While NOAH marketing and communication efforts include many functions, a common question we receive from other departments is where and how we advertise NOAH’s services. Advertising to prospective patients can be tricky, especially when we are hoping to reach a very specific audience. In a world where advertising cost is driven by the number of people who see an ad, casting a wide net is not always the best approach.
Chances are, aside from specific campaigns, you have probably never seen or heard television, radio, or print advertising for NOAH. Broadcast television and radio as well as print publications flaunt their expansive reach and ability to deliver an audience with high disposable income, buying power, and public influence – but that’s not our target patient. As we aim toward increasing our Medicaid population and concentrating efforts on those who truly need affordable healthcare, our advertising needs to reach a much more specific demographic.
Most digital platforms offer audience targeting by location, income, age, race, gender, etc. but we can’t always choose how these demographics are segmented; especially as it relates to lower incomes.
Last spring, we identified a digital marketing platform that meets our criteria for audience targeting and launched a campaign to drive pediatric patients to Cholla Health Center. Advertisements appeared on a network of websites ranging from CNN to AZ Family and Food Network to independent cooking blogs. In the first month alone, views (or impressions) totaled over half a million with 1,300 people clicking on our ads for additional information and an increase of 11.8% in online appointment requests – more than half of them new patients. Since then, we have launched several other campaigns driving various patient populations to NOAH clinics, service lines, and even community events.
Here’s a look at our total metrics by creative campaign:
All campaigns target health center patient service areas by zip code, users highly likely to qualify for Medicaid, and household incomes less than $100K. Pediatric campaigns are additionally restricted to households with children.
| Ad Content | Preferred Language | Views/Impressions | Clicks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pediatric Medical | English | 1,153,037 | 959 |
| Pediatric Medical | Spanish | 1,215,335 | 1,276 |
| Adult Mental Health | English | 662,092 | 163 |
| Adult Mental Health | Spanish | 735,842 | 196 |
| Pediatric Mental Health | English | 657,565 | 132 |
| Pediatric Mental Health | Spanish | 723,130 | 152 |
| Total | 5,147,001 | 2,878 |
Our average click-through rate of .06% falls below the national average but is on-par with similar internet campaigns. There are many other factors that impact click-through rates like ad frequency and retargeting but that just goes to say advertising is not an exact science. Since beginning our targeted internet advertising through this platform in March, online appointment requests have increased by 25.5% over the prior year with new patients up by 23.6%.
We are on track to maintain advertising through this platform for the remainder of the year with new creative, updated messaging, and advanced targeting methods. We’re also excited to begin streaming television commercials through this platform beginning this week.
