7 Effective Ways to Boost Physician Engagement
Doctors are busy people. Most spend up to forty hours a week seeing patients, and over 60% of doctors spend at least ten hours a week on paperwork. If you want them to notice your marketing content, you need solid physician engagement strategies that make it easy and appealing for these busy professionals to take a look at what you have to say.
The following are seven tried and proven methods to help you reach your physician audience more effectively.
-
E-Newsletters & Email Campaigns
-
Social Media Campaigns
-
Video
-
Podcasts
ADVERTISEMENT -
Engaging Content
-
Analytics
-
Remembering that Physicians Are Human
7 Ways to Boost Provider Engagement
E-Newsletters and Email Campaigns
Email marketing offers a strong return on investment – estimates show that this form of marketing can bring in up to $42 for every dollar you spend. Other benefits include the low cost and the way you can personalize emails and e-newsletters to reach targeted groups of physicians. Even so, you need a strategy to ensure success.
For an effective campaign, you need to plan your content carefully to ensure it’s on target and appealing. Using send-time optimization to ensure emails are reaching doctors' inboxes at the time when they are most likely to read them can boost open rates by up to 95%.
Social Media Campaigns
Social media is a great way to reach healthcare professionals. To start, research your exact target audience to find the channels they are most likely to use. These may include:
-
LinkedIn
-
Facebook
-
Twitter
-
YouTube
-
Instagram
Next, set up a platform on the targeted channels and provide a regular stream of valuable, engaging content. You may also want to run an ad campaign on your channels of choice – doing so boosts visibility and can help you launch a new business or product off the ground.
Video
A recent survey found that 83% of people prefer watching a video to reading text or listening to audio. While video content can be more challenging to produce than text, it’s well worth your effort. Short product explanations and "how-to" videos can grab a busy doctor's attention better than an hour-long monologue.
Podcasts
Podcasts are an ideal form of content for physicians as they can listen to the content while engaged in other activities, such as driving or exercising. Pick a topic that will resonate with your target audience, invite a guest that healthcare professionals would want to hear from, and then promote your podcast via your e-newsletter, social media outlets, and on your website. You can even post your podcast on hosting sites such as Buzzsprout or SoundCloud to better reach your target audience.
Engaging Content
A regular stream of written content that meets your audience's needs will keep physicians coming back to your site.
To create effective content, you'll need to identify your target audience, find out what type of information they need, and then write up content in an engaging, appealing manner. Adding photos and/or infographics to your content is always wise, as doing so boosts engagement and social shares.
Keep an Eye on Your Analytics
Your analytics can tell you where your visitors come from and the type of content they're looking for.
Using this information, you can identify new niche audiences, pinpoint the topics they want to hear about, and then update and/or optimize your content to meet your audience's needs. Analytics can also tell you if the products/services you're offering are meeting your customer's current and future needs.
Remember, Physicians are Human
Physicians are human – your content should be accurate, include relevant references, and have educational value, but that doesn't mean it needs to be stuffy or boring.
Identify the tone of voice that will most appeal to your target audience and stick with it. Make it easy for physicians to find what they're looking for by using plenty of images, subheadings, and bullet points.
Ready to Engage Your Physician Audience?
When developing a physician content marketing strategy, it can be beneficial to work with a team versed in the aforementioned engagement strategies. Additionally, there are all-in-one platforms available that can help you achieve your content marketing goals and track your progress with real-time analytics.
For more information, check out our resources, or speak with a member of our team.
