A grim frugality has settled over this export powerhouse that once burst with optimism—and silicone. Cosmetic surgery took off here after South Korea's spectacular recovery from its currency crisis a decade ago. Rising living standards allowed ever-growing numbers of men and women to get the wider eyes, whiter skin and higher nose bridges that define beauty for many here. But turmoil coursing through the financial world and then into the global economy has hit South Korea hard, as it has many middle-income countries. A particular chill has seeped into the plastic surgery industry, emptying waiting rooms and driving clinics out of business.
More affluent areas of Massachusetts—not surprisingly—tend to have higher quality nursing homes, according to an Associated Press review of federal data. The AP review of Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services data found the quality of nursing homes varies widely by region, but better care is often found in areas with higher income levels. The agency studied factors such as staffing levels and annual health inspections before ranking nearly 16,000 nursing homes in the country with one to five stars.
Healthcare groups in Massachusetts are urging Gov. Deval Patrick to use expected federal bailout money to shore up health programs slashed this fall because of the state's budget crisis. A coalition of three-dozen social service, healthcare, labor, and legal groups—dubbed Put Patients First—is mailing 100,000 Boston area voters a flier about the specific effect of recent cuts to Boston Medical Center and Cambridge Health Alliance. The two institutions serve a large share of the region's low-income residents and, hospital officials say, are suffering from disproportionate state budget cuts.
North Carolina has begun offering a health insurance program to the state's riskiest patients, and officials are looking to attract more. The new program targets those with high-risk health conditions, such as multiple sclerosis or hemophilia, and is meant for people who don't have employer coverage and can't get private insurance without paying an exorbitant amount. Officials say as many as 180,000 people are eligible in the state.
A group of 30 physicians from throughout Alabama were among many across the country to discuss concerns about the country's healthcare system earlier this week with members of President-elect Barack Obama's transition team. Among concerns addressed were the shortage of primary care physicians and the growing number of uninsured Americans.
The red carpet is in place and the paparazzi are swarming. But it's not the typical Hollywood A-listers the photogs are after and this scene isn't taking place in Hollywood. A recent campaign launched for St. Joseph's Hospital and HealthEast brought a taste of movie star fame to its patients and the St. Paul, MN, community.
In an area that is flooded with healthcare advertising, with an impending open house for a renovated facility looming, St. Joseph's had a common problem. It needed to break through the clutter to raise awareness in an interesting way.
The branding initiative included faux movies, which were actually patient documentaries. The faux movies took patient testimonials to the next level, starring patients that represented three of the facility's top service lines: cardiology, neurology, and the facility's Cyberknife technology. "We decided to turn [the patients] into heroes, which they already are," Bevolo says. "Everybody loves movies and there's so many ways to go about announcing one, from movie trailers, to posters, to previews," says Bevolo. "We chose to use all of those things as the propelling tools to get people interested."
Each element of the campaign was done in a teaser-like way with the information about the facility and patients styled into the movie-marketing. The call to action drove viewers to microsites. The unique approach turned heads. After a few months, the microsites had more than 16,000 unique visitors, 25% of which clicked through to St. Joseph's' Web site. The concept was also carried through to the grand opening which was designed around a movie premier complete with a red carpet, paparazzos, and the release of the patient documentaries. The event brought in over 5,000 attendees.
"It's difficult to do something different, especially in healthcare," Bevolo says. "There's a lot of looking across the street and being conservative. To come out with a creative idea like this, there were some risks . . . but they also realized the challenges of getting out there, not looking like everybody else, and they were willing to take the risk. And it paid off."
Kandace McLaughlin Doyle is an editor with HealthLeaders magazine. Send her Campaign Spotlight ideas at kdoyle@healthleadersmedia.com If you are a marketer submitting a campaign on behalf of your facility or client, please ensure you have permission before doing so.
Lately, many marketers have been asking their agencies a similar question: "How can we be more like Barack?" Companies are eager for insights into Obama's successful marketing formula and they're hungry to study his campaign methods.
Read what marketing bloggers predict for content marketing and social media in 2009. Surprisingly, many see lots of opportunity amid great uncertainty.
In a recent Sapient study of more than 200 CMOs, "90 percent said that it is becoming increasingly important that their agency uses 'pull interactions' such as social media and online communities rather than traditional 'push' campaigns. Sixty-three percent said that an agency's Web 2.0 and social media capabilities are 'important/very important' when it comes to agency selection." Yet while a large number of agencies and clients are looking to social media as the future of the communications business, a growing number of highly respected marketers don't actually see a role for their agencies in social media.
At a recent gathering, a man held up his glass to offer a toast: "To 2009," he said in a booming, upbeat voice. But instead of clinks of glasses and cheers of "hear, hear," he was met with an uncomfortable silence. "How about," someone said, "we toast to 2010 instead?"
For marketers, like many professionals, 2009 looks like it's going to be all the fun of a hangover without any of the hassles of a big party. In 2009, we're all going to be asked to do more with less.
But that's particularly true for hospital and health system marketers. Let's face it—hospitals are going to cut marketing budgets before they stop buying new medical devices, funding quality initiatives. They're going to cut your staffers before they lay off nurses and technicians or cut physicians' pay.
But when it comes to predictions, saying that 2009 is going to be a tough year is like saying that some people will get drunk and kiss total strangers on New Year's Eve.
So here are a few others:
Looking to other industries
"Innovation" is becoming as overused a term as "outside of the box," but people are still talking about it. I hope healthcare organizations in general—and marketing departments in particular—continue to innovate and think outside of the box in 2009.
Another idea that has legs is the concept of borrowing marketing, communications, and business practices from industries outside of healthcare. One organization, Memorial Hospital and Health System in South Bend, IN, is combining both of these trends by partnering with other industries to learn new ways of doing business. Memorial's Diane Stover, VP of marketing and innovation strategy, is leading this effort and says the improvements have been phenomenal, from learning how to improve quality and customer service to forming partnerships and discovering new business opportunities. You can hear more about it in my interview with Stover and she'll also speak at greater length on the topic during an upcoming Webcast on learning from other industries.
Looking for new ways to use new media
I'm hesitant to make a prediction about new media, especially since I've already changed my mind about a column I wrote two weeks ago examining the marketing possibilities of the social networking site Twitter. I said flat out that I didn't plan to use it—but after two weeks I am totally hooked. At least I'm doing my best to follow my own advice to only post messages and links that are meaningful and useful to my audience of healthcare marketers.
Social media is hot. It's hard to imagine that it won't get even hotter in 2009. For one thing, it's cheap, unless you count the time it takes to set up and maintain your presence on any given social networking site. And in the current economic climate, we like cheap.
But even if the most ingenious new platform came along tomorrow and even if 100% of all the people on the face of the earth signed up to use it and even if you had the time and the staff to dedicate to it, it still wouldn't do you any good unless you have a strategy to communicate the right message and reach the right customers.
Social media marketing might be all the rage in 2009, but it doesn't mean guaranteed success or a positive return on investment.
Looking to stay upbeat in a downturn
Internal communications will remain hot in 2009—or, to be more specific, internal crisis communications. Have I mentioned the economy yet? With hospitals closing, laying off employees, cutting benefits, and canceling the annual holiday party, it's more important than ever to communicate openly with your employees.
This should be led from the very top of the org chart—with transparency and leadership by example. But the marketer's job (perhaps in concert with HR) is to communicate the story to employees. To recognize that they're crucial to the future success of the organization. Nothing is going to hurt your hospital's mission (let alone patient satisfaction scores) faster than a bunch of uninformed, scared, and disgruntled employees.
Speaking of downsizing, last year I made five predictions about healthcare marketing. Sorry, this year you only get three. To make up for it, I'll give you one last prediction—in the form of a hot stock tip. If you really want to make a killing in 2009, invest in shares of antacids.
