Introduction:

2022 is quickly coming to a close, which means it’s time to start planning for the next year. Healthcare is an industry that only gets more and more competitive as the years progress, which makes healthcare marketing even more crucial.

The marketing landscape has gone through a lot of changes in the past year alone, and what worked in the past might not work anymore. The good news? According to a study by The Harris Poll, most people now have a more positive view of the healthcare landscape. What this means is that expectations have increased and healthcare practitioners have a new benchmark to live up to.

Staying up to date with the latest trends and practices can help you stay ahead of the game (and the competitors!) by making strategic decisions. Keep reading to find out how you can make the most of 2022 for your hearing healthcare practice with these digital marketing trends.

With that said, here are 8 biggest trends in digital marketing for 2023.

1. Telehealth

Telehealth has unarguably been one of the biggest developments in the healthcare industry during the past year. Although national telehealth usage is no longer at its peak, many consumers greatly prefer the ease and convenience it offers, meaning that it will likely become a permanent part of healthcare. In fact, the global telehealth market is estimated to reach USD 167.2 billion by 2025.

There is a visible disparity in terms of audiologist demand and supply—the prevalence of hearing loss is rising, but the number of hearing healthcare specialists is not. Telehealth can help minimize geographical barriers and make sure everyone gets access to hearing healthcare. So for hearing healthcare practices who don’t already offer teleaudiology services, it’s time to make it a part of your business.

Offering HIPAA-compliant communication options like live chat, texting, and virtual assistants can help broaden the telehealth experience for your clients.

2. Omnichannel Marketing

 You might have the best hearing aids or the most comprehensive hearing aid fitting practices—but if you can’t communicate that to your clients, you’re not going to experience an increase in growth and revenue. Referral marketing has long been a pillar of healthcare, and while it still boasts great returns, it might not be enough anymore.

As digital platforms become more and more integrated into the everyday lives of consumers, hearing healthcare practitioners should simultaneously focus on expanding their practice in the digital world.

Holistic or omnichannel marketing will help you improve your overall digital presence, boosting your findability, credibility, and audience. Your consumers are already on these platforms—all you need to do is establish yourself on them. It’s easier said than done, but that’s what hearing healthcare marketing professionals are here for!

3.   Artificial Intelligence and Virtual Assistants

While AI is mostly used to automate tasks right now, there’s no denying the rise of artificial intelligence. Many marketers are exploring the potential of AI to predict consumer behavior and purchase decisions which will have a huge impact on the development of digital marketing.

Along with AI is the increasingly popular trend of virtual assistants, or chatbots. Having a virtual assistant or chatbot comes with multiple benefits. They can:

• Engage with customers immediately without any in-person intervention.

• Develop a distinct style and personality to further brand image.

• Improve customer satisfaction with a personalized experience.
  

4.   Customer Relationship Management

When it comes to improving your lead-to-patient conversion rate, the one thing healthcare professionals need to keep in mind is customer relationship management (CRM). While a lot of digital marketing focuses on creating awareness and bringing in new leads, it’s increasingly important, especially for healthcare professionals, to provide a personalized journey for their clients.

CRM can help your practice build a relationship with your patients, which won’t just increase loyalty but will also boost customer retention, ultimately growing your revenue. Making the most of every interaction with your clients is the best way to optimize your workforce and your marketing efforts.5. You can repurpose blog content for social media

This is a great way to get more mileage out of your blogs and increase traffic. However, it's important to use the right type of content on Facebook. If you write about topics like parenting, personal finance, or food, they might not be as relevant on Facebook as other types of posts.

If you are looking to make money online, affiliate marketing has become one of the most popular. Affiliate marketing allows bloggers to earn commissions by promoting products and services from others. The blogger does not need to own any product or service to be able to promote them. All he needs is a link to the product or service which he wants to promote.

5.   Holistic Funnel Strategies

While we’re on the topic of customer relationship management, it’s important to consider the impact of funnels on customer experience. Going forward, it won’t be enough to only focus on your top or bottom funnel if you want to increase growth. Your bottom line is affected by a lot more factors than you think, and a holistic funnel strategy is one of them.

In the healthcare industry, customer journeys are usually non-linear. Many patients visit healthcare practices without a clear idea of what they need. More importantly, consider the different ways they could find your practice—through search engines, your website, maybe even your social media. You must optimize every customer touchpoint you can to make sure you’re both offering a positive experience as well as guiding them towards choosing your practice.

6.   Optimized Websites

As a healthcare practice, you might feel tempted to make your website as educational as possible, which is an excellent way to improve your content marketing—provided you do it right. Unfortunately, many of these websites turn out cluttered, clunky, and simply not appealing to the eye. Now that page experience is part of Google’s ranking system, it’s vital that your hearing healthcare practice has a beautiful, responsive, and most importantly, accessible website.

Hearing impairments affect over 400 million adults around the world, so your hearing healthcare website really can’t afford to miss out on being accessible. Your website needs to reflect what your patients need, for which your site navigation, content, design, SEO, engagement tools, and so much more needs to be well executed. If you’re confused about these terms, don’t sweat it—Ear Level Marketing has got you covered.

7.   Social Proof

Social proof is everything in the digital world. Imagine that you are a customer looking for hearing care services, and you find one practice with several good reviews and another with just one or two. Which one would you choose?

Social proof is a phenomenon in psychology, which makes it a crucial part of consumer psychology. Simply put, people take cues from those around them. In a marketing sense, this means that the more online proof you have about the success and credibility of your hearing healthcare practice, the higher your chances are of improving your customer acquisition. Social proof comes in many forms, including:

• Ratings, reviews, and testimonials.

• Ad placements.

• Social media engagement.

• Search engine rankings.
  

8.   Enhanced Healthcare SEO

In an age of consumerization, healthcare consumers have several options right at their fingertips, whenever they need them. One quick Google search is likely to give them exactly what they’re looking for, and it’s the job of healthcare practices to have the answer.

Healthcare SEO is a quickly developing field, and an aspect of digital marketing you cannot afford to miss out on. There are several ways to quickly improve your SEO, but sustainable growth comes from a comprehensive strategy that focuses on long-term success. High-quality content that positions you as an expert, fast web pages that offer a good user experience, and holistic keyword strategies are some of the best ways to evolve your SEO strategy.

Digital marketing is an ever-evolving field, and it’s important to keep evolving with it. At Ear Level Marketing, we know the challenges hearing healthcare practices face, and we know how to solve them. To see how your business stacks up against your competitors, or contact us today to learn more!