I have two  questions for healthcare providers.

One: Who is your patient?

Two: Who is the decision maker and/or key influencer?

Frequently the answers to those questions are not the same person. Chances are the person making the decison and/or a key influencer is a woman. A mother. A daughter. A wife. A granddaughter. A niece.

The U.S. Department of Labor reports that women make three-quarters of health care decisions for their families and are more likely to be the care givers when a family member falls ill.

Healthcare providers certainly have a challenge. Not only must marketing communication strategies convey important medical details to the patient but must also speak to the concerns of the female decison maker. The upside is .. a happy "customer" who will extend the word-of-mouth buzz about your services/facility.

If you're feeling a little like Freud who said,  “Despite my 30 years of research into the feminine soul, I have not been able to answer... the great question that has never been answered: what does a woman want?” here are a few tips to get you started in developing your next campaign.

Women relate through relationships and stories. What better way to tell continuing stories and respond to concerns than in an online community that includes social media elements such as blogs. An example framed in a story is a powerful tactic..online or offline.  Of course include the medical information but make it easy to understand .. without talking down.

 From Gender Trends 

• Female gender culture is grounded in the idea of empathy, not envy.

• Women's people-first orientation results in their seeing life problems and buying solutions in terms of how they impact people, and the facts and features are only secondary.

Resources: Books & Blogs

Dickless Marketing: Smart Marketing To Women Online by Yvonne DiVita

Reaching Women: The Way To Go In Marketing Healthcare

Lip-sticking

WonderBranding

Marketing To Women Online

Learned On Women 

Womentum

 TYL!

Toby & Carol

For more information about marketing and blogs, please visit Toby's Diva Marketing Blog and Carol's Drvining in Traffic Blog.