Great marketing helps deliver qualified leads to your sales team, increasing sales funnels and net-new business. In today’s fast-paced digital environment, every B2B healthcare company needs a nimble marketing strategy that optimizes time, money, and resources.
Marketing is an investment, and it takes time. About 65 percent of marketing leaders planned to increase their budgets this year, but budgets vary widely. Specifically in healthcare, businesses might allocate 7-11 percent or more of their annual companywide budget toward marketing efforts, and there’s no doubt everyone wants to make the most of every dollar.
At the same time, day-to-day execution takes time and persistence, and it can often feel like an uphill battle, especially when you’re dealing with teams who want immediate outcomes. In fact, it’s not unusual for digital marketing efforts to churn for as long as nine months before they begin to show results.
Here are five actions that can produce quick wins in your healthcare marketing efforts without breaking the bank.
1. Update contact information on your website
Your website is the channel that offers you the most publishing control, allowing you to deliver your message and offer an experience to site visitors that reflects your brand promise. However, your site also needs to support the logistics of the buyer’s journey even as it ages.
Start by cleaning up any outdated information on your site, such as old phone numbers, sales team contact points, and fill-in forms that you use to collect data from your site visitors. It’s easy to forget about the fine print in your footer, too, so double check that information at least twice a year.
Also check your free listing on Google My Business often to ensure it’s up to date and refers potential customers to your current website and contact information. B2B businesses should always be on the lookout for competitive hackers who might claim your Google listing and swap out the contact information in order to lure your customers away. This unethical activity is rare, but unfortunately it happens.
2. Boost your social posts
Effective social media is key to any B2B marketing strategy, and according to Gartner, nearly 46 percent of B2B buyers use social media in the early stages of their research to find products and services they might be interesting in purchasing. If your social posts show lackluster performance, consider investing in paid posts.
Social channels allow you to pay to “boost” (LinkedIn and Facebook) or “promote” (Twitter) a post to gain more attention. When you boost a post, you can choose which audiences and geographic targets you most want to reach, then you can set your budget. Even $10 a day can give you a lift.
And it goes without saying that social posts that include an image or a video perform better than text-only posts. While you want to offer a variety of posts and foster discussions about relevant topics, you might need to prioritize posts that are aimed at capturing potential sales leads, such as posts that ask people to subscribe to your email list or download your latest infographic.
3. Ask your customers to talk about their successes
Your customer’s success is your best proof point. An ideal customer case study should present quantified results, such as a certain percentage of new revenue or a certain number of productivity hours your customer gained per month. That data isn’t always easy to gather, and it must be captured from the moment your customer begins using your product or service in order for it to be reportable in a case study.
If you have those metrics, work with your customer to create a downloadable case study document or website page that features their success. Include candid feedback and outline how your product or service solved a problem.
As an alternative to a case study, consider asking your top customers for short testimonials. A testimonial can be presented as a video or a series of written quotes you can feature on your website. Most happy customers are more than willing to contribute a quote or speak on video about their experience.
Once you have a success story — a case study, quote, or testimonial — include it on your website and promote it on your social channels. It will be a go-to resource that your sales teams can share with leads to support their decision-making process.
4. Leverage your connections
The healthcare business is all about people. Leverage your individual connections often and be willing to offer the same in kind.
For example, you can reach out personally via email or social channel messages to ask for:
- Likes, shares, and comments on posts or blogs (include the link!)
- Participation in poll questions
- Early feedback on messaging before you go to market
- Introductions to other thought leaders you would like to meet
Keep your requests simple and humble. Always offer to return the favor with a little of your time or attention for your connection’s marketing efforts. You might be surprised by how many people want to help.
5. Tell a story
Great marketing is not a fancy sales pitch. Great marketing tells a story that inspires an interaction. Stories humanize your brand and make your company relatable.
Best of all, you probably have stories at your fingertips just waiting to be told:
- Why your company got started
- How your employees are contributing to the community
- Why you developed your latest product or innovation
- What you observed at a conference or event
- How you’re celebrating a holiday or participating in a national day of recognition
The human element of marketing is the most powerful, so don’t overlook the potential to provoke some emotion from your audience. In fact, some of the most memorable marketing campaigns are the ones that feature real people doing interesting things.
Like any strategy to effect business growth, marketing calls for continuous evaluation and adjustment to be sure you’re moving in the right direction. As you try out new ideas, be prepared to refine your approach based on results.
When you’re ready to move forward with a complete go-to-market strategy or even with a few quick wins, the Canton & Company team of experienced marketers can help you achieve the results you’re looking for. Start a conversation today!
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