Are you in the process of working with a healthcare marketer? Are you interested in becoming a healthcare marketer for your full-time career? If so, then you’ll want to learn all that you can about the profession.
Many people don’t realize it, but marketing is an entirely different ballgame for the healthcare industry.
It’s not just about creating a brand for them. It’s about sending a communication to entice patients to a certain service, giving them direction during their treatment, and keeping them connected with that system.
See below for an in-depth article on what healthcare marketers do and why they’re such an important piece to the puzzle.
1. They Focus on Outreach
As the name would imply, healthcare marketing is focused on creating a brand and directing the right kind of patients to their service. It involves creating a vibe that is attractive to people in that field.
For example, when performing healthcare marketing for an urgent care facility, they’ll want to focus on the quick (yet hospitable) service that each patient receives.
A healthcare marketer’s job is to do this in a variety of ways. They have to focus on finding ways to stand out from the crowd. That includes paid search ads, finding their target market, and identifying key pain points.
No matter what they’re trying to market, they know how to identify key traits in that product’s target market. It could be for a hospital, cryotherapy machine, urgent care facility, or anything else in between.
2. They’re Experts on Digital Marketing
These days, online marketing reigns supreme. It’s how a vast majority of patients get their information these days. As such, healthcare marketers have now become well-versed in the tricks and tactics of digital marketing.
This includes aspects and tactics such as search engine optimization, pay per click ads, social media engagement, website design, and much more. If they don’t have specific experience with one aspect (which is rare) then they have connections that do.
Vast knowledge of these tactics allows healthcare marketing experts to zero-in on the right kind of patients for a healthcare service.
For example, if they’re marketing for a physical therapy practice, they might find different ways to push that physical therapy office out to athletes. They might do this via social media, on bodybuilding websites, paid ads on Bleacher Report, and so on.
They also know the finer details of each digital marketing tactic. For instance, they know that for their client’s website to succeed in SEO, it needs features such as having a mobile-friendly website.
3. Inform and Instruct
Possibly the trickiest part of healthcare marketing is the fact that most target clients don’t know what their symptoms are.
For example, a person might not know that the throbbing jaw pain they’ve been experiencing is actually a temporomandibular joint disorder (TMD). If they know nothing about the disorder, then they don’t know who to call to get help for the pain.
Therefore, it’s the healthcare marketer’s job to think of different ways to inform the target client of different diseases, disorders, and so forth, then instruct them on how to get help.
They can post a blog article listing specific facts and details about heart disease. They can create a video informing clients of the early signs of depression. Whatever the case might be, they can raise awareness for a company’s brand while giving out knowledgeable info.
Not only that, but they have to figure out the best form of content to do so. For example, a blog post about exercises fo relieving TMD pain might not be helpful. Therefore, they decide to create a video or graphic demonstrating the stretches instead.
4. Boosting Patient Experience
As previously mentioned, a healthcare marketer isn’t solely focused on the advertising aspect of the job. They also focus on getting as many different touchpoints with a client as possible.
They look out for different providers, try to schedule appointments, and follow up to learn about the experience at the appointment.
Just because a patient schedules one appointment with a healthcare company doesn’t mean you’ve hooked them. The marketer still has to help the prospect build community and comfort with that brand.
They might do this with digital ads, emails, social media ads, social media posts, websites, phone calls, follow-up emails, and so on.
5. Prioritize Online Reviews
Many clients rely heavily on online reviews when considering a healthcare company that they’ve never used. They want to see what current and previous patients have to say about the experiences that they’ve had before committing to it.
Needless to say, online reviews are extremely important for healthcare marketing. That’s why healthcare marketers are constantly looking for new ways to request reviews and get more under the healthcare company’s belt.
They might also include a page on the healthcare company’s site that is filled with testimonials and glowing online reviews.
Transparency is important in healthcare marketing. Online reviews from previous patients will do wonders for any service. The more positive the reviews, the more prospects you’ll attract for your brand.
Healthcare Marketers Wear Many Different Hats
Now that you’ve seen an in-depth guide on what healthcare marketers do and how they can help a company benefit from their services, it’s time to find the right fit.
If you’re looking for a healthcare marketer, be sure to find one with the experience and know-how that you need.
Be sure to browse our website here for more articles relating to healthcare marketing, as well as many other topics that you’ll find helpful.