Medical Marketing and Media for 2015: Trends and Best Practices

23 Dec Medical Marketing and Media for 2015: Trends and Best Practices

The New Year is on the horizon, which means medical marketing and media is due for an upgrade. With new legislation and changing trends in technologies, healthcare marketing research is more important now than ever — and if you want your practice to be on top of it all, it’s time to start planning. Read on to learn about our forecast for 2015!

Emphasize the patient experience.

Also dubbed PX, the patient experience refers to the feedback your patients receive from the moment they hear your name, walk through your practice’s doors, and interact with their first friendly face. Today, a successful PX relies on an open line of communication among doctors, staff, and patients — beginning with positive impressions online, in-person, and over the phone.

Online, trends for medical marketing and media in 2015 will emphasize integrating patients with their practice of choice through the habits they already use in their day-to-day social media lives. Kaiser Permanente’s Thrive campaign comes to mind; alongside an improved, user-friendly website and increased capabilities on patients’ online profiles (including the ability to email medical staff, including general doctors), Kaiser sought to increase transparency by placing important information, like plan coverage and contact information, in easy-to-locate areas.

Not only that, but the Thrive campaign — which has been implemented across Kaiser’s advertisements, including print, online, and media — encourages easy access to wellness resources, including tips to eat healthy and stay active. Coat all of these positive elements in an aesthetically-pleasing, consistent color scheme and you’ve got a memorable ad campaign that can linger with current and prospective patients — which is a definitely a positive part of medical marketing and media.

Increase transparency, both in-person and online.

With increasing numbers of users online, patients are interested in medical marketing and media initiatives that de-mystify their healthcare. We’ve mentioned it before, and we’ll mention it again — responding to comments on social media profiles, encouraging questions, and starting things like FAQ Fridays can only improve the way your patients feel about your practice’s trustworthiness.

For 2015, medical marketing and media will implement practices that encourage openness between patients and staff; easy access to necessary plan information, for instance, should be available online and in-office. After all, in today’s increasingly digital world, it’s relatively easy for a prospective patient to click over to a competitor’s website if they’re not finding what they need from your practice’s page; for this reason, user-friendly websites that integrate easily navigable pages will be a huge part of web design for the upcoming year.

This also means one thing: If your practice isn’t already on social media, it’s time to get clicking. Active social media profiles are a necessity at this point; if you have a number of dormant or inactive profiles floating around somewhere, deactivate them and focus your efforts on just one social network at a time. Starting with Facebook, for instance, can teach you and your staff how to build and adhere to a content calendar, which is an invaluable part of running a consistent and quality medical marketing and media presence.

Ask for help.

2015 should be a year of changes, and if you haven’t already worked with a healthcare marketing consultant, now’s the time. For more information about medical marketing and media, contact HealthCare Marketing Group today!