From mergers and acquisitions to new CMS mandates, our team is always striving to keep on top of the latest and greatest of what’s happening in healthcare. At the same time, we constantly hear from our clients and partners that they are overwhelmed by the sheer volume of news stemming from B2B media, research firms and other sources across the industry. Since we’re already doing this heavy lifting, we’ve decided to compile some of the most important insights we’ve sourced every month,...

Following is part of a series on B2B healthcare where we break down some complicated concepts for marketers who are new to this industry, or those simply looking to expand their knowledge in order to advance their career. This post focuses on understanding Medicare Star Ratings and their impact and importance for key B2B healthcare stakeholders. According to Healthcare Finance News, 21 Medicare Advantage plans earned 5 stars this year with the release of CMS’s new annual Star Ratings. The...

Healthcare thought leadership is a term that gets thrown around a lot in the marketing world. But what it really means, and the kinds of results it can realistically generate, can vary based on who you talk to. In our world, healthcare thought leadership is foundational to helping our B2B clients target their buyers and influencers, especially C-suite leaders. These executives may be medical directors, technology VPs and even CEOs at health plans, health systems and health technology firms....

DesignRush, a B2B marketplace helping brands find the right graphic design company, just announced its list of top agencies nationwide. Once again, Activate Health has been placed on the list, as the #3 healthcare branding agency and design firm. The company also shared examples of the best design projects in 2020 and explained some of the key trends impacting advertising, branding and design this year, which are certainly influencing our work as healthcare marketers. According to the...

The COVID-19 pandemic and the economic downturn that accompanied it has drained the profitability out of businesses across a wide range of sectors. So it only makes sense that healthcare marketing agencies serving these companies would also feel this pain. Yet whenever we’re asked about the impact of on our business, many people are surprised by the response that we’re busier than ever. In fact, advertising agencies are being tasked with so many mission-critical communications in the face...

Given how rapidly our understanding of COVID-19 is changing, we’ve made an update to our original conversation about the impact of this virus, its transmission and treatment protocols. Stay tuned and check back often for the latest! As a healthcare marketing firm working with companies promoting pharmaceutical therapies, our staff often reviews clinical studies to better understand the meaning of this research in terms of patient health outcomes and risks. At no time has this been more...

While our first concerns as a nation should, of course, be on the health and safety of all citizens, those of us who work in the business of healthcare marketing and communications can’t help but wonder about secondary factors as we witness the rapid spread of COVID-19 across the US. We’re hearing a lot of water cooler talk about all types of issues on the work front, including questions like “How will this affect my workload, my current job and even my future career?” Or, “Will my employer...

Walking into a brand new decade, there’s plenty of opportunity for savvy health care PR teams to lead the crisis communications charge when it comes to mitigating potential disasters. While most large (think Fortune 500) health care companies do have crisis communications plans in place, you can never truly prepare for every possible issue. And 2019 was certainly a year of “issues” for some health care companies. That’s why it’s critical to have the right health care PR agency or partner...

Healthcare PR agencies and other PR pros should already be familiar with the Cision brand—from media monitoring to vetting outlets for active pitching and outreach, Cision makes our lives easier and our work more targeted on a daily basis. This media giant also collects and analyzes some of the most important insights from its own customers each year, developing a benchmark report of the latest PR & Communications trends. Because we know you have limited time to review the latest eBook,...

Website trends and best practices are constantly evolving. And many healthcare brands are stepping up in all of the right ways, including improved usability standards, self-service features and user-centric redesigns. But it’s easy to oversimplify the work-intensive effort that goes into building a successful website. Spanning many industries—not just healthcare—there’s a tried-and-true method to develop an effective, compelling site for your company. Read on for a high level overview of...