Leverage Current Events To Promote Your Health Care Organization’s Offerings

Wonder Movie Poster

When the movie Wonder was released in fall 2017, sharing the fictional story of a fifth-grader named Auggie coping with a facial difference called Treacher Collins syndrome (TCS), Dayton Children’s Hospital saw this as an exciting opportunity to raise awareness about groundbreaking treatments offered for children with TCS through its own Craniofacial Center. “We do Read More

Continue reading

Secret Shoppers: How to Design a Program That Will Help Your Health Care Organization Shine

Steven Maskell, chief client officer and partner at SeeLevel HX

It’s no coincidence that people who like the Apple brand tend to be loyal customers, keeping all of their technology purchases within the Apple family. This is because Apple goes to great lengths to ensure its customers always have a very positive, consistent experience in stores, online, and by phone, according to Steven Maskell, chief client Read More

Continue reading

Looking To Boost Your Health Care Brand? Consider Audio.

The Scope - University of Utah Health Radio - Logo

Have you incorporated audio content in your health care communications strategy? If not, you could be missing an opportunity to engage prospective patients who live in your service communities, and to position your organization as a leader to referring physicians across the country. While some health systems dabble in producing radio content and developing podcasts Read More

Continue reading

Children’s Hospital Advertising Campaign Targets “Compassionate Moms”

Donna Teach, Nationwide Children's

“Sorry, family health care decision-making moms, ages 20-something to about 50. For once, you’re not the specific target of a children’s hospital advertising campaign,” says veteran copywriter and frequent SHCM contributor Peter Hochstein. “Nationwide Children’s Hospital in Columbus, Ohio, with 618 licensed and leased beds and 1.4 million patient visits annually, has been running a Read More

Continue reading

Omaha Hospital Celebrates Its Storied Past in New Marketing Campaign

Jenni Stoll, senior director of marketing for Methodist Health System

What’s old is new again at Methodist Hospital in Omaha, Nebraska. Methodist recently celebrated its 125th anniversary, and this milestone provided a valuable opportunity for the health system to build on its past to position itself for the future. While most health care systems pride themselves on being ahead of the curve when it comes Read More

Continue reading

Make Seniors a Focus of Your Marketing Strategy

“There are three unmistakable truths,” says Paul Gauthier, founder and chief executive officer of MedicareCompareUSA. “The first truth is that approximately 10,000 Americans turn 65 every day, making Medicare recipients the fastest-growing segment of the American population. The confluence of aging baby boomers, better lifestyle habits, and incredible advances in pharmaceuticals has resulted in 41.5 Read More

Continue reading

Storytelling Helps Integrate Marketing and Foundation Efforts — with Good Outcomes

Scripps Health

One patient, one blanket, a world of difference. That’s the theme of a recent campaign at Scripps Health to inspire people to donate $100 to buy a soft blanket for a woman undergoing treatment for breast cancer. Donors also are encouraged to include personal encouragement with their gift to support the recipient. Scripps is a Read More

Continue reading

Silicon Valley: Where You Can Call Potential Patients “Nerds”

Veteran copywriter and regular SHCM contributor Peter Hochstein suggests an interesting proposition: “Run some hospital advertising that flat out calls your potential patients nerds. Nah, come to think of it, that probably wouldn’t work, and might prompt some irate letters to your CEO. Well then, how about offering advice that sounds financial, and encourages people to ‘go Read More

Continue reading

A Focus on Well-Being Improves Patient Satisfaction

Sometimes the best marketing opportunities come from just naturally doing the right thing for the people you serve. That’s certainly been the case for Beaumont Health, headquartered in Southfield, Michigan. Its commitment to caring for the community extends beyond addressing people’s physical health to also supporting their mental and spiritual well-being through an array of Read More

Continue reading

Fundraising: Facilitate the Giving Impulse of Your Health Care Organization’s Champions — with Viral Results

Some of the greatest champions for your health care organization no doubt come from your service communities. A new campaign from the Muscular Dystrophy Association (MDA) shows how champions are newly motivated and empowered to take the lead in raising funds for causes they care about. Millennials and Generation Xers often naturally add viral elements Read More

Continue reading

How To Brand a Health Network Without Spending a Dime on Ads

“Before anything, Rachael Kagan, director of communications for the San Francisco Department of Public Health, wants you to know that the campaign her department launched is not an advertising campaign. It’s a branding campaign, she insists,” says veteran copywriter and regular SHCM contributor Peter Hochstein. “It wasn’t about drawing more people or business,” she explains. Read More

Continue reading

Fitness Trackers: An Untapped Source of Valuable Data

Michelle Berryman, managing director of strategy & innovation at LiquidHub

Do you wear a fitness tracker to count your steps or follow other health-related measures? Many people who access health care services within your system also probably use the latest devices to monitor details like activity level, amount of sleep, and blood pressure. All of this information can paint a valuable picture of health status Read More

Continue reading

How To Navigate The New World of Health Care Cost Transparency

Daniel Weinbach, president and CEO of Weinbach Group; Richard Klass, co-founder of KCI Partners; and Justin Irizarry, co-founder and CFO of OrthoNOW

You probably wouldn’t buy an appliance or book a cruise without knowing what it will cost. Yet historically, health care systems have expected patients to undergo various diagnostic tests, procedures, and treatments without any idea of what they will be charged. But times are changing quickly. While most patients are not yet comparison-shopping based on Read More

Continue reading

A New Global Health Care Marketing Framework

Skills and Attributes of the Healthcare Strategist

At the annual meeting of the Society for Healthcare Strategy & Market Development (SHSMD) in September 2017, a group of health care strategists from the Middle East came all the way to Orlando, Florida to attend the presentations. When they introduced themselves to SHSMD representatives, they revealed that they had made the trip to attend Read More

Continue reading

Referral Patterns Can Point a Path To Success

Tampa General Hospital

Close examination of your referral patterns may bring to light some surprising gaps in your current practices that could be impacting your revenues. That was recently the case at Tampa General Hospital (TGH), says Katie Alexander, director of physician relations at TGH. But once her organization identified the problem using a Physician Relationship Management (PRM) Read More

Continue reading

CRMs Present Fundraising Opportunities—and Challenges

Lisa D. Ellis

When most people think of Customer Relationship Management (CRM), it’s usually in the context of service line promotion and prospecting for patients. But CRMs present similar opportunities and challenges for fundraising, too. The most effective health system fundraising campaigns focus time and effort building personal relationships with perspective donors. But for many health care organizations Read More

Continue reading

Align With Your Medical Staff for Optimal Results

Roger Kaiser Jr., MD, managing director, Berkeley Research Group, LLC

Is your organization truly on the same page as your physicians? If not, you may be missing important opportunities to maximize the quality and costs of the care you provide. Poor alignment among management and medical staff can cost you greatly—in lower patient satisfaction, lower physician retention, and reduced profit margins. “The relationship between physicians Read More

Continue reading

ACA-Weary? Here’s How To Prepare, Regardless of What Happens

Paul H. Keckley, PhD, managing editor of The Keckley Report

Following the ups and downs of health reform efforts is a lot like watching a tennis match. Spectators may find themselves getting dizzy as they try to follow the ongoing political battle raging in D.C. involving attempts to repeal some or all of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) and replace it with a Republican-backed plan. Read More

Continue reading

How To Thrive Amidst ACA Uncertainty

Lisa Ellis

The fate of the American health care system is currently unknown as a new health care plan is making its way through Congress, raising many questions for people working in health care organizations, as well as for the patients they serve. How can you be sure your organization is well positioned for whatever comes next? Read More

Continue reading

Beyond Testimonials: A Fresh Way To Advertise Your Expertise

Peter Hochstein

“If you’ve been involved with hospital advertising for a while, you’ve probably seen it all,” observes Peter Hochstein, veteran copywriter and SHCM contributor. “Touching testimonials from patients telling what a hospital’s doctors did for them. Doctors explaining how they collaborated on a medical breakthrough. Pictures galore of high-tech tools, people in surgical masks, MRI images Read More

Continue reading

Creative Ways To Engage Consumers and Move Them To Take Action

“Consumer engagement is one of those terms-of-the-moment in marketing to which marketers apply a variety of meanings,” says John Brand, senior director of marketing and public relations at St. Luke’s University Health Network. He says his organization defines “engagement” as “compelling consumers to take action on behalf of our brand, primarily in social spaces.” Brand says Read More

Continue reading

The Vital Role of Public Relations in Organ Donation

Tom Mone is chief executive officer, OneLegacy

“[T]here are few departments within a hospital that juggle more responsibilities, impact the organization’s brand as dramatically, or have as visible a role in telling the hospital’s story” as the PR and marketing departments, notes Tom Mone. “That said, there is one story that hasn’t been told as often or as boldly as it should. Read More

Continue reading

Blogging Can Spread Knowledge Within—as Well as Beyond—Your Organization

Blogging is becoming an increasingly important way to communicate with your target audience. And it can also provide a valuable forum for your staff to share their experiences and ideas within the larger organization and beyond. This lesson comes from Albert Einstein College of Medicine in New York City, where some forward-thinking staff members created Read More

Continue reading

Cook Up an Effective Marketing Strategy with these 8 Key Ingredients

Eric Brody

“Your health system or hospital story doesn’t matter—until it does,” says Eric Brody. “What matters is simply how your story fits into the lives of your audience.” Brody is president of Trajectory, a national branding and marketing agency. He notes that while this simple concept is tough to deliver on, it’s also critical to your success Read More

Continue reading

What To Do When a Blogging Doctor Goes Off-Message

Physician-contributed writing provides a great way to provide thought leadership and to share your medical staff members’ expertise more broadly. It can also help to personalize your organization and make a deeper connection with patients. But it’s essential that any staff-contributed writing goes through a defined editorial process that ensures the content accurately represents your Read More

Continue reading
1 … 8 9 10 11 12 … 14