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Divergent thinking: is it a good thing for your brand?

4/15/2015

Professionally I speak to divergent audiences--that is if you differentiate between content developers and those that rely on the content they produce. How do you decide where to position your brand? Do you want to appeal to as many heterogeneous stakeholders as possible or are you neatly aligned along a single value or objective? I am defining brand as the asset or service that reflects your specific values. Do you write content? You are your brand. Because our healthcare system in the US is basically a market enterprise there are several marketing principles that still hold true. Historically we described seller focused vs. customer based marketing strategies. I will provide context in a moment but it is worth noting that in our modern age of moving between market segments--a brand is actually whatever the connected community thinks it is.

Seller and customer focused strategies are no longer 1:1 in a connected community, They are primarily defined as being influenced by experiential value. So let's apply this loosely to a fee-for-service healthcare model. These FFS models are typically volume based. The more services that are charged the more money is generated. There is a product that is systematically pushed out to the consumer. The new reimbursement models are more customer focused and value based. The deliverable is exactly what the individual wants and is patient centric. Although the fee-for-value structure appears to be expensive to deliver the real cost savings are realized in the efficiency and value at the patient or customer level.

Trends in healthcare today are evolving towards a patient-centric approach. Patients today are not as passive as they were in the past. The days when a healthcare provider prescribes a drug or device without including the patient in the negotiation are over. Patients as customers are more informed, demanding, and savvy due to information technology. Divergent thinking celebrates customer heterogeneity recognizing that success arises through enhanced (and/or more efficient) acquisition, retention, and development. How does this apply to our content development business models? I believe the answer to this question is dependent on differentiation between tactical (messaging) and positioning (strategic) content media.

Stay tuned...