The healthcare industry is growing quickly as 10,000 Baby Boomers turn 65 every day. According to a study completed last year by Google, 57% of the Boomer generation have searched online for health information. A survey done by the National Research Corporation in 2011 showed 20% of respondents rely on social networking for health information and of those, 94% use Facebook as their number one source. Are your healthcare marketing efforts keeping up with these trends?

One way to capture online attention and enhance your marketing program is through use of online video. Websites containing video consistently show a lower bounce rate and increased time-on-site versus sites without video content. Video also helps with search engine optimization efforts as sites with this type of content, according to Forrester Research analyst Nate Elliott, are 50 times more likely to appear on Google’s first page results than sites without video content.

Creating Online Marketing Videos

With the increase in simple high-definition cameras, as well as easy-to-use video editing and distribution options, video has become a more affordable option for healthcare marketers. Those looking to create videos should start with a list of potential topics. Your videos should cover topics and stories that your potential customers would be interested in. Nobody wants to see a glorified commercial for your hospital on their Facebook page, but a video teaching how to look for signs of pending health risks may be of interest. Here are a few recommendations:

Healthcare Marketing Video Ideas:

• Customer testimonials and inspirational stories (beware HIPAA regulations)
• Preventative medicine and health tips videos
• New technologies and hospital techniques
• Inspirational videos from YOUR hospital community showing positive events and trends

Editing Marketing Videos:

Once the appropriate footage is captured, simple editing software can help make your videos web-ready. Most new computer models come with basic video editing software or you can download a program such as Camtasia Studio to create your final product. Another option would be to hire a healthcare marketing firm or video production studio to assist in the production of your videos. This kind of consultant can also advise a hospital how to maximize their video efforts (on the hospital website, through social media, at locations throughout the hospital, through local public service announcements, etc.).

Remember to keep videos short as attention spans, especially on the web, are not what they used to be. Optimal length should be under two minutes but attention must be grabbed in the first 10 seconds or risk users clicking away.

Online Discovery

To get your videos discovered, ensure you are taking advantage of social media and search engine optimization. But we’ll discuss that more in Part II of our post on Healthcare marketing videos. Stay tuned next week and please let us know any questions you’d like answered in next week’s post by using the comments section below.