Have a Healthy Downturn

Actionable Strategy for Health Care Brands

In the last post I launched a new effort I'm spearheading to help my favorite companies through the alleged downturn: a marketing audit.

A marketing audit is intended to save money, by eliminating redundant efforts. It also sets the stage for future, highly-profitable activities. When better budgets arrive, a plan is in place for execution.

Health care organizations have unique issues to consider, particularly health insurance companies and hospitals.

All types of organizations can benefit from collateral reviews, analyzing customer touch points, consumer segmentation, and a review of core messaging.

Health care organizations, however, can especially consider a "communications audit." They often send out a lot of collateral to patients and members.

Auditing your collateral

Content-wise, there's tremendous value in having someone go through the various pieces, from an editorial and communications-planning perspective, to look at messaging:

Can certain print pieces, bearing redundant messages, be eliminated?

Even three or four fewer pieces sent out a year per member (for insurers, for example), at multiple thousands of members, not only cuts costs but increases the likelihood the right message lands.

More administratively, are you sending the same pieces out twice? Religiously I received two, big benefits booklets from my old health plan, every year.

These audit projects pay for themselves.

And at the very least, the organization has now also invested in a valuable review of its core messages. At the very most, they've gotten closer to the bigger, fundamental review of health care branding that I am recommending all health care organizations take (see this post):

We need to reconsider the fundamental story we're telling patients and members in light of what they really care about. Talk to your writers about this meditative activity for the downturn.

In addition to a deeper analysis of a health care brand, a cheap, high-value activity is this:

Review photography that can be easily replaced on the web or in print.

One of the most valuable services your design and advertising partners can offer in health care branding is photo direction. As we evolve the underlying story, or "messaging platform," an interim step is simply choosing more original imagery. With a little help you can replace photos and artwork without changing layouts just yet. (Which I also recommend considering).

So a downturn is a time for strategy. I keep "strategy projects" at arms length of course, wanting to ensure they are always linked to executable suggestions and not simply generating documents. The ideas here perfectly represent actionable strategy for health care brands.