If your brand is a part of the healthcare industry, you have an important message to share with your audience and the ethical obligation to provide accurate information. At the same time, you probably realize that the concepts you have to communicate may be difficult for your audience to understand, particularly if they are outside your industry. Whether you’re posting blogs on your website or creating a page to market your services, digestibility should be a primary concern.
Here are three tips to help you write factually accurate marketing content that your audience can understand.
1. Write to be Helpful, Not to Sell
One of the best tips for any type of content marketing is to focus on adding value rather than being overly promotional. This is particularly true if you are a healthcare provider, because the ideal visitor to your website is a potential patient, who likely found you because they were seeking health information. If they find a sales pitch, they will be quick to leave your site, but if you provide them with the answers they are seeking, they may stick around to learn more about you, and if nothing else, they will see your site as a valuable resource.
2. Stick to the Facts, But Speak To Your Audience
When providing medical information online, accuracy is critical, so make sure you fact-check everything you write. Use reputable sources such as scholarly journals and industry association websites to ensure that you have proper support for medical information in your content.
However, the need for accuracy doesn’t mean that your blog post itself has to read like a scientific journal article. Using an authoritative, yet conversational tone and avoiding excessive medical jargon can help you connect with your audience.
For example, this blog post discusses a question patients may have, “What is a telehealth visit?” The blog post is formatted to be easy to read, including questions with answers below them, and bulleted lists to avoid long paragraphs that may be overwhelming for the reader. The post includes related questions that the patient may have and also adds advice that a patient who is asking these questions may find helpful. The tone throughout the blog post is neither condescending nor stilted. The author, a psychiatrist in private practice, makes clear that they are knowledgeable about the topic, but that they are sharing their knowledge in order to answer the reader’s questions and put their mind at ease. The article also avoids a sales-oriented tone, until the last section, which explains that the practice provides this service and includes a CTA to contact the practice.
3. Link to Related Topics on Your Website
Internal links are valuable for search engine optimization, but also valuable for your audience! Practitioners know that if someone has one medical question, they probably have ten. When your website offers a related article or service page related to the topic you’re writing about, make sure to link to it! Use anchor text that lets your reader know what to expect and doesn’t mislead them. Remember, your goal is to be helpful!
Healthcare Marketing Content That Is Easy to Understand
In order to reach your intended audience, you have to meet them where they are. Remember that you need to start from a place of helpfulness. Answer your readers’ questions and provide accurate information in an approachable manner. Finally, make sure to include links to related, beneficial content elsewhere on your website. This content marketing approach will show your expertise and usefulness to your potential customers and patients.
