The Tuesday Tip on Health and Content Marketing today is on Interactive content marketing.
Patients and viewers who are prospective patients for you and your practice look for the opinions of experts in health. Why couldn’t it be from you? After all, you are giving your expert opinion on various health topics that are relevant to your services and to the people searching for the solutions to the problems they are struggling with. Most people are going online to find out what their problems are or what options are available for their symptoms and conditions.
Engaging viewers online with open communication is actually what interactive content marketing is all about and there is plenty of opportunity to participate in it. Those you engage with are far more likely to become your patients and want your services.
4 Steps to Set up Your Interactive Content Marketing
1. Tell Your Story
Readers remember your stories far more than any message or statistic that you share. It’s what helps people relate to you so that they are ready to receive whatever else you have to share.
Remember when you were in the lecture hall and the speaker droned on. Did you catch everything that was said or did your eyes glaze over? Now think of the animated speakers that told stories. You were able to actively listen to those, didn’t you. You have a lot of interesting stories in you. Relate the ones that will convey your messages the best.
Matthew Wellschlager, VP Marketing, Ceros, believes:
“… writing for an interactive experience isn’t the same as writing a long-form article or whitepaper. From narrative structure to length to tone, there are many elements you must take into account before sitting down to write”.
Interactive content describes engagement between at least two people, you and those that want to converse with you. Plan out the information to be relayed first and then what should be shared after. Adding layers improves upon your story and makes your narrative more interesting or compelling.
Content components include both videos, images, words, infographics, animations, media, GIFs, etc. Don’t forget to include several of these to hold the attention of your viewers. Select the type of elements that are in sync with your words and message.
2. Utilize the popular Q&As
Viewers like to be active participants. They want to be enabled to ask their questions and leave their comments. Answering these questions further highlights you as the authority in your field and makes you the “go-to” person in their eyes. By validating their thoughts and giving them the opportunity to converse with you and other viewers, you are strengthening your brand while providing the relevant and valuable information.
Noam Korin, Global VP of Brand Partnerships, PlayBuzz
“By giving readers an active role and encouraging them to share their thoughts and personal preferences, brands can answer customers’ need to be listened to while gaining insights regarding their target audience. Content formats that manage to engage users making it easier to ask questions and encouraging readers to share information they might otherwise be reluctant to expose.”
He adds that the brand strategy should be to open up a channel of communication between the customer and the brand and use the feedback or customer actions to deliver a personalized experience to them. For you, this means that your are conversing with both patients and prospective patients, providing them with the needed experience to both educate them and relieve their stress.
3. Make your Email Campaigns Interactive
Sending emails that are interactive translates to a higher open rate and fewer clicks to delete/trash. This would include surveys and polls. Content that elicits active engagement gets much more attention than just reading about conditions or services.
CoFounder and CEO of Sendwithus touts interactive email as the next big thing in 2018. He states:
“If a marketer has the data to create a custom email experience, they should be using it. Interactive email can be anything from a simple product demo in GIF form to a full-on, emailable microsite. Companies are already experimenting with image slideshows and carousels, interactive shopping carts, and embedded forms for surveys and polls.”
By assessing responses of your viewers and “likes”, you can get a good idea about the topics and how to better engage more of your readers and patients.
Penny Wilson, CMO, Hootsuite says,
“Being able to see how the user answers each question gives you incredible insights into the customer. Other types of interactive content can reveal their interests, ‘likes,’ pain points, and patterns.”
By getting instant feedback, Ms. Wilson says you can create better targeted content and increase brand awareness.
4. Lure Them in with Video
Videos help tell a story that your patients can understand and here is where as a health professional you can really excel! There are so many topics that you can create short videos about, whether it is treatment options and who is a candidate for them, hospital procedures, office procedures, medical conditions, medical devices and more. Anything that you would show and explain to a patient is a great topic for video production.
Scott Gifis, President, AdRoll points out how videos play a key role in creating interactive content. Visual content is more engaging, and more likely to go viral, being shared with friends and family. This of course means that the more shares, the greater your visibility and the stronger your brand becomes.likely to be consumed and shared. The more the shares, more the brand awareness.
“By starting to build early learnings — especially with video as part of holistic ad campaigns — you identify where to invest and budget for the video to in quarters ahead… The live-streaming industry is expected to be worth more than $70 billion by 2021. As it continues to soar in popularity, live video or podcasts is your chance to let new customers see your business in action or learn from your expertise live and direct,” he writes.
Test out various interactive elements to see which ones work best with your viewers, patients and prospective patients alike.
Need help? Contact Barbara@TheMedicalStrategist.com and we can get you started!
