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How commercial healthcare providers are helping change the healthcare marketing industry

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With increased consumerism in healthcare, these new participants are changing how healthcare organizations market themselves 

The healthcare industry is witnessing a continued push towards consumerism. Stakeholders are turning to retail, tech and other sectors for innovation to help solve familiar healthcare problems. Enter commercial healthcare providers (CHPs). They can be defined as retail, payor, senior and tech-based providers changing the landscape of consumer healthcare as people seek convenience and quality in their healthcare experience.

In recent years, retailers have delivered products in a more convenient way, changing consumer behavior. An omnichannel approach has blurred the lines. Consumers can easily research a product and maybe even test it before purchasing it. As this approach has become more comfortable for consumers, they are pursuing it in other areas like healthcare.

Some familiar names in retail like Walmart, Walgreens, CVS and Amazon can be considered retail-based commercial healthcare providers today. Those and other retail-based commercial healthcare providers are acquiring and investing in tech-based startups and senior-focused providers in response to the shift in dynamics – both consumer-centric preferences and an aging population.

Payors like UnitedHealth Group and its Optum division are considered payor-based commercial healthcare providers. They are also investing in tech-based startups and senior-focused providers. Redefining the space is a change to fee-for-value reimbursement models, physician shortages, consumerism and digital disruption.

But how are commercial healthcare providers successfully marketing themselves and their services to the changing landscape? And what can other healthcare stakeholders learn from their entries into the marketplace?

Organizations must constantly expand their footprint in today’s healthcare environment. But there are plenty of barriers to growth like increased consumer expectations of healthcare, greater patient exposure to price, and expanding choices for healthcare consumers. Consumer interest must be stimulated to remain competitive in this healthcare marketplace.

Optum says that to drive sustainable growth, healthcare leaders need to better understand the consumers and patients they currently serve. Every healthcare leader should ask these four data-centric marketing questions:

  1. What customers do we need to reach in order to be successful?
  2. What do we know about our current customers?
  3. How do we ensure our current customers continue to choose us?
  4. How do we attract more of the right customers?

There is more consumer data, patient data and real-time marketing data to generate strategic and actionable insights than ever before. Healthcare organizations must act more like consumer-driven brands in today’s consumer-centric marketplace. Deploying precision marketing makes marketing more effective and more cost-efficient.

Optum helped AdventHealth develop a six-month marketing campaign that led 134,000 patients to the Central Florida health system, instead of its competitor. They discussed it during a healthcare marketing webinar.

They supervised a precision marketing campaign designed to speak directly to the people likely to use their services. But AdventHealth needed digital tools and help from marketing partners to achieve their results. Optum mined digital data to prioritize 850,000 people, dividing them into 11 specific cohorts. Some included young singles without a primary care physician, married couples with kids, very sick people with more than two or three diseases requiring complex care, and people of all ages suffering from unexplained stomach and abdominal pains.

Unique messaging was designed for each group, considering clinical needs, gender, language and culture. People received the messaging through their preferred media channels at the times they were likely to see it.

It led 134,000 patients to AdventHealth rather than the competitor’s emergency departments and the investment yielded a $474 return for every marketing dollar spent, according to AdventHealth.

A focused approach to marketing by reaching out directly to likely customers and engaging them through personalized messaging can provide better results with less wasted effort.

Share Moving Media is experienced with the creation of marketing campaigns that increase SEO searches for companies within the medical distribution industry. We can assist your brand in creating content that is simple, shareable, and that appeals to emotion to effectively promote your company. Visit www.sharemovingmedia.com to learn more.

The Value of a Trusted Industry Newsletter

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In today’s marketplace, the email Inbox has become a coveted place for marketers to try and pique the interest of supply chain leaders.

According to Templafy, 86% of professionals named email as their preferred means of business communication and email ranked as the third most influential source of information for B2B audiences – topped only by colleague recommendations and industry-specific influencers.

In the same blog, Templafy revealed that the average office worker receives around 121 emails  every workday. Indeed, to truly grab the attention of supply chain leaders, healthcare marketers will need to find a way to stand out.

One powerful digital marketing tool is a well-regarded newsletter. These are much more personalized – and informative – than a marketing email. Newsletters are useful tools to educate and inform readers, all while building an audience that will come to depend on the platform for news, insights and tips on how to do their job better.

However, newsletters need compelling content and repetition in order to gain the trust of healthcare supply chain leaders. It can take months, or even years, to build that kind of value for today’s readership. That’s why partnering with a trusted industry newsletter is a good strategy for brands looking to get in front of, and stay in front of, their targeted audience.

Share Moving Media’s flagship newsletter, the dail-eNews, is a real-time email newsletter for those involved in the business of healthcare. It has been delivered on a daily basis to over 20,000 decision-makers in GPOs, IDNs and the manufacturing and distribution segments of the healthcare industry for more than a decade. Each edition of the dail-eNews provides an opportunity for healthcare marketers to gain the attention of supply chain leaders via banner ads, announcements of new product launches, features, initiatives, and more.

Share Moving Media also produces several other newsletters including National Accounts Weekly, the Medical Device Council, and Supply Chain Hub. For more information on SMM’s digital publications and how to partner, visit sharemovingmedia.com.

How to Build Brand Trust

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Marketing has a major role to play in the rate of growth of companies within the healthcare industry.  Companies that create successful marketing campaigns have the potential to gain more brand exposure and increase their recognition from influential supply chain executives.

Brand trust within the supply chain industry is a large part of what makes a company stand out and excel at marketing. Brand trust is defined as the confidence and loyalty that customers have in a brand. Customers that have high brand trust believe that a company will deliver on promises conveyed in their marketing efforts. Content creation and marketing campaigns can be a great way to start introducing brand information and positive rhetoric about your company that increases consumer trust in your brand.

Read on for four tips to increase brand trust:

  1. Consistent Content Creation

Content that informs and persuades audiences is very influential in the healthcare industry, as it helps foster continuing brand trust. Highlighting a company’s products and services through content creation, blogs, podcasts, webinars, and other marketing efforts allows potential customers to gain positive exposure to a company. Consistent exposure to a brand’s marketing content also helps solidify a company as a knowledgeable leader in the medical supply chain industry.

  1. Speak to Industry Needs

A successful brand has a knowledge of industry trends, challenges, and solutions. Using their expertise, through marketing a brand can convey to customers that they are the most knowledgeable source to navigate industry challenges. Informative marketing content allows supply chain execs to be more aware of potential solutions to any challenges they may face within the industry that your brand can solve.

  1. Accessibility

Marketing content should be accessible to gain consumer’s trust — meaning that a brand should maintain regular interaction with customers through marketing efforts. This can be achieved through being available to customers, answering any questions, and frequently engaging in interactions with customers over social media, email, etc., according to Entrepreneur.

  1. Transparency

Brands that are honest and transparent with consumers have the potential to gain an industry-wide trust and following. Brands should be open and honest about their strengths, challenges, and outcomes to gain the trust of industry execs. Brands that are honest are oftentimes more likely to have a consistent consumer following than their competitors that omit important information in marketing.

Garnering widespread brand trust can improve marketing outcomes and potentially increase the rate of growth for brands in the medical supply chain industry. If your brand could benefit from assistance with the creation of a marketing campaign that fosters long-term brand trust within the industry, contact John Pritchard at jpritchard@sharemovingmedia.com. Schedule a time to meet today to learn about the steps your brand can take to successfully market and build brand trust within the supply chain industry.

Crisis Management for Brands

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When leading a brand’s marketing strategy, it is important to recognize that many external and internal factors can arise and cause challenges for day-to-day business operations and marketing efforts. These so called “crises” in the supply chain industry can include financial changes, recession, the COVID-19 pandemic, and more, and all have the potential to impact marketing tactics and strategies.

Businesses should have a crisis management plan in place specifically for marketing and PR, so that leaders are able to quickly and successfully navigate any challenges that may arise for businesses.

Read on for examples of PR crises that other brands experienced and how your brand can learn from them to be adequately prepared for potential PR crises.

  1. Johnson & Johnson

Johnson & Johnson had a swift PR turnaround in relation to a crisis with Tylenol in the 1980’s, when seven people died from Tylenol capsules laced with cyanide. The product was recalled nationwide, and the crisis led to the adoption of tamperproof packaging for all over-the-counter medicine going forward.

The company reacted to the crisis quickly, recalling 31 million bottles of Tylenol, and also working with the media and law enforcement, ensuring the safety of the public foremost. With this example, Johnson & Johnson showed that their brand is authentic and trustworthy, as the decision to recall the product further built trust and the brand’s reputation.

  1. Reese’s

For a more social media oriented example of handling a PR crisis, in 2015, Reese’s released candies for the holiday season that were advertised as Christmas tree shaped, but customers reacted saying the shape did not in fact look like Christmas trees.

Reese’s responded by starting a social media campaign called #AllTreesAreBeautiful, which turned the negative crisis situation into another marketing opportunity.

Brand’s past PR crises, and the way that brands respond, can be lessons to current brands. Quick and transparent crisis management reassures customers that a brand is empathetic, takes responsibility, and acts quickly to maintain brand image.

The medical distribution industry has faced many business and PR challenges in recent times, including the pandemic, supply chain disruptions, and more. If your company could use assistance planning a marketing strategy that can plan for and navigate potential crises, Share Moving Media has extensive experience working with health systems and medical sales reps to create marketing content that can assist brands in times of crisis. Contact Scott Adams at sadams@sharemovingmedia.com to set up a time to meet to learn more.

Top Influencers in Healthcare

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The healthcare industry has many facets, from health systems, to hospitals, outpatient centers, the medical supply chain, and more. Influencers can help customers navigate the industry, understand the products they are buying, and make purchasing decisions by experiencing someone using the product firsthand participating in medicine.

So, what is an influencer exactly, and who are the top names in social media influencing the healthcare industry?

An influencer is someone that has the power to impact a consumer’s purchasing decisions and they follow a distinct niche. According to Forbes, influencer marketing is certain individuals conveying marketing messages on behalf of corporations and brands.

Brands request the help of influencers to convey marketing messages and positive brand narratives, while the audience receives tailored, original, and individualized content about a brand.

Below are examples of some of the top influencers in healthcare:

  1. Jennifer Arnold, M.D. (@JenArnoldMD on X, formerly Twitter)

Dr. Jennifer Arnold is a mother, neonatologist, educator, cancer survivor, and medical news contributor for Katie Couric Media (KCM). She tweets about her experience as a mother, physician, and media contributor.

  1. Grace Vinton (@Grace Vinton on LinkedIn)

Grace Vinton is a Healthcare PR Professional, a patient advocate, and a podcast host in the Boston area. She aims to modernize the healthcare industry through giving innovators the platforms to share information about choice care, data, technology, science and research within healthcare.

  1. Matthew Holt (@Matthew Holt on LinkedIn)

Matthew Holt is the founder of The Health Care Blog (THCB) and throughout his career has spent 30 years in healthcare and healthcare IT as a forecaster and strategist. He has conducted ground-breaking studies on many aspects of healthcare and delivered keynote addresses all over the world.

  1. Sanjay Gupta, M.D. (@drsanjaygupta on Instagram)

Dr. Sanjay Gupta is a neurosurgeon, medical correspondent, and author. As a trusted voice for both patients and healthcare professionals, he posts health information, stories, and trends in the healthcare industry.

The world of marketing within the medical distribution industry is increasingly impacted by knowledgeable and impactful influencers. Trusted leaders in the industry can boost brand’s trustworthiness, gain a larger customer base, and encourage customers to further research a brand and potentially make purchasing decisions.

If your brand could benefit from content created by knowledgeable experts within the industry, Share Moving Media can help. SMM has extensive experience navigating marketing efforts in the supply chain industry, and can assist your brand in creating social media posts, podcasts, written content, and more that influences consumers and promotes your brand’s goals. For more information, contact John Pritchard at jpritchard@sharemovingmedia.com.