(Las Vegas – Forum for Healthcare Strategists) Healthcare marketing is an increasingly important differentiator in an increasingly competitive and threatened marketplace. Marketing was indeed the hot topic du jour at the Forum for Healthcare Strategists this week in Vegas.

 

Of course, eHealth and the Internet as a marketing tool is only one part of the equation.

 

I had the good fortune to meet and chat with two particular marketing gurus – GeigerBevolo’s two founding partners Chris Bevolo and Scott Geiger while conferencing at Caesar’s Palace. Founded in 1995, Minneapolis-based healthcare marketing firm GeigerBevolo has gained a national reputation for its “leadership in bringing the value of design and marketing to the healthcare industry.”

 

I had a great chat with Chris who is someone worth knowing. Chris and Scott clearly know their stuff and they have a great website and a daily blog called Dialogue.

 

New Threats

 

The New Competition is a new GeigerBevolo white paper on the evolving health market and entry of new, innovative players. This paper is necessary reading and intelligence for anyone in healthcare. Of particular note, the paper highlights three new players including Steve Case’s Revolution Healthand the use of technology as a competitive advantage.

“This paper is intended to help hospitals and healthcare systems understand new threats to their established business models and inspire ideas for potential opportunities. The paper includes:

·         profiles of three new entrants

·         the impact of the new competitors

·         why an innovative mindset is crucial

·         preliminary steps to establishing an innovative mindset

·         examples of traditional providers — such as the Mayo Clinic’s SPARC effort, Minnesota’s Park Nicollet Health Services, and Indiana’s Memorial Health System — who are leading the way in innovative thinking

 

“This paper should serve as a wake-up call to traditional healthcare providers,” says Chris Bevolo, partner and co-founder of GeigerBevolo. “The new competitors featured in the paper — AOL’s Steve Case, Best Buy’s eq life, and Minute Clinic — are well positioned to eat away at the already shrinking margins of traditional healthcare providers, and their approach in marketing to consumers could have a profound impact on patient expectations.”