Video is becoming a more necessary part of online marketing in all industries because of the way people consume content now. We’re seeing lots of videos on social media, in ads, and in search results.
According to a post by Neal Schaffer, 80% of people prefer content in video form over written text. They are also much more likely to remember the information delivered via video compared to text. A Forbes article states that “viewers retain 95% of a message when they watch it on video, compared to 10% when reading it in a text.”
Knowing this, it only makes sense that businesses–including medical practices–should invest in video for their marketing. Previously, we’ve discussed some of the ways practices can use videos in their marketing. But it’s also important to make sure that you are creating effective videos that deliver the content your patients want to see.
These are our tips on how practices can create effective videos for patients.
Planning & Creating Video Content for Medical Practices
Before you start filming a video, we recommend planning out what you’ll do and say ahead of time. This helps ensure that you deliver all of the key points you want in a clear and concise manner.
Planning What to Say
We recommend writing a script for the video ahead of time so you can plan out exactly what you are going to say. It’s also important to rehearse that script so you feel comfortable delivering the information. You may be able to use cue cards or a teleprompter to remind you of your lines, but it shouldn’t sound like you’re reading it on-camera.
It’s also important to consider your audience. A common mistake we see in video marketing is physicians and surgeons who deliver information as though they were addressing their peers and colleagues. Videos with highly technical information and medical jargon aren’t the best way to deliver content to patients.
If the goal with video marketing is to attract new patients to your practice, you need to consider what they want to know when planning your content–and their priorities when seeking healthcare information might differ from yours. For example, you might really want to show off a new robotic joint replacement device and get deep into how it works. But on the patient’s end, they’re more likely concerned about outcomes than the technicalities of how the robot works. They want to know how the robotic device is going to give them a better result than a non-robotic joint replacement. That’s the content that will convince them whether or not they should move forward with the procedure. As they say, give the people what they want.
Delivering the Message
Even a perfectly-crafted video script can fall flat if you don’t have the right delivery. Try to approach the video delivery as though you were having a one-on-one conversation with a patient. You don’t want to sound monotone or like you are reading off a teleprompter (even if you are). Aim for a warm, inviting tone.
Think of it as a “preview” of sorts for what patients can expect during an appointment. It’s ok to let your personality come through as you deliver your video script, especially if you have a good rapport with patients when you see them during appointments. Don’t feel like you have to deliver the information in a stuffy, buttoned-up kind of way if that’s not your normal style. It may actually endear more patients to you if they see your personality.
Our final tip on delivering the message is to keep an eye on the overall length of the video. You don’t want to ramble on and on about the topic at hand. Keep it to no more than 2-3 minutes–plenty of time to deliver all of your key points without overwhelming your audience with too much information.
The Best Ways for Medical Practices to Use Video Content
Now that you’ve created your videos, you have to use them effectively to make sure patients see them. Often, we’ll see practices put all of their videos in a Videos page somewhere on their website. That isn’t the best way to ensure that patients are: 1.) seeing the videos in the first place; and 2.) finding the video(s) that are most relevant to them.
Here are some tips on how to best utilize your video content:
- Embed videos on relevant pages. For example, if you have a video about a particular condition or procedure, and you also have a page with written content about the same topic on your website, you should embed the video there. Patients looking at that page will already be interested in that topic, and can view the information via video if they prefer.
- Use video on your landing pages for ad campaigns. According to Neal Schaffer, putting a video on your landing page can increase your conversions “by at least 80%.” Given this information, if you don’t have relevant videos for your landing pages, it would be a good investment to create videos that will work.
- Add videos to social media posts and ads. Video tends to be more eye-catching than static images as people scroll through their feeds, so people are more likely to stop and pay attention. Ads with video are also more likely to be shared and tend to have higher click-through rates.
All of the statistics indicate that video is a great option for medical practices to market themselves to patients. But, as with any other type of marketing, it’s important to put your best foot forward to get the best possible return on investment.
As the P3 Marketing Manager, Ashley ensures that our clients’ marketing strategies are put into action. This includes content writing, SEO, online advertising, analytics, and interfacing with the tools, systems, and team members needed to help our medical practice clients accomplish their marketing goals.
Scott Zeitzer
Scott has been in the healthcare industry for his entire adult life. Prior to launching P3, he earned a Master’s in Biomedical Engineering and spent 10 years selling medical devices (total hips, total knees, trauma devices, and CMF devices) to orthopedists and neurosurgeons.
