The New Normal in Healthcare Communications
Recently, I read an excellent essay, “The new normal,” and it reminded me of the forces of change that have been impacting healthcare communications since long before the current economic crisis. I’m not sure if we’ve settled into a new normal. It seems that changes are still evolving. But I do know that some things will never be the same again. For example, PowerPoint presentations and bullet points have become de rigueur for plans, briefs and other documents that were written in prose in times past. In The Brain That Changes Itself author Norman Doidge calls the PowerPoint presentation “the ultimate compensation for a weak premotor cortex,” which he attributes to the decline in use of drills such as memorization of long poems in foreign languages, attention to handwriting, elocution and correct pronunciation, all of which played an important role in brain function development. And I am having a hard time getting clients to review copy as Word documents rather than as page layouts—even after repeated reminders that doing it the “old” way is more cost-efficient.
More significant, strategically, are the shifts in communications with healthcare professionals mandated by the new codes of ethics from The Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA) and Advanced Medical Technology Association (AdvaMed) that are reshaping every interaction from lunch-and-learn and the myriad of “brand reminders” to educational grants and consulting agreements. Add to these the ever-stricter guidelines imposed by major medical centers and the continuing pressure on productivity at all levels, and the healthcare professional detail is leaner, meaner and far less personal. Crisp messages, backed by clearly communicated data and memorable presentations, are all the more important, as is the deployment of multiple media, multiple channels of communication.
What about direct mail in this day of “Nobody reads,” budget cuts and e-communications? Based on my observations, direct mail is still very much alive, but with some new twists that are helping to increase its effectiveness. These new twists are founded on powerful analytics that drives more in-depth understanding of the audience, better targeting and refinements in defining and measuring ROI. They are also built on lessons learned about the use of traditional (snail) mail vs. online marketing. For example, marketers are learning that e-mail might work better for customer retention than for customer acquisition, since existing customers are much more likely to open the mail and engage. I am having fewer discussions with clients who wonder why it is not a good idea to “just rent a list and e-blast them.”
What about conventions in these days of reduced travel? What other new normals are defining healthcare communications today? Please share your thoughts