Definition
In the modern age media and marketing are now a vital aspect of business growth even for medical procedures. In reality, the majority of people are turning to looking for information on the internet which includes health information. The Pew Research Center Report states that "72 percent of Internet users reported that they had accessed the internet to find health information over the last year". This means that practices, doctors as well as hospitals must "get up to date" and create an online presence. If you don't, you could lose your job in a flash.
Marketing CRM platforms such as ReferralMD can give general exposure to your health facility and the services you offer . This allows patients and other doctors to locate your website on the first page of Google and other search engines.
Based on a survey in 2008 of more than 12,000 doctors just 17% of doctors assessed the financial condition of their practice to be "healthy as well-run". 17 percent! This implies that 83% of these doctors aren't earning money. In fact, a new Wall Street Journal article by Dr. Sandeep Jauhar reports that the "return on education investment for primary-care doctors adjusted for differences in hours worked are just under $6 an hour". This is lower than the Federal minimum wage!
What strategies of medical marketing and communications are doctors and their practices able to implement which actually help to boost earnings and pay? Here's seven:
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What is Medical Marketing?
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Media
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Why do you think that print, TV and outdoor media is used in the healthcare sector? This is because everyone has their own media preferencesand, often, use both online and offline media prior to making a choice. In the study conducted in 2012 by Google/Compete Hospital Study, 84 percent of patients use offline and online sources to conduct research. Of those who utilized offline media
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A third of the patients turn to the television for research.
20 percent of patients utilize magazines to conduct research.
A quarter of the patients read newspapers to conduct research.
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To make the campaign memorable the agency identified the target market as well as what their problem were, and presented the story in a manner that was informative, positive and resonant with the particular people. Additionally, they provided an explicit message ("call us") as well as a method to make that call by providing their telephone number.
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SEO
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If you're thinking of advertising within the Yellow Pages, say hello to Google -- the brand new Yellow Pages. In the present, Pew Internet Research says 77% of health-related users began their final session on an online search engine like Google, Bing, or Yahoo. Search engines, such as Google have become so advanced in helping users find what they're seeking that you can simply type the names of medical specialists or medical professionals in my area into their search bar and they will provide an index of the most reputable medical professionals in your geographical region.
However, wait...what do you think you mean by "authoritative"? It's easy to see that Google ranks websites based on two fundamental factors that are: Authority, which is an indicator of the number of people who are sharing or linking back to your website or blog, and Relevancy, an indicator of how you write content that is relevant to the keywords that users use to search (like Google) to find your blog or website. Blogs and websites that create relevant content that is found by web users, and is then distributed across the internet are deemed to be credible. You may get more information, simply click.
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Social Media
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However, Social Media and networks such as Twitter are not to be overlooked. Use of Social Media and Mobile in Health Care Infographic illustrates the fact that 40% of users will choose a health provider due to their reputation on social media. In the survey, one-third of them are now using social media platforms for instance Twitter, Facebook, YouTube as well as online forums regarding health issues. The kinds of content users were more likely to interact in or share via these networks were those that related to care they received from an institution or hospital as well as a specific physician or nurse service provider that they experienced either a positive or negative experience with.
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However, social media can be utilized for many different purposes other than connecting with patients online. In this Philips Healthcare LinkedIn case study is an excellent illustration of a healthcare company which made use of LinkedIn for establishing "thought management" and gain expertise in their specific area of lighting and healthcare. Philips established its Innovation in Health LinkedIn group to facilitate discussions and improve their reputation through direct communication to their intended audience -medical, healthcare, and tech professionals. The group has now more than 100,000 members across the globe! Imagine how this kind of marketing might affect smaller health businesses...
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PPC Campaigns
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The problem for many medical practices, particularly when it comes to marketing is that they do not have time. There are patients to see and paperwork to complete and you're already working more than eight hours. How do you make time to blog and keep up with social media? I get it. As a marketer in the field of healthcare I know the challenges of the present in relation to marketing online. This is why I depend on Paid Advertising also known as Pay-Per-Click (PPC) is a type used in Search Engine Marketing. Paid Ads are available through Google Adwords, LinkedIn Ads as well as Facebook local Awareness Ads can be a time-saving and cost-effective method of gaining more referrals, patients and recognition for your business. One benefit from Paid Ads (or PPC campaigns is that you can control your spending by setting a limit on your spending. Based on the strategy you choose for your marketing cost can be from $0.30 per click with Adwords and $1 per day on Facebook.
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40% of the users looked for doctors 44% of users looked for doctors
81 percent of people click an advertisement when searching for information on health.
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If you're looking for an affordable and quick method to increase your business, think about implementing the PPC campaign. In this Now Care Dental case study illustrates how making use of PPC they were able to achieve 25.5 percent conversion rates from phone calls to clicks that resulted in the recording of 86 calls in only 45 days! If you were to receive 86 more calls in the span of just 45 days that resulted in higher profit could it be worth investing a few dollars into the form of a PPC campaign?
Email Marketing
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Phone as well as Social Media aren't the only ways doctors interact with each other or their patients, either. In fact 62% of physicians and other healthcare professionals prefer email communications over direct telephone calls, postal mail and visits in person, according to the
If you're trying to get more referrals I'm sure you've put in place an email marketing strategy. If you don't, you're probably among 40 percent of the healthcare organizations listed in that report that aren't using an email marketing plan.
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Mobile Marketing
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Mobile devices aren't just good for checking email and locating information on the internet is also. The more and more practices are becoming mobile-friendly to accommodate the rapid change in the way internet users consume media (via their mobile devices) to ensure they are able to better reach their intended audience.
For instance, this Sk:n Clinics case study describes how the company was able to get their message across to their intended audience with an innovative mobile marketing campaign which led to an increase of 42% in calls from people who were interested in learning more about their services. They achieved this by implementing an interactive mobile campaign that led people to their site to submit a form to request to speak with a consultant in the call centre. Sk:n knew that their target audience is always on the go, so the most effective way to contact them was to have an expert call them right after filling out their free consultation form. It's pretty clever, isn't it?
Video Marketing
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Mobile isn't all the way to come up with ideas in your medical marketing strategies. YouTube videos online on channels like YouTube are highly efficient too.
Marketing Consultant in Turkey
Medical Marketing Rapid growth and long-term success are the dreams virtually every company pursues. We push our clients to ascend to the mountaintop quickly and stay there as long as possible. Adopting some clever marketing strategies like these can bring those dreams within reach.
WHAT YOU WILL GET?
Increasing brand awareness
Increasing Relationships (engagement)
Community building
Organic growth of your Sales Leads
Real likes, comments and followers
Market Analysis
Generating new contacts