Amazon has been a competitor for e-commerce brands around the world, offering similar products at much lower costs. As a result, healthcare manufacturers also see some of their customers go to this retail giant instead of purchasing from their e-commerce stores. However, a content marketing plan can be the boost your brand needs to gain the upper hand.
Learn why content marketing for healthcare is essential and some e-commerce brands that are thriving despite competition from Amazon and other large e-commerce retailers.
Key Takeaways:
- Content marketing is the top marketing strategy of 2022
- Use content marketing to build a community of niche and loyal customers
- Build a brand beyond just your products that shows your values, causes, and stories
Your Secret Weapon for Building an E-commerce Brand
Content marketing offers you a unique advantage over large e-commerce brands like Amazon. According to marketers who use content marketing:
- 70% Educate their audience
- 60% Generate demand and new leads
- 60% Encourage customer loyalty
Because it yields excellent results, 81% of marketers consider it a vital part of their marketing strategy and plan to increase their content marketing budget over the next few years.
Image from SEMrush
Through content marketing, e-commerce companies can create a unique brand that adds value to their products. When you add value to your products, customers are willing to spend more with your healthcare brand over your competition.
5 Lessons Healthcare Brands Can Learn from Successful E-commerce Businesses
Here are five specific content marketing strategies you can adopt from successful e-commerce brands that understand how to stand out from big retailers like Amazon.
1. Prioritize Your Customer
Your brand should be customer-centric first and an e-commerce store second. When you are customer-centric, your primary focus won’t be making a sale but building a positive relationship with consumers and other businesses that interact with your brand.
About 86% of customers will pay more for a positive experience with a business. You can prioritize your customer through content by engaging with each customer and business, posting relevant and timely information, and creating an experience specific to your niche.
BarkBox is an excellent content marketing strategy example of an e-commerce brand that puts its customers front and center. It understands that its audience consists of dog lovers and shares its happy puppy customers even before promoting products. One example is how it introduced a team of canine executives on its website instead of the real faces behind the brand.
Its “BARK Post” blog shares fun facts about dogs, pet health information, and product updates that always keeps its unique audience in mind. As a healthcare manufacturer, you can use this same strategy where customers appear front and center on your website rather than products.
Image from BarkBox
2. Build a Community of Loyal Customers
About 65% of your business comes from loyal customers. You can retain more customers by investing in them through content marketing. This builds a community of loyal buyers versus constantly competing against large retailers for each new sale.
Some ways to build a community through content marketing include:
- Sharing customer stories or case studies
- Allowing loyal clients to share their content on your blog or social media
- Rewarding loyal followers with discounts and promotions
MUD Jeans is a sustainable retail company that created a unique business model. It gives its customers an option of renting jeans rather than buying jeans. This reduces waste by allowing its customers to send jeans back for recycling rather than tossing jeans they don’t wear anymore.
Its content marketing strategy focuses on building a community of loyal customers who continually lease a pair of jeans and then trade them for a new pair. One of the main ways it creates a community is through social media marketing. It encourages customers to become brand ambassadors, shares customers’ stories on its blog and social channels and offers special promotions through its content to encourage loyalty.
3. Share the Brand Behind Your Products
If your content marketing only focuses on your products, you will struggle to compete with larger e-commerce retailers because they will have lower prices and more options. However, you can gain an advantage over large retailers by selling your brand more than the products.
Instead of selling products, you can build a brand by selling your story, mission, values, or a specific experience. One of the best ways to sell your brand rather than products is to use storytelling. The stories of customers or your history add value to what you create and emotionally persuade your audience to act.
Bosch home appliances uses a noteworthy content marketing plan example that employs this technique. Its blog is called “Heart of the Home” and sells the memories that its appliances help create rather than the appliances themselves. For example, one section of their blog shares recipes from customers who use their ovens and the memories associated with those recipes.
A healthcare manufacturer might share stories about lives changed by their products, the detailed manufacturing process, or the values you uphold that make you different from large name e-commerce brands.
4. Align with a Cause or Value
Around 71% of customers prefer to purchase from a brand with the same values. For example, a customer might buy from a small business owner rather than a major retailer or spend more for a recyclable product than a cheaper plastic product.
Use your content platform to speak up about your values and mission. You can also share stories about causes you support. These stories encourage customers to choose your brand over a cheaper or more well-known brand because they want to be part of a greater cause.
Rothy’s is a sustainable shoe company that creates footwear from recycled plastic. Its blog is a platform to share stories of sustainability and how it is changing the world one shoe at a time. This strategy has earned the brand a following of loyal customers who hold the same values and mission for sustainable living.
5. Market to Your Niche Business
One major disadvantage large e-commerce retailers have is trying to reach a broad audience. Meanwhile, your business is a niche healthcare manufacturing company with a specific audience.
You can use your niche to your advantage by creating content relevant to your target audience and their specific needs. Use healthcare content marketing insights to craft relatable and timely content. These articles give you a chance to rank well in SEO as you can target keywords within your industry that your audience is searching.
Artifact Uprising uses its blog to share educational material and helpful ideas. Each post focuses on a specific area of home décor, crafting, and making memories, reflecting their niche in the photo gift and book industry.
Target Your Healthcare Content Marketing Strategy
Are you making the most out of your content marketing?
Consider using some of the strategies you learned for successful e-commerce brands to create content that resonates with your distributors and buyers. Then, explore some of our publications to find unique market insights that will help you build a targeted content marketing plan.
Contact us to learn more about our content marketing resources and tools for healthcare manufacturers.