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But getting your content in front of potential customers to build this trust takes strategy.
Lets explore what you need to know to build an effective one in healthcare content marketing the way professionals do.
1) Get a Written Plan
Studies show that nearly 40% of companies try to implement content marketing without any written plan.
They end up picking random topics. They dont have clear objectives or goals. They think theyre just going to publish a blog or two a week and see them take off. They share them on FaceBook. They dont consistently measure results.
Then they wonder why content marketing doesnt work.
Get a plan and get ready to execute a healthcare content marketing strategy that gets results.
2) Follow the Plan
The great thing about a plan is that it has clear benchmarks, methods, whos responsible for what, etc.
You can look back to see whats working and where you need to make changes. You can identify if things are going as expected and if everyones on task.
Follow the plan that you have established for your healthcare content marketing.
Through this, you can answer the question: Is it the plan that needs to adapt? Or is the team simply not staying on task to execute your healthcare marketing strategy.
3) Be Clear on Your Target Audience
If youre in private practice, you want more patients. We get it. But who are your ideal patients? Some healthcare companies market too broad. They dont want to exclude anyone. This seems like the right and ethical thing to do.
But the success of any healthcare content marketing strategy is dependent on its ability to connect with people. You cant connect if you dont have a clear vision of who youre trying to connect with.
In content marketing, you may have 5+ distinct targets. But each piece of content that you create and distribute should have a single target in mind.
4) Do a Competitive Analysis
On average, search results account for 51% of a websites traffic. One of the goals of content marketing is to increase your ranking in searches so that you earn more of this organic traffic through SEO.
92% of traffic goes to page one results so this is where you need to be.
Evaluate whos appearing on page one in your local market for key phrases people would use to find your website.
Take a close look at their sites. What kind of content are they creating? Where are they focusing their social media efforts? What is their domain authority?
How many links do they have from other sites? You can invest in tools that will help you gain a clearer understanding of what the competition is doing to earn page one spots.
5) Generate Shareable Content Topics
An effective strategy needs two primary types of content topics evergreen and trending. They serve different purposes and work together to help you achieve your goals.
Evergreen Topics
A portion of your topics should be evergreen. They should be timeless topics that people are always looking for. They may be the answers to common healthcare questions in your niche or other tips and tricks that your target finds helpful.
You can keep the ideas flowing by listening to your industry. Stay active on social media sites to keep your finger on the pulse of the industry.
Talk to your sales department and patient support services teams. Find out about commonly asked questions and concerns. Address them in evergreen content.
You can actually cut patient support costs by making these resources available online.
Mayo Clinic is an example of healthcare company that produces great evergreen content. They address everything health and are one of the top resources that people turn to when they have a health question.
Trending Topics
And some of your content should be on trending topics likes relevant news stories. Whenever you can find a way to integrate a trending topic into your specific healthcare content marketing niche do so.
Not only does this demonstrate that youre current, it helps drive traffic because you have a topic that people are very actively looking for.
Get creative. The news doesnt have to be exactly in your niche. In fact, the more you can bend the content to fit into your niche, the more original piece of content youll create.
Whether youre creating content for addiction recovery or a power wheelchair company, you can find trending stories to fit into your niche.
6) Get a Personality
People dont get behind a business. They get behind the people behind that brand. The more you can humanize your brand, the more easily youll connect with people.
You may have noticed the recent Gillette commercials where theyre doing just that. Founded over 120 years ago, this shaving company is having to adapt to changing consumer behavior.
Instead of commercials with flashy images and slogans, theyre placing their employees prominently in the commercials. It gives the company a human face.
A 2nd example, Saint Thomas Hospital Systems in Nashville, isnt alone in its attempt to give its impersonal hospital brand a makeover. For the past several years, theyve been creating content that tells the stories of their patients with permission of course.
These heartfelt pieces connect with people going through similar health struggles. You cant do that with a how-to video or 11 quick tips article.
7) Measure Everything
You cant optimize your healthcare content marketing if you dont know whats working best for you. Use free tools like Google Analytics to evaluate how people are interacting with content.
How much traffic is it getting? Do people stay on the page?
Does it encourage people to click on another page to continue to browse the site? Schedule an appointment? Or buy something?
When you know what to measure and consistently measure it, you know where to go for more info when your strategies arent working.
Dont be in the dark. Leverage this data to improve your strategies.
Healthcare Content Marketing
To get results with content, you need a written plan. Lay out how you will create, curate and distribute content.
Follow your plan. Create content that people are looking for and love.
Show your human side. Measure your results.
For more tips on leveraging content in your industry, follow our blog.
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