Lessons from 11 Innovative Health Care Marketing Campaigns [Special Report]

Advertising Worth Noting

// By Peter Hochstein //

This exclusive SHCM special report is filled with real-life health care marketing success stories…from the best use of television ads, to innovative print campaigns, to smart radio spots and more.

Here, you’ll see what’s working well for other hospitals and health care facilities around the country so you can adapt the best work of others to your own marketing campaigns and boost your ROI. It’s an exciting time to be in the health care field, and we want to help you make the most of it.

Our goal for this report is to get the creative ideas flowing for your next successful campaign at your facility. I am confident you will come away with some new ways to present your unique offerings and strengths to your target market.

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Strategic Health Care Marketing Monthly Update, Episode 3

In episode 3 of Strategic Health Care Marketing Video Update: a rebranding initiative – a high-performance ad campaign – a success story about getting public health information to hard-to-reach and historically underserved communities – 3 health systems lead on health equity, diversity, and inclusion – insights from senior health system executives who came from outside of health care – and viewpoints from 4 physician CEOs. Take a look at our latest stories.

Learn How (and Why) to Partner With Your Finance Department

Increased economic pressures caused by the pandemic and other factors are making it more important than ever for marketers to partner with their chief financial officers to develop a deeper understanding of finance and demonstrate return on investment for marketing spending. In this COVID-19 age of tight budgets and heightened expectations to produce results, it Read More

How Can You Pivot to a Retail-First Mindset?

Consumer expectations have changed since the pandemic, and patients are shopping for health care much like they shop for retail goods. They want a seamless, Amazon-like digital experience and they expect to schedule an appointment, check in, pay a bill, or see a doctor virtually, all from a mobile device. Moreover, they pay attention to Read More

5 Keys to Building Stronger Relationships Between Marketing and Finance

// By Brian Griffin // Partnerships between CMOs and CFOs can raise marketers’ profile in the C-suite and enhance marketing effectiveness. Increased economic pressures caused by the pandemic and other factors are making it more important than ever for marketers to partner with their chief financial officers to develop a deeper understanding of finance and Read More

How Targeted Outreach Helps Bring Patients Back

Infectious-disease specialists are beginning to give the all-clear signal to bring patients and families back for routine care. But luring valued community members back to health care facilities is proving to be a communications challenge. Consciously or not, families have created their new normal, which may include telehealth instead of office visits, reducing the frequency Read More

How a Retail Mindset in Health Care Drives Patient Acquisition

// By Marlene Kurban //  ProMedica has operations in 28 states. It saw huge improvements in key metrics after implementing a robust reputation management strategy at scale.  Consumer expectations have changed since the pandemic, and patients are shopping for health care much like they shop for retail goods. They want a seamless, Amazon-like digital experience Read More

Multiphase Campaign Seeks to Increase COVID-19 Vaccinations Among Adolescents

// By Brian Griffin // Nationwide Children’s Hospital in Ohio is leading the way in vaccinating children against COVID-19 with a multichannel campaign targeted at parents, physicians, and even adolescents themselves. The move comes after the Food & Drug Administration granted emergency approval to vaccinate 12- to 15-year-olds. The campaign is taking on even more Read More

Advanced Analytics Drive a Personalized Post-COVID Comeback

// By Marcia Simon, APR // CHI St. Vincent in Little Rock, Arkansas isn’t waiting for customers to come back on their own. The health system is proactively reaching out to them, using sophisticated analytics to define the target audience with precision accuracy.  Infectious-disease specialists are beginning to give the all-clear signal to bring patients Read More

Strategic Health Care Marketing Monthly Update, Episode 2

In episode 2 of Strategic Health Care Marketing Video Update: a rebranding initiative – a high-performance ad campaign – a success story about getting public health information to hard-to-reach and historically underserved communities – 3 health systems lead on health equity, diversity, and inclusion – insights from senior health system executives who came from outside of health care – and viewpoints from 4 physician CEOs. Take a look at our latest stories.

Lessons from Retail: How Health Care Can Win by Adapting to Changes in Consumer Behavior

Discover how ProMedica uses customer feedback and a digital-first approach to consumers to achieve stellar results across more than 400 facilities in 28 states.

A Strategic Health Care Marketing webinar for marketers, communicators, and strategists at hospitals, health systems, and physician groups

Your Presenters:

• Annie Haarmann, Head of Strategy and Consulting, Healthcare and Life Sciences, Reputation
• Adeline Ashley, Director of Digital Strategy and Marketing Communications, ProMedica

Learn how to harness the power of digital to deliver a more retail-like experience in a changing environment. You’ll see real-world examples and learn best practices from health care leaders and industry disruptors.

Watch Now »

Now is the Perfect Time to Leverage Out-of-Home Advertising

“The COVID-19 pandemic has exposed a persistent challenge in health care: sharing public health and general health care initiatives with hard-to-reach and historically underserved communities,” says Matthew O’Connor of AdQuick. Here’s an excerpt from O’Connor’s new article: As health care systems and public health departments at the state, county, and local level look to gain Read More

Children’s Hospital Ad Campaign Adds Pinch of Emotion to Case Histories. Result: A Boom in Internet Attention

// By Peter Hochstein // There’s always a fresh approach to case history advertising focused on positive outcomes. Here’s How Children’s Mercy Kansas City took an old technique and made it original for its brand. Hospital advertising and positive outcome case histories were made for each other. People arrive sick, injured, or teetering on the Read More

Leveraging Out-of-Home Advertising to Reach Underserved Populations

// By Matthew O’Connor // Out-of-home advertising provides an opportunity for hospitals, health systems, medical groups, and other health care organizations to get their messages to underserved, multilingual, and rural communities. The COVID-19 pandemic has exposed a persistent challenge in health care: sharing public health and general health care initiatives with hard-to-reach and historically underserved Read More

Who Says Radio Is Dead?

In Peter Hochstein’s new story, he explains how a radio-focused advertising campaign enabled a regional hospital system to significantly increase its telehealth and urgent-care traffic, with relatively low media and production costs. Here’s an excerpt: Radio tends to be a medium that reaches people while their minds are on something else. There are exceptions, of Read More

Want More Bang for Your Hospital’s Advertising Bucks? CoxHealth Found Cost Effectiveness with Real Market Impact (Hello, Radio!)

// By Peter Hochstein //A radio-focused advertising campaign enabled this regional hospital system to significantly increase its telehealth and urgent-care traffic, with relatively low media and production costs. But a caveat: Radio works best when the message is simple.What’s radio for? Largely it’s there these days to keep you company while you drive the car Read More

How UNC Health Got a Jump-Start on Preparing for Vaccine Rollout

“On December 14, 2020, the first COVID-19 vaccination outside the clinical trials was administered in the U.S. But UNC Health began preparing for the vaccine rollout months earlier,” writes Susan Dubuque, principal and co-founder of NDP. Here’s an excerpt from Susan’s new article. “Our consumer insights team conducts monthly Brand Trackers, and in the summer Read More

A “Super Bowl Moment” for Health Care: How UNC Health Promotes Vaccination

// By Susan Dubuque // In Part 2 of this series (Part 1 is here), Victor Reiss, vice president of consumerism and insights, marketing and communications for UNC Health, shares the health system’s research-based, comprehensive plan to address vaccine hesitancy. “For most health care marketing professionals, dealing with COVID-19 is the largest undertaking of a Read More

Don’t Abandon Traditional Media Marketing Just Yet

While many health care marketers seek to limit their media outlets, the reality is that successful marketing plans need to incorporate a blend of many efforts to produce a desired reach, frequency, and outcome. Here’s an excerpt from John Gonda’s new article on this topic: For many years, hospitals have used traditional media outlets such Read More

Traditional and Digital Media: Why You Need Both

// By John Gonda // While many health care marketers seek to limit their media outlets, the reality is that successful marketing plans need to incorporate a blend of many efforts to produce a desired reach, frequency, and outcome. For many years, hospitals have used traditional media outlets such as newspapers, direct mail, radio, and Read More

Do you handle hospital PR? How do you perceive your mission? Are you primarily a brand builder? Or are you the Praetorian Guard?

// By Peter Hochstein // If editorial and PR people fall into a passive-aggressive relationship, something’s wrong. Sometimes on both sides. There’s no magic to how I find sources for most of the stories I write in this space. Sometimes I start by calling the advertising agency that was involved. Most ad agencies love publicity Read More

How Data-Driven Marketing Fuels Brand Strategy

More than ever, it’s important for health care executives to understand that broad brand strategy alone doesn’t drive business. Successful service-line growth campaigns are based on insights from marketing and consumer data. Without direction from digital marketing data, health care organizations will struggle even more in the post-pandemic world. Brand/MarCom strategist John Marzano recently spoke Read More

When To Downplay the News of a Name Change

“In some cases, letting your ads ignore the news about [your hospital’s] name change can be a smarter move than headlining it,” notes SHCM contributor and veteran copywriter Peter Hochstein. While this may seem hard to believe, he makes his case with the real-life story of the hospital formerly known as the Floating Hospital for Read More

Brand and Demand Go Hand in Hand in Today’s Marketing Landscape

// By Jared Johnson // More than ever, it’s important for health care executives to understand that broad brand strategy alone doesn’t drive business. Successful service-line growth campaigns are based on insights from marketing and consumer data. Without direction from digital marketing data, health care organizations will struggle even more in the post-pandemic world. Brand/MarCom Read More

Your hospital changes its name. Should it advertise that fact? Or spend its ad dollars on something else? Don’t answer until you read this.

// By Peter Hochstein // In some cases, letting your ads ignore the news about a name change can be a smarter move than headlining it. Here’s a case in point. It all seemed like a brilliant idea back in 1895. Fresh sea air is good for you, right? All that bracing oxygen and salt Read More