As I have said numerous times in the past, it no longer matters inside which industry your business falls – content marketing matters. The same rules apply to medical practices and businesses.
I cannot hope to tackle this entire subject in the space of one blog post, but if you’re reading this, chances are you have questions or concerns in that arena. For that reason, I want to try to not only spin a convincing argument for medical content marketing, but also give you a roadmap for success that you can apply from your very first blog post, email, or social media interaction.
Since it’s no secret that Beez is a content marketing agency that specializes in copywriting, my comments going forward are going to center on that kind of content, specifically:
• Blog Posts
• Website Content
• Social Media Content
All of the above are part of a successful medical content marketing strategy, and I’ll explain how as we go. In fact, let’s look at each of the above areas individually, starting at the top of the list.
Blog Posts
Blog posts are the most important part of any content marketing strategy. This is true for several reasons. First, they are the most versatile type of written content out there. You can match posts to appeal to your target audience, but you can also split test different blogging styles and topics to determine the best way to approach your target audience.
Blog posts also help boost search engine optimization (SEO) by making it easy for the major search engines to discover and rank your content. A blog that is consistently updated with timely, relevant information will almost always climb the ranks faster than one that isn’t.
Seed your posts with a modest saturation of relevant keywords (about 1.4 percent on average). Format your pages with short, concise paragraphs, and fact-check your information for accuracy. The more useful your blog content is for the reader, the higher it will rank.
Lastly, blog posts are the best and easiest kind of content to share and fuel conversations on social media. You can even solicit comments, questions, likes, and shares through succinct calls to action. Doing so will create more links to your content, and that will also improve SEO.
Email is an effective way to keep your medical practice or business in front of patients and customers. For medical practices, it can serve as a reminder to book annual checkups as well as other preventive services. Older patients, in particular, tend to forget to schedule certain checkups and procedures, and email helps with that on two distinct fronts.
First, getting regular emails from you keeps you in the forefront of the patient’s mind while building trust at the same time. Patients tend to follow the advice of medical professionals who express an ongoing interest in their good health.
Email is also a great avenue for other kinds of content delivery, like the aforementioned blog posts. While the gap is narrowing more every day, there is still a considerable percentage of older patients who are not active on social media but have had enough time to get used to using email to respond favorably when prompted to click through to read a blog post that sounds interesting.
Website Content
A functional, responsive website is foundational to a successful medical business or practice, yet an alarming number of medical practices either don’t have a web presence at all or have not updated their sites in years. If yours falls under either of those categories, it’s time to fix that problem. Consult with a trusted web development service near you or contact your hosting company to learn more about that.
Once you have a modern, responsive website established, fill it with quality content. Once you decide on a format, your preferred medical copywriting agency can help you present content on each page that is both informative and trustworthy. The better your “storefront” looks on a first visit, the more comfortable people will be with trusting you with their health and health-related needs.
Social Media Content
I already mentioned blog posts as a foundational and necessary part of your social media marketing strategy, but there are many other types of content you can use to engage an audience on social channels. Here are just a few:
Compelling Visuals – Ultimately, you should be producing your own images and video content, but stock visual media can also be used effectively when presented correctly and in an appropriate context. Visuals are what get people to stop scrolling and take notice of your content, so choose wisely how you want your practice, business, or brand to be represented in this way.
Curated Content – You can gain a good bit of momentum on your social channels by linking and commenting on relevant blogs and other types of content from around the web. Just be careful not to reblog content that has already permeated a wide audience, or your followers are likely to keep scrolling without even noticing the source.
Explainer Videos – Well-scripted, short videos that explain one specific aspect of your practice, product(s), or service offering(s) position you as an authority and instill confidence in patients or potential customers/clients. They accomplish this by presenting a brief, succinct, but highly informative message that compels them to want to learn more. This is that unique content I alluded to earlier and explainers, in particular, are an easy, cost-effective way to insert content that is truly original into your social channels.
Of course, if you have other ideas or would like to know more about how to create and manage a solid content marketing strategy for your medical company, the medical copywriting professionals here at Beez are eager to work with you. Contact us with any questions or concerns, and let us help you develop a content strategy that nets the results you want and need.
