Healthcare Marketing – Telling Your Story

In healthcare marketing, the art of storytelling is a powerful method of communication. In order to engage and attract new patients, a good-health story line is necessary. Sadly, it is a forgotten method inside the medical office.  The key to success is to tell your story from a different perspective.

Use the doctor as your storyteller because it is more easily remembered since he or she is the provider for it. Furthermore, it makes a stronger impression, and the weight of importance is greater. Use a benefit oriented story from the doctor when giving patients their instructions, for they are more likely to comply.

Patient-staff can better personally relate to each other more so than patient-doctor relations when storytelling from a patient-staff angle, for it increases the effect and value. Try to reinforce health or follow up care instructions when communicating via staff-patient. During the non-doctor encounters, incorporate positive attitudes and a narrative voice of the office because this is what patients pick up on. Make your presence warm and inviting.

In order to effectively communicate your brand message, communicating via story format is important. A benefit that results is the creating of referrals and sharing a positive story.

Tied to communicating the brand message is the actions, activities and patient-interactions within the office. From the provider’s unique medical training and experience, as a hypothetical example, it might be appropriate to link a particular story or message to how patients benefit. The benefits, for both patient and the practice, are significant, for truly effective storytelling often requires training, coaching and regular practice.