Junto—A gathering of healthcare marketing professionals

I was asked recently to speak about the challenge of brand positioning in a business like healthcare where consumer decisions are complex and emotions run high. In a world of mass-marketed prescription drugs, rankings, word-of-mouth, and regular scientific advances, the average consumer is overwhelmed with both myth and fact. So, how do you cut through the clutter of information to become a preferred healthcare provider?

I’d recommend the first step is engaging what I call the E-volution Cycle of Stories. A process which will allow you to understand and build a better brand story that tightly aligns (and evolves) with what your consumers need and desire. I’ll focus here on understanding your current consumers, but this cycle is just as effective at gaining potential/prospective consumer insights.  

Engage the Consumer

C= Capture, Connect, and Crystalize

Stage one begins with a focus on the consumer perspective and happens mostly through existing touch-points you have with your consumers. In this stage, you capture stories as they are shared. I’m not talking about privacy protected information, but instead about the emotions and challenges folks have engaging with your hospital or health system. Capturing the stream of communication that flows through customer service lines, visitor help desks, waiting rooms, and patient feedback pathways allows you to see your facilities through the eyes of the public. Provide personnel with log books or notebooks where they can jot down notes on questions they are asked and comments that are shared (either with or without demographic identifying information). These kinds of collections are a goldmine of insights for system administrators and marketing departments. Oh, and you can get a jumpstart on this process by asking staff to brainstorm a quick list of the top 5-7 questions they are asked weekly and how they respond. Once you’ve started to capture, connect those insights to tangible processes and elements of your system and crystallize their meaning by putting the knowledge in the hands of departments and divisions which can best address changes or celebrations in consumer engagement.

Elicit Deeper Stories

O=Other-Focused, Open-Ended Questions, Opportunity

Most people love to talk about themselves and the events in their lives, and they are waiting for the invitation and opportunity to share. Listening to what consumers are already sharing is one thing, getting them to share in more strategic areas is even better. Once you get a peek at what consumers are talking about in stage one, and perhaps figure out a few areas you’d like to understand better from an administrative standpoint, use the power of other-focused open-ended questions asked at key points of opportunity to get those deeper stories you crave. Let’s say you have a regular need to send patients between departments and want to understand how consumers view the ease of navigation between, say, the main lobby and the oncology center. Simply have the first point of contact at the end of the trip ask a simple open-ended question such as, “Did you have any trouble finding our department today?” Then give the consumer ample time to answer and share their experience. 

Emulate the Consumer Perspective

R=Reflect and Repeat

People want to feel they have been heard. Acknowledgement lies at the core of what drives many human behaviors. And in most situations, acknowledgement is best achieved through clear and effective communication that reflects and repeats messages back to us. In this stage, you’ll focus on taking the knowledge you gained in the first two stages and shifting how you communicate (as an office, individual, and system) back to consumers.  Acknowledge their concerns, use their phrasing and labels, let them know their voice matters and you are working to improve areas they have mentioned. 

Enhance Your Brand Story

E=Edit and Exemplify

Beyond mirroring back language choices and concerns to consumers, adjusting your brand story to incorporate the consumer perspective you’ve learned so much about should be an ongoing process. Consumers drive your systems and offices. Allow their voices and opinions/thoughts to seep into the very fabric of your branding.

Ideally, engaging the E-volution Cycle will be an ongoing part of your brand development and alignment with consumer desires and needs. The steps are simple to implement and an ongoing collection of stories allows for the opportunity to peek into the perspective of consumers at any time and take action to make their experiences within your system extraordinary. Taking those same insights and folding them into your marketing materials and brand speak completes the first cycle and allows you to evolve your brand strategically into stronger alignment with consumer perspectives. 

For more information on how the E-volution Cycle works and other strategies to get to the psychology of your consumers, contact Connie Chesner at Right Brain Discovery.