INTRODUCTION
Reputation does matter, which is why it’s important for hospitals and healthcare systems to raise community awareness of their commitment to advancing patient-centered care. One way to achieve this goal is through applying and being recognized for healthcare industry awards, such as Leapfrog’s Top Hospital or Best in KLAS.
Besides press releases, here are other ways to promote your hospital’s awards.
USE CONTENT MARKETING
Give those in your pipeline the heads up by including the recognition in an upcoming e-update. Tailor your text to your lists (e.g. past patients, those who have taken classes, etc.) and repeat the news for at least one to two months following the honor.
This is also a great nugget to include in a “Year-in-Review” e-newsletter, as well as your annual report.
The blog is another avenue to promote your news. For example, your content development team could write a four-part blog series on the award from different perspectives (e.g. CEO, IT manager, head of procurement, etc.), making sure to explain how the community benefits.
Don’t forget the power of video. Create a 30-second video highlighting the reasons your hospital won the award to drive engagement and action. Plus, you can publish the video on your social media channels and play it at community events.
SHARE ON SOCIAL MEDIA, BOTH ORGANIC AND PAID
It’s okay to brag about your award. Since most of your social media followers are past/current patients, community members and stakeholders, using social media channels can increase the awareness of the news. Try organic tactics such as using the award image on LinkedIn posts (for recruitment), tagging the organization on Twitter that honored you and creating an award-related cover image on your Facebook page.
Your staff can further amplify the message. Have your marketing department send an email internally with guidelines on how staff members should publish/republish award-related content on their own social media channels.
A modest budget of less than $500 can go a long way in social media advertising. You should use LinkedIn Sponsored Updates, Facebook ads and YouTube ads to reach a wider audience with your announcement.