Is Your Marketing the Achilles Heel in Building Organizational Culture?

Do you glaze over when hearing the term 'patient experience?'

Most healthcare organizations would give their eyeteeth to even marginally deliver 'good' on that promise, consistently.

It's a struggle that becomes a prisoner of too many disconnects along the care journey.

A one-size-fits-all delivery mindset that leaves the individual consumer wanting something more personal.

Yet culture remains the foundation that offers a chance for success.

And a leadership void in understanding how to drive cultural evangelism of that brand 'Why' is the arrow in Achilles' heel.

It's not a marketing problem either when the promise struggles to deliver.

There are no quick tricks or marketing secrets even though everyone believes they have the answer.

Keep in mind, that true performance marketers know a unique approach is necessary to inform consumers about their health needs while capturing them into the right care net.

Different services mandate their own unique messages, using specific channels for various demographics and personalized to an individual's health journey.

Science and math are essential, too, and provide a more realistic conduit compared to the typical happy faces of docs and patients in the 'if you build it, they will come' healthcare selling mindset.

Here are a few examples of how personalization leads to an organizational culture of caring for each individual's health needs...

• Bariatric surgery patients prefer more privacy due to the nature of their health issues. They want to hear from others who experienced similar, so personal testimonials and targeted social channels work much better than very public, before-and-after pics of your jeans on billboards. How about a 50:1 ROI handled by 1 FTE using more cost-effective media?

• Knee pain sufferers prefer larger forums to commiserate with others about their joint issues. So, educational seminars with physician expertise to evaluate knee and joint pain fill classes while savvy marketing tactics capture attendees and nurture follow-up appointments. More personalized 1-1 access.
• For high-end cardiac and cancer issues, lifestyle propensity models in consumer populations identify the niche play with specific messaging. For cancer, it may be prostate, breast, skin, etc. for better targeting. Heart issues could revolve around Afib, chest pain, or other age-related warning signs. In any case, science shows who to target, and how to message, and convert the business more efficiently.

Technology is a guide for today's savvy healthcare marketing.

Data provides insights.

Consumer populations, EMRs, and insurance claims paint a meaningful picture of community health utilization and need. So, need + service + message + channel = a connected conversion

Tactical marketing using science and math is the easy part. Physicians understand and support it because they're scientists. Everyone else wants a quick hit full-page ad or a billboard. Keep these channels for the big, brand plays. ok?

Culture is formed through leadership. The healthcare marketer's real-world challenge now is to fill the leadership void for the patient experience.

Can't say it any more directly. Take charge!

Socialize and sell these new concepts to an organization that suffers from ADHD. It's a daily engagement battle, a smarter way and it's been proven to work more efficiently over the long term.

Marketing must unabashedly support the need for change. Consumer demand and higher expectations require new ways to engage, communicate, and drive appropriate care into appropriate settings.

If you're a healthcare brand today, knowing thy customer personally is gospel to a true partnership.

Lean into the promise, and the culture will shine on the patient experience

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