L’Oreal coined the term “patsumer” — a patient-consumer — to give expression to the emerging phenomenon of informed patients who are equally consumers of healthcare and medical interventions. With the internet at their fingertips, patients are increasingly more empowered with knowledge about their healthcare than ever before.
The telehealth industry has seen a stark increase in patronage. COVID-19 was a major catalyst for the shift to online healthcare in the absence of face-to-face consultations. This has only exacerbated the phenomenon of patients relying on Google and other forms of technology to solve healthcare issues.
With the rise of the so-called patsumer, transparency, predictability, and digital integration are expected by patients. Unfortunately, the healthcare industry has failed to keep up with these demands. One of the areas that has created friction is marketing. Limited marketing budgets are a restricting factor for healthcare providers and yet, could provide a pathway for medical practitioners to develop patient loyalty and long-term relationships.
Read on to find out more about how healthcare marketing needs to pivot to prioritize the new patient-consumer:
Healthcare as a consumer industry
The relationship between a patient and a doctor has long been held in sacred regard. Partially, this is due to the vulnerability of a patient in need of treatment, but also due to the fact that doctors and healers exclusively possess knowledge and solutions to a patient’s problems.
With the internet at our fingertips, empowered patients have become partners in their own healthcare journeys, and are able to advocate for and inquire about treatment options. This new partnership has been a catalyst for healthcare entering the consumer industry.
Not only do consumers use the internet as a source of information about diagnoses and treatment options, but they also “doctor shop” online to find the best practitioners. According to research, 77% of patients look for doctors on the internet and strongly consider reviews when making a decision.
According to global management consulting firm, McKinsey & Company, patients are 28% less likely to change healthcare providers when they are satisfied consumers. Part of adjusting to this new norm is improving the overall consumer experience for patients, which includes a patient-centric marketing strategy.
Addressing Limitations in Medical Marketing
Businesses in consumer industries typically thrive in marketing to a targeted audience. At most, medical providers can use search engine optimization (SEO) to reach patients searching for relief from a particular medical issue. However, marketing professionals have to balance targeting consumers against compliance with privacy policies and regulations.
Platforms like Google Ads enforce these restrictions, and with broad definitions of healthcare, medical practitioners may struggle to achieve visibility online. In an effort to safeguard internet users’ private health information (PHI), Google’s artificial intelligence tools crawl through ad content to identify any healthcare-related keywords and flag the ads accordingly.
This requires marketers to get creative with messaging in order to attract patients.
Marketing to Patsumers
For healthcare providers wanting to build a strong consumer relationship with patients, a new marketing strategy is required to stand out. While access to medical care is still a challenge for a large number of people (e.g., those in remote or rural locations), the US medical system employs over 22 million professionals. Attracting patients to a practice requires marketing strategies, which include:
Identifying Competitors
Competitor analysis is the first step toward establishing a successful marketing strategy in the healthcare industry. Understanding who your direct competitors are is key to
As you assess the services and facilities of these competitors, you should also evaluate their marketing strategies. And don’t just consider obvious competitors: Try to identify and audit indirect competitors whose services may overlap with yours and may be starting to encroach on your turf.
Building Patient Personas
In traditional consumer industries, building a customer profile is essential to understanding the pain points that need to be addressed. The same is true of patient personas. By understanding who they’re trying to serve, healthcare service providers need to create detailed guidelines of their ideal “patsumer”.
These patient personas are based on information collated from a number of sources, which include, real interactions and detailed market research. With a clearer picture of who is being served, marketers in the healthcare industry are equipped to create and execute effective marketing campaigns.
Responding to Changes in Patient Preferences
As the world of healthcare evolves into a consumer industry, medical professionals will have to respond to changing customer preferences and demands. These vary, and will require marketing professionals to engage in social listening activities to stay abreast of healthcare marketing trends.
Covid, for example, presented a massive shift in consumer behavior and catapulted telehealth into the mainstream.
Building a Strong Brand Identity
Brand identity is a concept not often immediately linked to the healthcare industry, but as medical services are increasingly viewed through a consumer lens, this is a necessity. Some brands prefer to highlight a luxury, private experience, while others emphasize affordability or patient-centric family care.
In building a brand identity, healthcare marketing professionals need to focus on driving an organization’s vision, mission, and unique selling proposition. This is key to attracting the right patients and developing long-term relationships with patsumers.
Developing a Multichannel Marketing Plan
Different customers will find you in various ways, and diversifying your marketing distribution channels is crucial to enabling this. Healthcare marketers will need to analyze services and align their marketing with the various patient personas.
For example, a plastic surgeon may advertise cosmetic procedures on Instagram, showcasing their work for aesthetic treatments like facelifts or Botox. However, patients like burn victims may rely on testimonials and blogs to understand more complex procedures like skin grafts or reconstructive surgery.
Some of the considerations marketing practitioners need to keep in mind include:
Ensuring Regulatory Compliance
While regulatory requirements are, in some cases, a limiting factor for digital marketing activities, it is important to maintain compliance. The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) requires that healthcare organizations protect patients’ data privacy.
Measuring Marketing Performance
Marketing for the healthcare industry has previously been more of a tick-box exercise. Now that this sector has evolved and patients are consumers, marketing needs to be targeted, and measured against metrics.
Establishing key performance indicators can help drive organizational goals and measuring campaign performance will determine success.
Assessing Patient Feedback and Surveys
Key to meeting patients’ constantly changing needs is gathering the requisite information. Patient feedback and surveys can help establish the voice of the customer or VoC or VoC. These insights are essential to understanding patient preferences.
Concluding Thoughts
In conclusion, the rise of the “patsumer” demands a transformative approach to healthcare marketing. Patients are no longer passive recipients of care but active consumers seeking personalized, seamless experiences akin to those provided by consumer-focused industries.
To thrive in this evolving landscape, healthcare providers must prioritize consumer-centric strategies that bridge critical gaps in technology, data integration, and team collaboration.
By aligning the C-suite and empowering marketing teams with sophisticated tools and data-driven insights, providers can enhance patient satisfaction and foster long-term loyalty. Moreover, focusing on key growth levers, such as improving scheduling and communication touchpoints, can yield substantial returns while improving the overall patient journey.
Ultimately, those who adapt to this shift and embrace innovative, transparent, and digitally integrated practices will lead the way in redefining healthcare as a truly consumer-driven industry.
