Healthcare Communications
Not long ago, the credo of the healthcare business was "we will build it and they will come."
But now, people have choices. They can choose their health insurance company, decide who their doctor will be, determine where to go if they need to be hospitalized and opt for what kind of care to have.
Healthcare is a consumer product. To be successful, healthcare marketers must focus upon creating and building brand recognition. Cutthroat competition and a highly knowledgeable, increasingly savvy patient population make an aggressive marketing communications program a necessity, rather than a luxury.
BLAIR understands the importance of branding in this dynamic environment. We can help you heighten your visibility, enhance your reputation and grow your patient base.
Healthcare Communications Case Study
The University of Southern California Health Sciences includes the Keck School of Medicine, Schools of Dentistry, Pharmacy and Nursing, County-USC Medical Center, Childrens Hospital Los Angeles, the Doheny Eye Institute and the USC Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center. But for years USC’s reputation as a world class healthcare provider has been overshadowed by media coverage of its cross-town rival, UCLA.
Market research indicated that Southern Californians' knew little of USC's world class research, clinical expertise of its physicians, or the state-of-the-art facilities at its teaching hospitals. Interviews with USC medical faculty indicated that even they considered the campus to be "the best kept secret in Los Angeles." In many ways, it was a self-fulfilling prophecy.
BLAIR worked with senior management and department heads to forge a communications plan that built visibility for the research advancements and clinical expertise of the health sciences faculty. Targeting local, regional and national media outlets, we positioned USC as preeminent in gene therapy, heart/lung transplantation, neuroscience, oncology, ophthalmology, orthopedics, pediatric medicine and pharmacology.
With the goal of capturing the dominant market share of media mentions during a 12-month period, BLAIR helped USC overtake its cross-town rival and become the primary source for healthcare news in the Los Angeles media market, and a leading resource for stories about medical research nationwide.
