Thursday Tip in Medical Marketing: Snaring Your Viewers

Producing content that stands out from the sea of endless content issued daily through smartphones, iWatches, social media, tablets and desktop computers is a huge challenge.  You can Plan To get noticed(TM) by engaging your audience instead of just talking at them or broadcasting.  To captivate and engage the audience, marketers should be on the lookout for creative ways to interact with viewers and hold their attention. Viewers and prospective patients don’t want to be passive for the most part.  They want your input and your advice.

Content marketing is all about the experiences which you create for the viewers. They will remember this far more than any words you print. Allowing and encouraging users to share in a brand experience does far more to entice new users and maintain current ones than only producing text. Telling stories that touch hearts and gets your messages across are sure to make viewers loyal to your brand.

10 Techniques for interactive content include:

• Podcasts
• eBooks
• Whitepapers or patient guides
• Surveys
• Infographics
• Contests and Quizzes
• Teleseminars
• Webinars
• Videos
• Gaming

There are five reasons why it is worth investing in this strategy

1. Plan to Get noticed(TM)

Interactive content catches the eyes  of online audiences.  Just looking at the huge numbers of chatrooms and forums that people participate in on health issues will confirm this.  Because interactive content is both seen as value and relevance to participants as well as sharing a part of yourself, statistics show that it gets you noticed.  For prospective patients, this means calling you for your services.

According to studies, half of the marketers surveyed feel that interactive whitepapers are very valuable and 83% of technology buyers feel that whitepapers have been influential in helping them take the final decision. E-books which are providing an interactive experience are fast gaining popularity. These e-books contain animation, infographics, quizzes, videos and 3-D diagrams. Patients value content explaining  complex issues simply and at their level.

2. Produce relevant and valuable content 

Patients value content that educates them.It is key to have a strong message which informs your viewers. With interactive content, you can aim at educating them.  Rather than using traditional content alone, ramp it up by using videos, images, e-books and whitepapers which they value. By providing prospective patients partial information, you can make them ask for more.

3. Visual content = Viral Share

Viewers are more likely to share a piece of engaging content. Most analytical markers show that content with videos are more greatly shared. Realizing that 90% of the information to the brain is visual, it makes sense to add more  videos to your content. People resonate  with visual content and  more apt to share it on social media.

Higher number of shares mean more publicity for your brand; especially if a piece of content attains the “viral” status. More views translates to more prospective patients or people interested in your services and products.  This translates to growing your practice and raising your revenue as well as presence. In social media, consumers value visuals over text. Status updates which feature photos get higher number of likes.   Segment your content and make it social media ready. Create attractive versions that are easy to embed.

4. Use metrics to Your Advantage

I’ve always loved using Google Analytics which is free and easy to use.  I highly recommend it.  Using interactive content, you can tell which part of your content viewers found useful and which were ignored. User feedback makes it possible to drive engagement and capture viewer’s emotions.  Amass feedback and behavioral insights from quizzes and other assessment tools. The campaigns will be driven by rush of data which is available to marketers. The raw data will enable marketers to determine key metrics which include engagement and conversion rates. It will be easier to develop smarter campaigns by gaining an insight into viewer behavior. More content can be created that is of interest and content that is not of interest can be ditched.

5. Interactive content is the success of content marketing

Interactive content encourages users to actively participate. They’re enabled to navigate through the content at will  by skipping through the pages that are not relevant to them and watching videos that catch their attention. They can drill into clickable elements for more information. This way viewers will feel that they are in control of the story.

Consider implementing interactive elements into your brand message. Now is the right time to vitalize your content marketing  and add that secret sauce that was missing from your content marketing efforts.

Recap

Viewers want:

1. Content that is educational and engaging
2. Content that is informative, relevant and interactive
3. Sites that empower them in viewing and asking questions or giving their opinions
4. Content that is in sync with your services so you can provide solutions
5. Content that tells stories to capture their hearts
6. Videos that capture their attention

When you provide viewers with what they want, your message is more likely to go viral and you are more likely to convert prospective patients into active ones, thereby growing your visibility, authority and your practice.

Need help?  Call for a free consultation at 516-647-3002.  Let’s get you started!