Why is Digital Marketing Important in Healthcare?

Technically speaking, any industry can directly benefit from digital marketing. With everything going digital, from your morning news to your remote Zoom calls, the internet ends up being the place where we spend A LOT of time.

DIGITAL MARKETING IS ESPECIALLY IMPORTANT FOR HOSPITALS, ACADEMIC MEDICAL CENTERS AND PRIVATE PRACTICES

The online marketplace is one of the best places to reach just about anyone. That’s why it is crucial for our clients in the healthcare industry to develop a digital presence. The other reason for recommending digital marketing to our healthcare clients is because so many potential patients look to make health-related decisions online. Whether that be to book an appointment, to self-diagnose their symptoms, to research elective procedures, or to research a new physician.

WHAT ARE THE TYPES OF DIGITAL MARKETING?

In essence, digital marketing is broken down into 4 parts:

SEO (Search Engine Optimization), a good tactic for boosting your organic ranking on the Google search results page. Users who are searching for a specific topic will most likely take action and convert via the organic search channel. SEO can be challenging as one must strike a delicate balance between quality human-centered content and concise writing for the search engine.

Paid Search is a method of ad placement for the top slot on the search results pages. Google is the number one place that users go to ask questions and research services, including healthcare needs near them. Paid search is often used for brand awareness campaigns and to drive traffic to your website.

Email Marketing

If your goal is to reach new qualified leads and funnel existing customers back to your website or key location, email marketing can help drive results. Be conscious that most people look through their email for informational results and eye-catching offers. The most beneficial part of email marketing is you are building your own list of customers who are familiar with your brand and want to receive notifications from you.

Social Media has billions of users worldwide and is often the cheapest and most accessible form of digital marketing. Social media is a great tool for elevating brand reputation and public perception when used correctly. Ads run via social media have the most robust targeting features out of all listed tactics.

WHY DO I NEED A DIGITAL MARKETING AGENCY THAT SPECIALIZES IN HEALTHCARE?

For the same reason that you wouldn’t go to a plumber for a haircut. The healthcare industry is strictly regulated, and healthcare digital marketers should be well-versed in HIPAA compliance and data privacy laws. Another reason is that healthcare marketers have insights that can inform their approach to marketing strategies.

At Werremeyer Creative, we have years of experience and measurable data to compare against. For example, we know what works and what doesn’t work to drive patients to schedule that first appointment.

DO I NEED TO INVEST IN DIGITAL MARKETING?

Frequently, companies invest in digital marketing to sell more products online. In healthcare, we typically measure ROI in terms of patients/donors gained or appointments scheduled. Our clients find value in investing in our services because we provide them with rich insights into what drives their ideal customers to convert.

At Werremeyer Creative, you’re not just investing in, let’s say a weekly email– you’re utilizing your marketing budget to reach a targeted audience of qualified leads, and converting a percent of them into your sales funnel.

WHAT KIND OF RESULTS CAN I EXPECT?

The results we generate depend on your business’ goals and market conditions. In general, digital marketing takes many touch points before you see impactful conversions. We take a multichannel approach to make sure your campaign elements are working cohesively to make the most out of your marketing budget. Check out this case study to get a better picture of the type of results that we generate.

WHAT TO LOOK FOR FROM A HEALTHCARE MARKETING AGENCY

Look for marketing firms that practice what they preach. How can you expect that a firm will deliver results when they don’t use digital marketing tactics for themselves?

Always ask for results. As gatekeepers of data, digital marketers have the resources to give you accurate numbers and insights about the performance of a campaign. Compare these numbers against your industry averages to get a general idea of the firm’s capabilities.

We are a healthcare marketing agency located in St. Louis, Missouri and serve clients throughout the country.