Healthcare's Investment in Digital

Concord's Relevant Health Roundtable hosted a panel on digital and consumer experience.

The best digital experience is seamless, intuitive, and dare we say it, downright delightful. Historically lacking in this area, the healthcare industry turned to retail for innovation…but now there’s a chance to chart a new course by taking advantage of digital trends from other organizations.

Today, healthcare startups and giants alike are investing in talent from customer-obsessed companies to improve their digital presence. In our last panel, we asked Meg Rush (M. Rush Consulting), Mark Hansberry (HealthPartners), and Sarah Leeth (Minnesota Wild) to divulge their secrets to prioritizing the customer and driving value in their digital strategy.

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Prioritize the Customer

• Before you get lost in a sea of touchpoints and disjointed metrics, take a step back to follow this simple process designed to put the customer first: Listen-Observe-Apply.
• Remove yourself from the equation as a marketer or digital strategist when making decisions on behalf of your target audience. As much as we would like to believe so, we are never the target consumer.
• Understanding the overarching problem your customers face will help focus your efforts. Building a delightful customer journey with specific content for each stage is great, but providing users with a bill they can read and understand is a better starting point.

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Driving Insights from Data

• In customer experience, it’s not about the data itself, but instead driving value from it and creating a connected ecosystem to apply your insights.
• Find areas where you can automate based on data. For example, in a subset of pre-authorization calls where 96% get approved, your call center employees would be better served spending time with more complex requests.

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The Value of Social Media

• Social media is a cost-effective playground to test voice and strategy with various audiences and determine what resonates best with each group.
• Healthcare companies have the opportunity to move from a transactional connection to a relationship with the consumer. Medicare, for example, can be confusing and scary for eligible enrollees, but social media can help forge a connection throughout the entire knowledge-seeking journey.

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Innovation & Inspiration

• Historically, healthcare organizations experienced pressure to build innovation, but have since matured into spotting innovation and utilizing successful partners.
• Instead of looking to specific companies for inspiration, break up your needs by functionality and research who handles your particular problem the best. For instance, website navigation can be a sticking point for many customers. Look at other websites across industries to find innovative use cases and apply them to your designs.

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Closing Thoughts

Digital is a business enabler, not a compartmentalized strategy to be carried out by a distinct department. Healthcare companies focusing on the customer in every aspect of their programs – digital or otherwise – will be set up for success.

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Extra Credit

What is Net Promoter? Net Promoter Score (NPS) measures customer experience and predicts business growth. Learn more about the metric and its use in customer experience management programs.

Gen Z is aging out of pediatrics – what does that mean for your growth strategy? Gen Z is far less likely than previous generations to have a primary care physician – 55% compared to 84% of Baby Boomers.          

It May Be TikTok for U.S. Health Tech. The new(ish) social media platform featuring short videos isn’t aimed at healthcare services or healthcare systems – yet.

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