Six Key Digital Roles Needed in Today’s Marketing Department

May 1, 2014

by Derek Mabie

Derek MabieThe online realm is heavily integrated with everyone’s daily life. Society now relies on search engines and web­site functionality to add convenience, control, and precision to completing tasks – whether paying a bill or researching a brand.

Today, consumers are searching online before making health-related decisions. The Pew Research Center’s Internet & American Life Project reported in Decem­ber 2013 that 72 percent of Internet users said they looked for health information within the past year. Of those health seekers, 77 percent started with a search engine. That finding alone suggests a monumental op­portunity for health systems to connect with potential patients, whether in organic results or through paid search.

Effectiveness of search

The benefit of search is twofold. Searchers access re­sources like Google and Bing because their algorithms, perpetually updated and refined, have proved to deliver qualified results. There is no reason to delay finding out a physician’s office hours or researching symptoms of shingles, especially with the revolutionary introduc­tion of smartphones. Someone in need of an answer can simply search from a desk, couch, or grocery store aisle.


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