Thought Leadership in Hospice and Home Health: Do Prospects Know How You Stand Out?

If you’re a thought leader in the hospice and/or home health industry, your colleagues and peers are likely aware that’s the case and admire you for it.

But what about the patients and families you seek to serve? 

If your local market has a number of available options, will they know how you stand out from the competition if they’re faced with the need to pick?

There are many ways to demonstrate your expertise and the unique offerings you provide—and content marketing is one of them. Here are a few things to keep in mind so prospects in search of a thought-leading provider will recognize how you fit the bill. 

Target the Right Audience

The Content Marketing Institute defines content marketing as “a strategic marketing approach focused on creating and distributing valuable, relevant, and consistent content to attract and retain a clearly defined audience — and, ultimately, to drive profitable customer action.”

Although you may have a pretty good idea of who you’re trying to attract with your messaging, clearly defining your audience may require some in-depth research into your local market to better understand what they need and how to reach them. 

Additionally, be sure to use language in your messaging that’s geared toward consumers—instead of other healthcare professionals. 

Use the Right Channel

Another important component of an effective content marketing strategy is selecting channels that are frequented by your target audience. Common channels include:  

• Pages on your website
• Blog posts or videos on your website
• Posts or videos on various social media platforms
• Content sent via email 

Each has specific nuances related to things like content length and tone, and some are more geared for specific types of messages or more popular with certain demographics. 

For instance, when we conducted our survey about what patients needed to know to take care of themselves and their families in the COVID-19 world, the two most popular channels cited for receiving that type of information were email and the provider’s website. 

In terms of social media, Pew Research about its use in 2021 revealed that YouTube and Facebook were used by the majority of Americans polled—but Instagram, Snapchat and TikTok were especially popular among adults under 30.

Include Thought-Leading Content 

To demonstrate thought leadership, you’ll want to show how you’re ahead of the pack when it comes to the latest industry trends. For example, does your hospice or home health agency offer services that others do not, such as palliative care? 

Since palliative care is geared toward caring for any individual with serious illness, there’s a great need for providers who can offer this type of support for patients in their homes—as demonstrated by the skyrocketing demand during the COVID-19 era.  

Palliative care may be a new concept to some, and community-based palliative care may not be available in some areas. However, there are ongoing efforts to expand these offerings across the country—including bipartisan legislation that’s recently been introduced. 

Plus, a recent Home Health Care News (HHCN) headline indicated the potential for even more changes ahead: “Home Health Value-Based Purchasing Model Could Mean a Bigger Role for Palliative Care.” 

According to HHCN, “…the clear momentum around a reimbursement pathway for community-based palliative care has prompted more home health agencies and other providers to launch programs of their own. That’s a trend likely to accelerate heading into 2022, thanks to the proposed expansion of the Home Health Value-Based Purchasing (HHVBP) Model and recent legislative updates on Capitol Hill.”

Another example is telehealth, which has become so popular since COVID-19 hit that some view it as a new norm and new opportunity for hospice and home health.

The U.S. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid (CMS) expanded telehealth coverage for hospices and home health agencies during the public health emergency (PHE)—and with new legislation in the works, there’s even hope that reimbursement issues will be addressed. 

These are just two examples of areas in which you may be able to demonstrate how your agency is a thought leader in the hospice and home health market. 

And if your organization doesn’t offer these types of services, this may be a great time to consider whether they might be a good fit. 

Organizations like the Center to Advance Palliative Care (CAPC), the National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization (NHPCO), the National Association of Home Care and Hospice (NAHC), and Home Care Association of America (HCAOA) offer trainings and other resources for providers caring for patients in their homes.  

Take a Strategic Approach

While demonstrating your thought leadership through content marketing might sound like a great idea, it can be difficult to know where to start—especially if you want to optimize your results. 

By planning and implementing a comprehensive content marketing strategy, messaging can better reach your targeted audience; be coordinated across platforms to support consistency; and align with the image you want to portray.  

If that sounds overwhelming, the good news is you don’t have to tackle it alone. 

At AMG Healthcare Marketing, we offer an array of content marketing services to help you deliver the right message to the right audience in the right way. 

Contact us today so we can get started together.