Many hospital marketers want to engage physicians in marketing campaigns. This usually involves physicians sitting for interviews and posing for photos. But this level of engagement is only a start. Involving the medical staff in campaign strategy through a process of “co-creation” can produce powerful results.
Partners in the Pursuit of Population Health
At Lexington Medical Center (LMC) in West Columbia, South Carolina, physician engagement was instrumental in creating a successful marketing campaign for the hospital’s cardiovascular service line. This physician-driven campaign not only generated enormous attention, it produced measurable gains in service line performance.
In 2012, marketing leaders began planning a new campaign focused on heart health. The first step was listening to physicians. Through a series of meetings with cardiologists and cardiovascular surgeons, the marketing team discovered that many physicians believe the usual messages—“eat healthy, exercise, see your doctor”—are failing to move people to action.
The physicians gave the team a clear direction: Create something that jolts people into thinking about their risk of heart attack. That was the creative spark for what became the “I Am a Heart Attack” TV commercial series, which features a sinister character who personifies “your heart attack.”
Super Campaign Results!
Since the campaign rolled out in 2013, it has earned several marketing awards and catapulted the hospital to market leadership for cardiovascular services. Between 2013 and 2015, open heart surgery cases at LMC increased 75 percent. In the two years ending 2014, cardiac catheterization cases increased 39 percent and pacemaker implantations increased 438 percent.
Create a Powerful Marketing Strategy
In the March/April 2016 issue of SHSMD’s Spectrum magazine, Mark Shelly, vice president of marketing and communications at Lexington Medical Center, and Linda MacCracken, health and public service practice lead at Accenture, discuss the hospital’s physician-engaged strategy as well as the bottom-line impact of the cardiology campaign.
SHSMD members, read the full article: Where MD Stands for ‘Marketing Dynamo.
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