Joining the digital transformation race today means that many companies will have to transform to become digitally agile. 

While the topic of digital transformation permeates many conversations today, it arose from humble roots. Since the explosive growth of the internet began in 1993 with the introduction of the graphical web browser developed by Marc Andreesen, digital communications continually evolved to make it easier for “searchers” to become “know-ers.”  Massive companies were born from the ability to solve this challenge, minting behemoths like Google, Apple, and Verizon.

Speaking as someone who lived through this connectivity transformation of the 90’s, I was a front-line witness to a new challenge which arose from the troves of newly connected data and assets – the companies that I felt closest to were the ones that did the best job of predicting my needs, even before I was aware of them.  The companies I loved most were the ones that made it an experience to engage with them, from start to finish.

 

Healthcare is in the Experience Business, Too

While other industries have transformed into hyper-connected, anticipatory experience-driven businesses, healthcare was and is generally encumbered by a reinforcing feedback loop of strict privacy requirements and a dependence on legacy operational/technological systems.

But today’s consumers do not take this into account when evaluating the quality of their digital experience with your brand.  To consumers, there is no recognized border between the quality of their Amazon, payer, provider, or RX experience.  As research shows, end-consumer expectations of digital experiences in healthcare are high.

Interestingly, when I speak with healthcare companies it is clear that a shift in the tide has occurred.  Engagement with digital channels has been measured as having a direct correlation with perceived value.  The more that digital consumers engage, the happier they are with their healthcare. Healthcare companies that embrace the shifting paradigm of becoming proactive with patient care are the ones who are winning when it comes to how healthcare consumers evaluate quality.

Joining the digital transformation race today means that many companies will have to transform to become digitally agile.  Delivering the right message at the right time to the right person will only continue to grow in importance, while the challenge to do so will increase concurrently.

 

Tips for Succeeding as an Experience-Driven Healthcare Business

Today’s marketing solutions are up to the challenge, though. To deliver on the right content/time challenge, modern marketing platforms combine profile data, content creation capabilities, and robust content delivery. Healthcare customer data must be connected across devices to ensure a consistent digital experience. Person-level data is then connected with personalized content such as articles, images, ads, forms, webinars, and more – all housed in a single solution. Lastly, personalized content informed by robust data must be decided and delivered at scale, in real time.

As you continue your digital transformation journey, I encourage you to look for platforms which support the ability to create a holistic view of your HCP/patient/member/customer. Find solutions which facilitate expedited content creation, approval workflows, and automated translation into multiple languages. Ask how your data can be turned into efficient and effective customer experiences, in the framework of risk mitigation and cohesive compliance.

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