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These trends will be sticking around - arm your team with guidance they need to embrace them.
Author: Leigh Wilkins
Last updated: 12/14/23
According to the many cootie catchers I consulted in fifth grade, I was the girl most likely to marry a red-haired lawyer and live in a penthouse in Hawaii. If only! These days, I turn to the experts for prognostication, whether seeking a decent weather forecast or a movie worth the cost of an overpriced ticket.
But who do I turn to for predictions about healthcare content trends that won’t fade away? That’s easy — my expert colleagues here at WG Content. When our leadership team asked us what we thought on that very topic, we did what we did best — put our heads together and shared advice on how healthcare marketers can excel at the trends that just aren’t going away.
And so, I present to you WG Content’s list of healthcare trends that are here to stay so you can be extra-amazing at your job for years to come.
Everyone in the industry is well aware of the challenges hospitals face, especially hospitals in rural areas. These challenges are due to various factors, including severe workforce shortages, broken supply chains and rapid inflation that has increased the cost of care.
Hospital marketing budgets aren’t immune from these concerns — in fact, they are often among the first to be trimmed. That means your staff will likely have to do more with less. At WG Content, we recommend the following.
Healthcare leaders will continue to prioritize employee recruitment and retention. And to be successful, they’ll need marketing departments to help. One WG Content employee noted, “Marketers should have a seat at the table regarding recruitment and retention efforts. And marketing costs should be a line item in HR budgets to ensure that recruitment and retention receive the resources needed for success.”
Creative internal communications strategies could be a game changer when it comes to retaining employees. A few ideas:
WG Content EVP of insights and growth, Kirsten Lecky, sat down with Andy Lyons, Roper St. Francis Healthcare’s Director of Corporate Communications and Content Strategy, to talk about internal communications. One of his many observations was that transparency is critical when speaking to an internal audience. “You don’t want them reading anything in the newspaper about your organization — good or bad — that you haven’t shared with them first internally,” he explained. Hear the complete “Tips in Ten(ish) Minutes” segment here!
Search engine optimization ensures that people can find your organization and the content you work so hard to create. But with Google’s frequent algorithm updates, you must adapt your SEO tactics frequently. In addition, you’ll need robust, SEO-friendly, accessible and appropriate content that offers a great user experience.
Here’s some advice from our team.
Predictions are fun to make and impossible to guarantee. But we can promise you one thing: marketers will need exceptional writing and content strategy for today and beyond. If you are looking for a healthcare content partner to help your team succeed, reach out to the experts at WG Content. We’ll bring the cootie catchers!
Editor’s note: This post was original written in 2014. It was last updated in December 2023.
Healthcare marketers can measure the success of their content marketing efforts by focusing on metrics that align with their goals. Key performance indicators (KPIs) such as website traffic, engagement rates, lead generation, and conversion rates can provide insights. Check out this post for more ideas on content KPIs to watch.
There are so many free tools available for SEO and content marketing. Here are a few to get you started:
Collaborating with HR on messaging and strategies is important. When it comes to messaging, make sure all communications use a consistent voice and are familiar, warm and reflect your organizations culture. Keep employees informed and embrace transparency whenever possible. Check out this interview with LCMC Health on how their organization’s marketing and HR teams worked together to create an employee value proposition.
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