https://wgcontent.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/hero-alternate-template-blog-37.jpg

5 ways healthcare marketers can showcase value-based care

Discover strategies health systems can use to connect with their communities and promote their value-based care approach.

View all blog posts Blog

Key takeaways in this post about value-based care marketing:

Value-based care is about putting the patient first, so let your marketing reflect this by sharing patient stories that showcase real health improvements. Make the patient the hero, sharing narratives of successful outcomes that resonate emotionally.
Just as value-based care involves tailored treatment, your marketing should feel customized. Use persona marketing to reach different segments with relevant, useful information.
In a value-based care model, the entire healthcare team and the community play pivotal roles. Promote your network by spotlighting key providers on social media and build partnerships with local organizations. By focusing on patients, personalizing experiences, and building partnerships, you can effectively communicate the value of value-based care.

Author: Colleen Weinkam
Last updated: 3/9/22

2010 marked the beginning of a seismic shift in the healthcare industry. The Affordable Care Act (ACA) passed, ushering in a new healthcare payment model. The model, value-based care, links payment for care to provider performance, not patient volume.

Since then, disruptions like the COVID-19 pandemic have only served to accelerate healthcare’s transition to value-based medicine.

Why is that? And what does the shift mean for marketing value-based care? Let’s break it down.

What is value-based care?

Value-based care is a type of reimbursement model that rewards doctors for helping people lead healthier lives. The emphasis is on improving patient outcomes and lowering overall costs.

In this model, doctors are rewarded for providing care that helps keep people well and out of the hospital. That includes preventive care to keep chronic conditions like diabetes from developing.

The traditional healthcare delivery model, fee-for-service, pays doctors for the number of services they provide. Doctors are motivated to schedule more tests and procedures. And to increase their number of patients.

Why is value-based care important?

Value-based medicine puts patients at the center of their care. Patients and providers act as partners. They work together to develop a treatment plan that best meets the patient’s needs and goals. They also prioritize quality of life.

Providers work as comprehensive teams in this care model. Members may include care managers, doctors, nurses and others, such as physical therapists and nutritionists. Everyone on the team collaborates to share patient data, coordinate treatments and measure outcomes.

Benefits of value-based care include better patient outcomes, lower costs for patients, greater provider efficiency and a healthier overall patient population.

Marketing value-based care

Now let’s get back to what all this means to you as a healthcare marketer.

The value-based care model is designed to improve patient outcomes and meet patients where they are. So, naturally, marketing value-based care should follow suit. But what does that entail?

Here are five ways you can showcase your health system’s value-based care initiatives:

1. Make the patient the hero of your story

Talk about your improved patient outcomes. Tell your patient stories. Feature your patients in campaigns. Let them describe your brand for you.

But don’t just give your patient heroes the limelight. You can also serve them. Make sure you’re answering their questions wherever they’re asking them. That could be on your website, over the phone or on social media. Did you determine from site search data that a lot of people are asking about anxiety during the pandemic? Provide them with useful resources that could help, like a Q&A with a doctor or a relevant blog post.

Look for ways to help patients and prospective patients however you can. And make sure your content is easy to access and digest.

2. Engage in persona marketing

Just as doctors and hospitals are shifting from one-size-fits-all to personalized treatment, so should you when marketing value-based care. That means connecting with consumers through customized experiences.

Personalize your content depending on your audience. Use segmented marketing strategies to divide your target audience into smaller groups. Use social listening to determine what those groups are talking about and what they’re looking for you to provide. Create fictional patients that represent your different target audience groups. For instance, is one of your target demographics young adults? Create a tailored marketing strategy for that group by meeting them where they are. That could include writing a blog about starting a family or sending an email with information on how to move off a parent’s health plan.

Next, measure your results. What percentage of your target audience actually clicked on that email? Analyze the data and adjust as needed.

3. Promote your network

Have some rock-star doctors on your team? Let them shine. Value-based care focuses on meeting patients where they are, so get your doctors active on social media. (A whopping three-quarters of the U.S. population uses a social network.) Sign up your providers for LinkedIn or Twitter (or both). Ask them to promote upcoming classes or community events. They can share articles they deem helpful and engage with followers. That helps people by providing them with resources and information. It also helps to humanize the doctor for your target population.

Just make sure to brief doctors on your company’s social media policies in advance. And regularly check their feeds. They might not have time to respond to people every day. You could either help the doctor keep up with responses or manage the account yourself. (With their blessing, of course.)

Get more healthcare marketing tips and best practices: Subscribe to the WG Content newsletter!

4. Pursue community partnerships

Healthcare will continue to move out of the hospital and into the community. To keep up with the trend, marketers need to promote these partnerships. They also need to look for chances to align with local agencies.

Propose a 5K run for Alzheimer’s awareness with proceeds benefiting a local nonprofit. Or host a lunch-and-learn event at a community center and ask one of your providers to lead a discussion on heart disease risk.

5. Go visual

Don’t just tell your audience you’re delivering value-based care. Show them.

In this example from Beacon Health System, the organization helps patients know what to expect on their journey as the health system implements digital transformation.

Show the value of value-based care

By focusing on patients, personalizing experiences and building partnerships, you can effectively communicate the value of value-based care.

WG Content’s team of healthcare writers and strategists partner with organizations to create content that resonates. Send us a message any time to learn more about how we can support your content marketing initiatives.

More tips on marketing value-based care:

Smaller health systems can still effectively market value-based care by focusing on a few targeted strategies. For example, they can share patient success stories and community initiatives through low-cost digital channels, like social media or email newsletters. Small practices may also partner with local community organizations to co-host health events, which can raise awareness without requiring a large budget.

Measuring value-based care marketing efforts can include tracking patient engagement metrics (e.g., click-through rates on emails or social posts), patient satisfaction scores and referral rates from community events or partnerships. For digital campaigns, metrics like website traffic, time spent on patient stories and social media engagement can offer insights into audience interest and trust. Internally, tracking outcomes such as reduced readmissions or improved preventative care compliance can show if your messaging is encouraging healthier behaviors aligned with value-based care.

For patients, value-based care marketing emphasizes the benefits to their health and well-being, often through stories, testimonials and practical advice on how your health system supports a healthy lifestyle. When targeting insurers or partner organizations, the focus shifts to the financial and operational advantages of value-based care—such as reduced hospital admissions, cost savings and improved quality metrics. This audience may respond more to data-driven content, case studies and evidence of cost-effectiveness, demonstrating your system’s positive impact on overall healthcare costs and outcomes.