Before we begin, watch this short video. It will change how you look at life and takes less than a minute—promise!
The video was actually 3 minutes 23 seconds long, but did you notice the time, or did you watch it? We guess you watched it. That’s the power of storytelling in healthcare marketing.
If you are convinced about the power of storytelling in healthcare marketing, let’s discuss how you can do it for your brand or practice.
When you market your healthcare practice, you aren’t just doing it for your own benefit. People will benefit from your knowledge and experience. But to ensure that people read your messages, view your videos, or follow you on social media channels, you must hook them.
One way to hook them is by weaving stories. A testimonial from a patient is not always necessary to create a story. You can do it in various ways. More about it later.
We humans love to share and listen to stories. Whether it’s a concise question like ‘Why are you late for the office? ‘ or a more complex one like’ What are the drawbacks of the current action plan?’, we try to create a story and express ourselves. Have you ever wondered why we make a story to explain something?
It is because our brains react differently when we create stories. Humans are wired to love hearing stories for several reasons.
Our brains are wired to love stories because they trigger a cocktail of feel-good chemicals. Mirror neurons make us feel empathy, oxytocin creates a sense of connection, dopamine rewards us for following the narrative, and the structure helps us learn and remember information. This is why stories are so powerful and engaging.
Here’s a breakdown of the neurological connection:
Firstly, marketing healthcare is complicated because of ethical considerations. Getting patient testimonials is also challenging, as patients refrain from doing it for privacy reasons. Given all these things, storytelling becomes very important in healthcare marketing.
That’s the only way to show your expertise and brand and arouse emotions among people. Storytelling is essential in healthcare marketing because it goes beyond dry facts and figures. Here’s why it’s powerful:
Storytelling allows healthcare marketing to connect with patients more deeply, making information engaging, memorable, and impactful.
This video captures the anxious movements before the delivery and weaves the story around it. Nimaaya Fertility Hospital can convey its expertise and exceptional patient care through this.
Storytelling can be a powerful tool throughout various aspects of healthcare marketing. Here are some key areas where you can leverage its potential:
This article on Medium wanted to create awareness about heart health. The author picked up a trending news story about a young person’s cardiac death, weaved a story around it, and then mentioned points for heart health.
Through this small video, Dr.Pal emphasizes the importance of fiber in our diet for gut health.
This reel is created by a neurologist, Dr. Sid Warrier, showing his journey as a doctor.
This video weaves a story about how Nimaaya Fertility Clinic was started.
Additional Considerations:
Before you weave stories, it is necessary to understand for whom you are creating the content. Accordingly, you can twitch your stories. You can view your competitors' marketing materials and social media presence.
If your healthcare organisation has existing social media accounts, utilise their built-in analytics tools. These tools can provide insights into the demographics of your followers and audience, such as age and location (based on city/country settings).
As a medical practitioner, you might see many patients daily. You need to jot down their common queries, and then you can create content around that topic.
Many ignore this aspect. You need to identify where your prospects love consuming content and in what form or language they prefer.
Here are some methods to achieve this:
If your healthcare organisation has existing social media accounts, utilise their built-in analytics tools. These tools provide insights into demographics, platform engagement (likes, comments, shares), and content performance (which posts resonate more).
Conduct online surveys specifically designed to understand your target audience's online behaviour. Ask questions about:
Identify online communities (forums, Facebook groups) relevant to your healthcare niche. Monitor these communities to see what health topics are being discussed, what questions are being asked, and how people prefer to consume information.
If you have a website, use analytics tools like Google Analytics to understand your audience's online behaviour on your website. This can reveal:
Consider industry reports and market research data on healthcare consumer behaviour. These reports can provide valuable insights into broader trends and how demographics engage with online health information.
By combining these methods, you can build a comprehensive picture of your target audience’s online behaviour. This will allow you to tailor your storytelling approach to the platforms they use most and the content formats they find most engaging for healthcare information.
By understanding your audience’s online behaviour, you can craft healthcare marketing stories that resonate with them, leading to greater engagement and a more impactful message.
Before you craft stories, you must understand the common challenges your audience faces. This will help you create content that resonates with them.
This simple question can help you create stories. Try to figure out what questions your patients really want answers to. Create stories about health worries, anxieties, etc.
Depending on your audience’s goals, you can tweak your marketing strategy and incorporate the above elements.
Depending on your expertise and resources, you can create amazing stories that will hook your audience.
Asking for a video testimonial from the patient is only sometimes essential for creating engaging patient stories. You can show it in images and create a story from it. See the example that follows.
Alternatively, you can pick up trending news about health, create a story about it, and pitch what you offer.
As a doctor, you can create short videos or reels to help your patients understand the procedure better. You can educate them and create many followers on your social media channel.
Even when you want to burst a particular myth, you can create a beautiful story around it and express it so the masses can easily understand it.
Create stories that Celebrate medical breakthroughs and your organization's history.
Share stories of overcoming adversity
(Giving a glimpse into healthcare professionals' lives)
Sharing stories about healthy habits and preventive care.
Highlighting stories of patient involvement in health management.
Showcasing healthcare professionals' dedication and expertise, duties)
Using humour to make healthcare information relatable
Sharing stories of community health initiatives
In today’s healthcare world, dry facts and figures must be revised. Storytelling offers a compelling alternative, forging emotional connections with patients. Through well-crafted narratives, healthcare professionals can build trust, enhance the memory of crucial information, and motivate patients to take charge of their health.
By understanding your audience and tailoring stories to their needs, you can leverage the power of storytelling across various media. Authenticity is key. Embrace real stories (with patient consent) while adhering to HIPAA regulations.
So, are you ready to unlock the potential of storytelling?
Subscribe to our blog for further insights, and share it with your friend who loves to create awareness and knowledge by creating stories. Let’s build a more robust healthcare community together, one story at a time.
