First of all, let’s take a look at marketing in general, even though marketing healthcare is not the same as any other field.
Marketing means identifying the needs, wants and desires of your customers. Marketing any product or service requires you to understand what people want and what their priorities are. It is what marketers refer to as “the problem”. Your product or service is designed to solve some kind of problem. What is the problem? How can you solve the problem? How bad is the problem?
When you have a full understanding of the problem, you need to talk about the problem. When people believe you understand their problem, they will see you as an expert in the problem, and inherently, you must be an expert in the solution.
Far too many decision makers focus their marketing efforts entirely on the solution. Yes, you understand the problem and the solution, but just focusing on marketing the solution is not going to give your customer the sense you understand their problem. And, if they don’t think you really understand their problem, it is going to be hard to convince them that you understand the solution, or that your solution is what they need.
You can publish ads in magazines and newspapers, have a blog, post ads on Facebook, etc. but you need to be careful not to simply talk about the solution. Find ways to talk to your audience that gives them the sense that you understand their problem. Do that first, then show them how your solution addresses their problem.
This is going to take effort, time and money. You’re going to need to put your understanding in front of people in multiple ways and outlets before they begin to have confidence that you have an understanding of their needs. Once they believe you understand what is going on with them, then they will seek you out for the solution, and usually look you up online. This also doesn’t mean that simply having a website is going to do the trick either. You’re going to need several channels to get your message across, but in the end, most people are going to look you up online when they are ready to take action.
The internet is the modern-day Yellow Pages for those of you who remember those days. Once the consumer figures out what they need and who can deliver it, they look up the number and make a call, send an email or schedule an appointment. This whole process is missed by so many small businesses.
Now, back to healthcare. People seek healthcare when they are sick, or in pain, or have some other affliction that bothers them. The more it affects them, the more they think about it, and the more likely they are to take some kind of action.
Let’s take a look at someone in pain. Take a person with hip pain. They don’t know what’s causing the pain. They can search online or read periodicals to learn about hip pain, but they really don’t know who to go to, or what to do. So, they don’t go to anyone.
They think about the pain and will eventually do things to alleviate the pain. But first, they will go through a variety of behaviors that will change the way they do things. A person with hip pain may begin to lay down differently, their sleep may be interrupted, and they may not move as quickly. Their daily activities begin to change in a variety of ways. They will do things to alleviate the symptoms and hope the pain improves or goes away.
But, as the pain persists, they continue to change their day-to-day behavior. They might have normally done things like wash the car, or clean the house. But, now those things are put on hold.
They may have normally gone to the gym or played catch with the children. But, now they don’t do that either. They may find that sitting in front of the computer is not comfortable, so their work habits begin to change as well.
They go to the store, buy some over-the-counter medications, and begin experimenting with them to see if they get relief. They find themselves focusing on the pain more and more, and suddenly determine that they “have” to do something about it.
All of these behaviors are typically what happens “before” someone seeks healthcare. For that person a headline like, “Are You In Pain?” will almost always get their attention. When they read it, they are unconsciously hoping it will describe exactly what they are feeling. When it does, then they know where they can go for the solution.
In creating the best copy, it is essential to spend as much real estate as possible showing your customer that you understand their problem. And, then, and only then, should you recommend a possible solution.
