5 Key Tips for Creating High-ROI New Mover Campaigns
The job of health care marketers is to bring new patients into their hospital, clinic, or health system. Marketers have a pretty large arsenal when it comes to connecting with potential patients, including digital campaigns, event-based marketing, traditional media, billboards, new mover marketing, etc. So, what is the best way to bring in new patients?
Dwight Orr, founder and President of CMPkc and a 35-year veteran of healthcare marketing, will tell you it’s New Mover Campaigns. His team at CMPkc has done extensive research and testing over the years, and they continue to find that new mover campaigns, on average, have a lower cost of acquisition per patient, greater returns in patient interaction, and ultimately higher downstream revenue.
He warns, however, that “it all depends on how you execute the new mover campaign.”
Connecting with patients in a meaningful way cannot be accomplished with one-and-done or spray-and-pray type marketing. Patient acquisition happens when patients and the health system are engaged in a continuous conversation, where the patient feels their needs are being met. The right new mover campaign can equip healthcare marketers with the tools they need to make those conversations successful.
Here are five key tips to make your new mover campaign a winning campaign:
- Identify the right new movers - It is key to make sure your messaging is landing in the right hands. Data shows that people who move within their town are less likely to switch providers unless their drive time exceeds 20-25 minutes. This means you want to focus your mailing lists on out-of-town movers. With the right partner, you can validate the accuracy and deliverability of your mailing list. In fact, when you refine your audience, you may see the list shorten by 60 percent compared to all movers in a geography. It’s all about targeting. By refining your list, you are narrowing your target to an audience that is more likely to respond, which will increase your ROI.
- Keep communication timely - New mover programs experience the most success when they connect with someone within a month or two after they have moved to a new area. You will see a peak in response between two and three weeks after you have mailed the first communication. However, you should continue to monitor and reach out to your connections for an entire year after your first mailing. This way you can stay connected with those who don’t think about a doctor until they are sick.
- Sell yourself well - Provide communications - direct mail pieces, follow-up cards, etc. - that give the new mover a good feeling about your organization and brand. Show them why your health system is the best for their health. Another key element should be to communicate how easily accessible you are via the web and in person. One way you can accomplish this is through proximity mapping - a map showing how near your services are to the new mover’s front door.
- Ask the new mover to raise their hand - In other words, ask the new mover to respond. This could be for a free welcome gift like a first aid kit, for more information about your services, or to go online to sign up for an e-newsletter. Then, after the initial contact, continue to maintain one-on-one communications as follow-up. Track what services they self-identified and requested more information about, and compare those to what services they use. This can help you determine what type of marketing material to send them next. Check out our blog about connecting with potential patients through a multi-channel new mover campaign.
- Follow up with data - Data is key to having a successful new mover campaign. Data can include response rates to initial communications, using evidenced-based testing, conducting surveys, and tracking patient utilization. All this data can help you determine how to modify ongoing new mover campaigns and how to continue to connect with your potential new patients.