Good marketing reaches the widest possible audience and generates the most visibility, right? While that’s the conventional thinking, I recently spoke with a Director of Relationship Marketing in the healthcare industry with a different, thought-provoking take.
Because her organization provides treatment for complex and advanced-stage cancers, it focuses tirelessly on each patient and his/her unique needs. This personalized approach spans not only patient care but the various communications that help potential patients understand their treatment options and make the best decisions.
Consequently, her approach to marketing and patient communication is to:
Think Small. A patient exploring treatment options has no tolerance for information that’s not relevant to their needs—nor should they. Consequently, this organized is hyper-targeted and personalized with its communications. Instead of casting as wide a net as possible, they segment at such a granular level that they might send an email to just two recipients. This message will contain precisely the information those two individuals need at that particular time. And you know what? It’s works. Campaign performance metrics are exceeding their goals for the year. More importantly, marketing is supporting the organization’s aggressive growth—despite low message volumes. Less is more.
Be Invisible. This Director of Relationship Marketing told me that her goal is to not exist. While this might sound strange coming from someone responsible for building awareness, it actually makes perfect sense. If she’s doing her job well, her customers won’t feel like they’re being marketed to. The communications will be a seamless extension of the conversations patients have had with the organization’s specialists.
Because this healthcare organization is focused delivering on patient care, this marketing approach is crucial—almost mandatory. Ultimately, though, these lessons apply to all marketers. As marketers, our goal should be to send more of less, to target so precisely that our messages reach smaller but highly responsive audiences. To deliver messages that are so timely, relevant, and personalized that they’re not even perceived as marketing. To create marketing so good that it’s invisible, simply acting as the conduit between the customer and the product or service.
Want to learn more about this organization’s marketing philosophy—and results? Download the case study we published today, no registration required.
