Healthcare Content Marketing The Right Way
‘Tis the season for stuffy noses, scratchy throats and aching heads. Every time I feel the slightest bit off, I panic—what if it’s the flu? —and turn to my personal healthcare professional: Google. Though my favorite search engine can’t prescribe antibiotics, it can open my eyes to what might be the problem, how it can be treated and where I should go. But a sick patient isn’t the only one in search of information.
Members of the healthcare industry who have taken advantage of content marketing know there are numerous topics to tackle besides a fever, such as illness prevention and medical research. As it shows in this article from 2013, your content efforts also provide an opportunity to reach out to your community and increase brand awareness. MHADegree.org recently posted the “Top 50 Most Social Media Friendly Hospitals in 2013,” and I wanted to highlight a few of the top, in my opinion, content creators in the healthcare industry that made the list:
1. Mayo Clinic –
Search for an illness and you’re likely to see the Mayo Clinic in your results. This organization has done a fantastic job utilizing the expert advice and information from its doctors and researchers and creating an online resource for medicine. This content not only informs readers but also solidifies the Mayo Clinic as a leader in medical research.
2. Greenville Hospital System –
GHS goes beyond the basics one expects to find—locations, department listings, contact information—to provide visitors a peek inside the hospital’s inner workings. Each department provides detailed information about services and procedures, helping fill patients with trust in their doctors as they learn more about the services they need. The hospital’s blog also features profiles and articles that are relevant to the community, providing the GHS brand a face and a voice.
3. Spectrum Health –
I landed on this health system while researching corporate social responsibility programs and was impressed by their YouTube channel. The hospital offers a variety of videos from every department containing patient testimonies, staff interviews, discussions of medical research and informational shorts. This visual content effort does a fantastic job of inspiring conversation about the hospital’s efforts and building brand identity.
Content marketing for the healthcare industry is a fantastic way of reaching the general public before illness brings them to your doorstep. Are you a healthcare professional? If so, how is your organization using content marketing?
Harvin Bedenbaugh – Content Writer & Editor
