BETTER HEALTH SYSTEM AND HOSPITAL BRANDING: 10 Pillars of Success Eric Brody, President

You don’t have unlimited resources.

The game, and players, are changing.

Customers are now driving the bus.

What your docs think they want, isn’t what you as a healthcare marketer know they need.

And you can’t program into people’s heads what they think about your brand.

GIVEN THIS…there’s a good chance that your health system or hospital branding can use a boost.

10 Pillars Of Better Health System or Hospital Branding

You’re Either Different, Or Not

Differentiation is one of the critical drivers of brand success.

When you’re different, through your ideas and actions, people are interested.

When you’re not, they’re not. Because they’ve seen that, done that.

No different with your health system or hospital brand. It either stands out and apart, or fades into the background as just another undifferentiated medical provider.

1

Be Coherent, Not Consistent

Consistency is boring. It gets old. Soon you look past it, because you’ve seen it before.

Do you as a consumer want the exact same experience across every single channel?

Coherence keep things fresh and new. But drives from the same ideas, so it’s familiar and continues to build brand meaning.

2

Emotional PullWe respond emotionally to everything.

Same thing with brands. We choose based on emotion. And reinforce based on rational evidence. Regardless of category.

Want proof? fMRI neuro-imagery, conducted by USC Professor Antonio Demasio, shows consumers primarily use emotions (personal feelings and experiences) when evaluating brands, rather than information (brand attributes, features, and facts).

3

DemonstrationYour brand’s ideas are either reinforced across the organization, or delivered as false promises

externally.

Every experience that people have with your health system or hospital, every touchpoint that aligns or not with their expectations, affects the ability of your brand to shift demand.

Priority #1, build your internal marketing army and ensure they’re wrapped tightly around your (their) brand and its promises.

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4

SymbolismThese are the colors, logos, shapes, sounds, etc. that make-

up your brand’s shorthand emotional language and that trigger our intuitive (System 1 brain) decision-making.

Here’s proof: .

5

These brand assets are precious. They’re the magnets that instantly draw people towards you. Nurture them and

protect them.

Know-HowActions speak louder than words. They always have. But today, where there’s no hiding behind the

curtain (ask VW), they mean even more.

Our System 2 brains require conscious proof that you’re a credible expert and the best possible solution to their needs.

Yes, emotion (the sizzle) sells. But you need the proof (the steak) to gain trust.

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6

DynamismIs your brand constantly evolving to surprise and delight your audiences?

Anything “unexpected” coming down the pike?

You should always be planting a seed of anticipation about “what’s next.”

It might not be as exciting as the next IPhone or Android, but you need to maintain attention to maintain relevance.

7

Experience OfferingMost clinical quality (with “specialty” exceptions) is similar

across providers. As is the delivery of merely satisfying experiences.

Which means a “branded” and delighting customer experience can break the ties, and grow relevance and relationships.

Consider Umpqua Bank’s branch experience. Walmart’s Greeters. Doubletree’s warm chocolate chip cookies.

It doesn’t have to be big, but it should be defining and delighting.

8

AlignmentDoesn’t mean consistent. Because we know that’s boring.

It’s about maintaining the same brand look, message and emotion across all touchpoints and programs.

Because together, these elements build brand meaning.

Want inspiration? Look to Nike, Audi, Red Bull, Kiehls, Ritz-Carlton, Le Labo Fragrances…

9

CommunityDo you suffer from engagement-deficit syndrome?

Social media has changed business forever. Like it or not, your business today is fundamentally a “social” business.

Add to this the structural changes taking place in healthcare, e.g. consumers actively making their own decisions, traditional providers competing with consumer-savvy retail and technology players…

Community building is brand building.

10

Your brand is built on what consumers say about you, not what you say about yourself.

Make your branding better.

Trajectory20 Community Place Morristown NJ 07960973-292-1400 www.trajectory4brands.com