IMPORTANCE OFDIGITAL MARKETING IN HEALTHCARE SECTOR

Importance of digital marketing in healthcare sector

Dr Sanket Agrawal,CEO,House of Doctors explain in detail how healthcare is also getting more organised,digital media is playing a significant role in creating a brand presence

Like other sectors, healthcare too is rapidly transforming. Currently, mobile apps, software supporting physicians’ clinical decisions, artificial intelligence, machine learning, telemedicine, Internet of Medical Things (IoMT), and digital transformation in the Healthcare sector will allow one to get easy access to diagnosis and treatment even at their homes. Good health is just a click away due to digitisation. It is a known fact that the digital transformation of the healthcare industry has the ability to help doctors, hospitals, and organisations to treat patients so that they can live longer and disease-free. In such a scenario, there is more important to market your healthcare services digitally rather than the traditional way of marketing.

Whywe should move more towards healthcare digital marketing?

◆ Digital marketing makes sure that you stay connected with current and new patients whenever they are in need. ◆ People opt for online healthcare services because they can get instant responses and communicate with specialists from their comfort environment at their convenient times. ◆ Consumers trying to reach physical therapists, nursing homes, and optometrists tend to connect to healthcare providers after performing a search. Similarly, social media platforms are also playing a pivotal part in generating a prospective customer base when it comes to healthcare.

Digital marketing has an upper hand over traditional marketing

◆ Prospective patients and/or their relatives hand around online. ◆ The use of mobile devices has risen. ◆ The digital metrics track down system is very powerful and can track down any info, trend, or happenings easily. ◆ Ability to target particular demographics. ◆ Most health service seekers are college-educated and understand the value proposition of a healthcare brand.

Other important benefits of digital marketing

◆ Cost per patient acquisition: Patient acquisition cost significantly goes down in the case of digital marketing as the target audience is in bulk. ◆ Location-based targeting: One can select the particular location where their presence is significantly marked, at the same time they can explore other locations by giving them chance by using target-based demographic services. ◆ Data-driven decisions: Healthcare marketing is not a new thing in the market. Many have used these services for time and their performance data is well available to the agencies. Apart from its target data can be fresh and can be acquired from various platforms. ◆ Better reach and visibility: Wide visibility across the platforms is one of the key benefits of digital marketing.

One should consider the following aspects of the smart digital marketing plan

◆ Plan for local Search En-

gine Optimisation (SEO):

SEO and user experience go hand in hand. An efficient local SEO strategy will help in meeting your business goals. ◆ Consider PPC (Pay Per Click) advertising: PPC is an advertising service implemented by search engines, social media, and other platforms where you only have to pay when a lead clicks on your ad. It is also a good move ◆ Social media marketing: There are multiple social media platforms and there are various ways of social media marketing such as video ads, GIF ads, ad posters, success stories, etc. ◆ Invest in email marketing: If you want to maintain a healthy, near-direct relationship with your patients, email marketing is one of the most cost-effective ways to achieve this goal.