Healthcare Marketing

Introduction
When it comes to healthcare marketing there are certain restrictions that have to be followed under U.S. law. For example, the FDA has rules for companies that want to market pharmaceuticals directly to consumers. Truth-in-advertising laws have to be complied with. Stark Law rules and HIPAA rules both determine the extent to which social media platforms can be used by medical companies, with respect to doctors gaining referrals and the potential for patient information to be spread publicly in violation of the privacy rights of patients (Lane, 2019). Moreover, aside from issues of compliance, the nature of marketing has changed to such an extent within the last few decades that much of advertising itself has migrated from old media to new media to focus on targeted consumers. The Digital Age has ushered in a new era of communication: more and more people turn to the Internet for information and communication purposes; more and more use social media to disseminate ideas about news and what brands to trust. As Hawn (2009) points out, social media itself is changing the nature of health care by altering where patients go for information about health and healing. In this new complex landscape of regulations and changing technology, healthcare marketing faces new challenges. Fortunately, old formulas can still apply. This paper will describe the strategies and tools that can still be effective in healthcare marketing while allowing marketers to navigate the rules and laws that can lead one into pitfalls if not careful.
Ethics, Rules and Regulations
Direct to consumer marketing in the healthcare industry comes with its own risks and rewards. For one, there are many critics of direct to consumer marketing who feel that the healthcare companies take advantage of consumers’ ignorance by appealing and directly advertising to them. This is especially the case with TV spots, which tend to target older persons (younger people tend to use more Internet-based sources for entertainment). Older consumers do not understand the subtle nuances of particular treatments and if they see an advertisement for a particular medicine on TV they may inquire about it and put pressure on their doctor to prescribe it. These critics feel it is also a way to get the public more used to the idea of a new drug coming to market that is advertised as something that will solve their ailments (while the potential side effects and risks are quickly communicated in a fast-paced subdued tone that one must strain one’s ears to hear and understand). As Arnold and Oakley (2013) point out, healthcare companies have to be cognizant that they can do great harm or great good—and so they must market responsibly. Unfortunately, many drug companies in the U.S. do not heed this advice and one of the examples given by Arnold and Oakley (2013) is that of a drug company advertising a pill for erectile dysfunction (ED) during a sports game on TV, where families and likely children may be watching. It is not a topic that generally comes up in polite conversation, so it can seem uncouth to many to see an advertisement addressing ED during a game the family may be watching. It can cause discomfort and embarrassment for the audience, and healthcare marketers should strive to avoid embarrassing anyone if possible.
There is also the problem of “manipulating consumers by using low-cognitive elaboration persuasive techniques rather than engaging in genuine education” (Arnold & Oakley, 2013, p. 507). This means that healthcare companies have a reputation for preying on uneducated consumers and patients who do not know how to make careful assessments and evaluations of the information they are being presented on the screen. They see data coming at them in between an advertisement for Pepsi and one for Coke, and they assume the healthcare company advertising a pill for their ailment is also just as legitimate as the major companies that precede and follower their commercial. They are not educated doctors and do not understand what is beneficial for them and what should be avoided. And because the healthcare industry does not mind, in general, overprescribing and overtreating patients, most doctors are not going to resist a patient’s inquiry for a new drug—especially if the doctor is already getting kickbacks from the drug maker (Lichtenfeld, 2011). In spite of the Affordable Care Act’s aim to promote prevention, the industry still aims to treat patients as much as possible as that is where the money is to be made.
Thus, the issues that critics take up with direct to consumer healthcare marketing are significant and must be considered by the healthcare company, as the company’s brand and reputation may be at risk if the company’s marketing tactics come under fire from critics. This is especially true in the social media age, where one complaint can trigger a landslide of vitriolic abuse and create a public relations nightmare for the company in the process. Therefore, it is better to be safe than sorry and to avoid controversial methods of marketing.
The rules and regulations of marketing also must be complied with, which means no publicizing of patient information on social media platforms if one is a doctor or nurse trying to obtain referrals or connect with patients. It means no exaggerating the effects of a particular product or service beyond what has been verified by laboratory tests that have been verified. It means not taking advantage of consumers’ ignorance: companies that sell drugs must make known the name of the generic drug and what the potential risks an changes in the person’s behavior might be if the drug is taken (Lane, 2019).
The Arrival of the Social Media Influencer
With the younger generations now turning to social media influencers for their information, healthcare marketers also need to take stock of how the next generations will be absorbing information and how they will be obtaining data that will influence their consumption choices.
Dolliver (2009) notes that the younger generations largely remain a mystery to adults: it is a demographic that is not very well understood and they are hard to reach in ways. Yet in the online world of social media many companies have found a way to reach them—via Social Media Influencers (Lim, Radzol, Cheah & Wong, 2017). Social media platforms like YouTube and Instagram offer companies a way to get their products in front of the younger generations on social media so that they are not overlooked. Lim et al. (2017) show that because the younger generations are most active on social media when they are online, they tend to pay attention to Influencers. They also trust Influencers because they come across as authentic and informative: the Influencer takes the time to give an honest review of a product (at least it seems that way to the younger generations) (Lim et al., 2017). The reality is that Influencers are paid by companies to review products in a particular light. The Influencer is the new go-to source of marketing for many companies trying to reach the younger generations. The reason for that is simple. The younger generations use social media more than anyone else. They trust other the younger generations and young adults on social media. They look to them for information that can help them form an opinion on what products or brands they should buy.
Thus, while other forms of digital advertising, such as banner ads or pop-ups, may be used by companies to try to attract the younger generations’ attention based on the the younger generations’ browsing history and digital footprint, the problem with that form of advertising is that it has virtually no impact on the younger generations’ purchasing habits in so far as anyone can tell (Dolliver, 2009). It is simply too difficult to quantify or measure the actual impact and so there is no real way to determine if they are having any impact at all. Surveys reveal that most the younger generations ignore them and pay them no attention (Dolliver, 2009). If the younger generations pay attention to traditional ads it is through television, where they actually enjoy the advertisements because they are often funny or meaningful or shot well or feature their favorite stars (Dolliver, 2009). Ads on the Internet, however, are everywhere and with today’s apps they can even be blocked altogether by using a plug-in like Ad Blocker Plus. In other words, trying to replicate the advertising experience that the younger generations have with television by throwing ads at them online does not work for all companies, and healthcare marketers should pay attention to that fact. The younger generations can simply block them or scroll away from them. On the TV, the younger generations are more likely to continue sitting and passively watching so long as the ad is interesting—and that way the ad can do its work.
This is why advertisers turn to the Social Media Influencer: it works to capture the the younger generations’ attention as the the younger generations already go to social media to get opinions from others in their own peer group (Lim et al., 2017). The effect of the Influencer on the teen has been evaluated by researchers and shown to be effective in influencing the younger generations to buy the products that Influencer recommends or to be loyal to the brand the Influencer is peddling. For healthcare companies that want to develop brand loyalty, turning to a good, successful, influential Social Media Influencer may be the way to go.
The Marketing Mix
The marketing mix has been in existence for many years. It has been added to over the decades (the 4 P’s of marketing became the 7 P’s along the way). Nonetheless, the basic 4 P framework is still relevant and helpful in understanding how healthcare marketing should be approached even in today’s Digital Age, and for that reason it can be considered an important and essential element of the marketing strategy. The 4 P’s of the marketing mix consist of the following segments: the product and service offered by the company; the price for that product or service; the place where it can be received or acquired; and the manner in which the product/service are promotion (Goi, 2009). To understand how companies in the healthcare industry can most effectively utilize the 4 P’s to gain the attention of consumers, the marketer must ask a series of questions that pertain to each of the four P’s described above (Schewe & Hiam, 1998).
When determining the approach to the product or service that the healthcare company intends to offer, the questions for the marketer are: What is it that the customer wants or would like? What products or services does the customer require or need that are not already offered in the market or that the company can improve upon with its own offerings? How should the company focus on its brand in terms of the product or service representing that brand? Are the products and services distinct from those offered by other healthcare facilities—and if not can they be made to appear distinct?
The next part of implementing the marketing mix is to examine the price that will be charged for the healthcare company’s services or products. Here, the questions should ask: What is the value of the particular product or service to the consumer and how is this reflected in the price? Is the customer looking for a bargain price and is the company seeking to satisfy that demand? Or is the customer being targeted more interested in paying a premium for the perception and satisfaction of receiving a premium product or service? Is the consumer in the marketplace going to be sensitive to price and will the price of the product or service be price elastic or inelastic? How will the service or product’s price compare to the prices of comparable services and products put out by competitors in the field?
Questions that should be asked when it comes to examining the role of place in the healthcare marketer’s mix include: Where will consumers have to go in order to obtain the product or service? Will they have to go anywhere or is it something that can be ordered entirely online? Will there be more than one location if it is not something that can be obtained online? What should the location look like and where would the best place for it be? Where are competitors located? What is the surrounding area like? Is there easy access to the place? How should the place be staffed and how should they interact with customers?
When determining the aspect of promotion, the marketer will want to ask: How must the marketing idea be messaged to the target audience? What is the main idea the marketer wants to communicate? How will the consumer receive the message? What channels should be used to get the message across? What channels are available and which are the ones most likely to be channels that the target consumer will use? What season will be the most optimal for marketing? Should discounts or sales promotions be a consideration? What strategies and methods are competitors using when it comes to promoting their products and services?
Asking these questions for each of the 4 P’s of the marketing mix will allow the healthcare marketing team to get started. However, there is much more to be done in order to develop a successful marketing campaign. Target marketing is the next step in this process.
Target Marketing
The four basic target marketing strategies are: 1) undifferentiated marketing, 2) differentiated or multi-segment marketing, 3) focus or concentrated targeting, and 4) customized marketing (Chand, 2019).
Undifferentiated marketing is an approach to marketing that can be utilized to generate interest across a wide range of consumers of all demographics. It will have a broad-based appeal and not be focused on any one specific segment but rather on an entire community (Blythe, 2009). Healthcare marketers would want to use undifferentiated marketing in cases where it is estimated that the general public needs to have information about something that the company is offering—a product or service that would be important to the general public. As there is no market segmentation used in this marketing approach, it is essentially developed so as to appeal to a mass audience and get the name of the company before as many eyes as possible. In other words, it is a way to focus on placing healthcare company’s brand name into the public’s mind. Ways to do this include the 15 or 30 second TV spot, billboards or other outdoor advertising, and so on. This is also a strategy that can be used to great effect if the healthcare company is engaged in penetrating a new city or state: it will broadcast its presence widely to get its name out there. This strategy is also helpful if there are no competitors in the area the company is penetrating: as the first of to enter a new market, the healthcare company will want to use this strategy simply because it is an effective way to introduce the company’s brand, products and services to the population.
Differentiated marketing, also known as multi-segment targeting, is a helpful marketing strategy that the healthcare company can use to target select demographics all at once and design marketing campaigns for each of those specific demographics (Blythe, 2009). For instance, a healthcare marketer might design a marketing campaign that appeals to elderly persons and a separate campaign that advertises child health services, and a third that is designed to target the women’s health sector.
Concentrated targeting is a technique a healthcare commpany’s marketing team may use if there is a special niche market that the company wants to isolate and appeal to (Hartley & Rudelius, 2001). An example of this approach would be a healthcare company that is attempting to reach a population that is addicted to opioids: the facility could advertise drug counseling services. Customized marketing can be useful when the company is looking to obtain a long-term health contract. These are usually aimed towards other big organizations like government agencies.
Marketing Strategy
Generally speaking, the marketing strategy should follow the basic rules of marketing in the digital age, which consist of the following:
1) leverage social media and interact with consumers on social media platforms like Twitter, Facebook, YouTube and Instagram;
2) use consistent branding to make sure the brand is well-known and familiar;
3) have a website that is easy to use, informative, intuitive, and friendly;
4) use marketing emails to keep customers informed and to raise health literacy in the community, such as the need for screenings for breast or prostate cancer.
Healthcare content marketing is a great method of attracting healthcare consumers, as it focuses on spreading valuable information to the consumer. By educating consumers about their health, customers can come to know what is important and why they should take care of their bodies and minds. They feel grateful to companies that adopt this approach because the view it almost like a public service announcement rather than as a marketing pitch, though that is what it is.
Conclusion
The objectives of a healthcare company’s marketing strategy should be to promote new health services and products whenever they are ready to be introduced to the public. The 4 P’s should be considered, but so too should the ethics, rules and regulations of healthcare marketing. Companies want to always be aware that their brand is on the line. Reputations should be protected and consumers should never be violated or offended by a marketer’s message. Marketing is about growing the company’s brand as well as its digital presence (now that the Digital Age is here). This means using a website and having a social media presence, developing lead generation when needed, identifying and targeting new customers and boosting consumer growth while simultaneously retaining existing customers, and enhancing brand loyalty. The goals of the marketing strategy are to increase the company’s revenue and profit streams through attracting consumers to the company.
References
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Blythe, J. (2009). Key Concepts in Marketing. Los Angeles: SAGE Publications Ltd.
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