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Healthcare brings together lifesaving technologies, trillions of dollars in annual spending, and the type of full-contact politics that makes cable news hosts salivate. With these bona fides, B2B healthcare content should appeal to decision makers ranging from C-suite executives to hedge fund managers to high-ranking politicos.
So why is so much healthcare content boring?
One reason is because, even in a sector where change is the only constant, content often relies on the same tired tropes and clichés.
A new technology will disrupt how healthcare is delivered. A new regulation will change how it’s paid for. A new focus on health equity (or community health or trauma-informed care) will revolutionize how care is delivered.
Sound familiar?
Something new is always happening in healthcare, but the way we talk about new developments hasn’t changed in years.
So how can you make your B2B healthcare content stand out from the crowd?
Stop chasing trends
If you work in the sector, every December your LinkedIn page is probably inundated with articles predicting the top trends in healthcare for the following year. But if you compare these articles to any from the last two decades, you’ll see the same trends popping up again and again.
The result is content that echoes itself not only across different sources, but also across the years.
Knowing the trends is important. But simply following them is a recipe for content that struggles to stand out.
Think about it: A topic like cost inflation in healthcare has arguably been the most important trend in the sector for two generations, so if you’re going to produce content on the subject, you’d better be prepared to bring a fresh perspective.
Be a (practical) contrarian
Speaking of fresh perspectives, nothing grabs attention quite like a contrarian viewpoint. B2B healthcare content shouldn’t be afraid to go against the grain.
Of course, being contrarian just for the sake of it is the playbook of social media trolls, but there’s plenty of room for thoughtful, respectful takes on important healthcare issues that your B2B audience will want to engage with.
Does a move toward individualized medicine threaten health equity goals? Are there ways our use of electronic medical records is actually making care worse? Why should investments in diagnostics be prioritized over other health infrastructure if we want to beat the next pandemic?
All of these are headlines that indicate a slightly different way to frame a popular topic in healthcare. And is this case, different is better.
Explain your value
Explaining the value of a new technology, service, or perspective is important. So why does B2B healthcare content often fail to do so?
Maybe it’s because healthcare content chooses too often to focus on cost instead of value. Frequent studies show how many dollars are wasted in healthcare, and cost is always on the lips of anyone in a conversation about the healthcare system.
But while people talk about costs, they’re really thinking about value. Get into their heads with content that shows how they can unlock hidden value, preferably with your help.
