and the overarching stretch of resources to maintain and improve quality of patient care. “Innovation is the ability to see change […]
Editor's Note: Nationally recognized physician, speaker and author Neil Baum, MD, talks doctor-to-doctor about successfully generating income from ancillary services in a doctor's office, beginning with internal marketing.
File this one under “doctor/physician competition.” It’s no surprise that, for most providers, the competitive landscape has shifted. But what’s unusual here is the emerging trend of online medical advice—live, immediate and direct from doctor—for a fee. This relatively new healthcare delivery channel has not only taken root, but it’s likely to continue to grow […]
As of today, only a few hospitals in the United States have ventured into “the new frontier for health ads,”—using Facebook or Google online ads to attract new patients. (By one estimate, a lonely few of 150 hospitals out of 6,000 have ventured out to this digital edge.) With 97.5 percent of the nation’s hospitals […]
Aggressive vs. complacent. Decisive vs. Timid. Your bottom line is likely to reflect how you treat—or neglect—your healthcare organization’s branding message.
An unintentional byproduct of healthcare reform is the increasing number of physician practices that have the wrong branding message. Or worse, they have no branding at all. Consider this example: Mysteriously, the well-considered branding message and competitive edge of a physician practice was somehow "disconnected." In our consultations, the doctors and staff believed that the […]
Here’s a bit of a shocker. Among ordinary citizens, healthcare news doesn't have the awareness factor that you might think. Better than half of the general public is unaware of, or misinformed about, the recent decision by the Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) regarding the Affordable Care Act. After weeks of intense, major-media […]
You might have the impression that "content marketing" buzzed its way into popular use a digital minute ago. In the "buzz-vocabulary" of healthcare marketing it's a timely (but not-so-new) topic. Content marketing is a natural fit for many hospitals and healthcare providers. It's a means to speak to people and provide them with useful and […]
HARO—the Help a Reporter Out online service—can be a useful tactic for hospital marketing. But it usually takes a bit of perseverance and creativity to get to the pay-off. The concept is great…sort of a speed dating approach to research and background info for reporters. HARO is a free (or tiered fee), crowdsourcing platform where […]
We want to spotlight two great hospital marketing and public relations examples that we noticed in the news recently. For administrators and communications professionals, these are hospital case examples with lessons worth emulating. Both Scripps Health (San Diego) and Cleveland Clinic (uh…in Cleveland) offered textbook performances just days ahead of the US Supreme Court’s decision […]
