Observations of US Pandemic Audiences Through Early May

This article was built from research and posts over the last several weeks and compiled for a leave-behind for an American Marketing Association Roundtable on Market Research in Healthcare.

We’ve conducted several weeks of healthcare research within multiple states across the country, so we thought we’d share some thoughts around what we’re seeing and what you really need to be watching for in the nuance of all of this. And there certainly is nuance. Our research (qualitative online behavior – “digital ethnography”) is picking up the following interesting trends as a small sample of what we’re seeing:

An Issue of Trust

In a reversal of supply-and-demand, the public is watching and waiting far more than they are clamoring. This is a very cautious public who tends to distinctly push back against loud voices demanding change. This waiting is driven by several perceived barriers, from safety (perception of your level of safety and their own) to economic; but a less obvious barrier stands out: motive. They are watching motives and judging whether a brand, an employer, a local government, etc. has their best interest at heart. This perspective means platitudes and assumptions won’t work on those who are fundamentally changing before our eyes. Your audiences simply may not believe you. Transparency, empathy, and humanity go a long way in establishing that you are navigating this as they are - but bold, cold, monolithic approaches will be largely rejected. Confidence is not the asset it was. They are as interested in whether to trust you as they are interested in whether you trust THEM.

A “Pause” of Consumerism in Hospital Healthcare

One interesting aspect of revering healthcare workers is seeing that also carry over to the healthcare brands who are being seen less as profit centers and more as important community leaders.  In some areas we’re not seeing the comparisons or cynicism of just months ago. How long this muting or pausing of consumerism lasts will be interesting to watch, but it’s a VERY different messaging space to not be competing so hard on amenities when people see you all in the same halo glow. Some facilities, who might normally be standout brands or distant 3rd places in their region, are getting rolled up into discussion of all healthcare in a far more general way. 

Nurse and Physician Chatter

A massive duality has been showing in multiple research projects: nurses and physicians showing gratitude on brand channels but on career-specific forums openly discussing burnout with many nurses threatening to leave the industry altogether. Signals of radical retention issues in the near term during ramp-ups (not to mention any second wave of the pandemic). 

Telehealth / Virtual Visits

This crisis-based mass introduction have resulted in questions about why some visits had to ever be in-person. We expect it to start showing in reviews as people lament lack of options for some (but not all) visits across service lines. In one rural southern state we saw it discussed as a sudden expectation as an option for low income residents to cut down the need to drive to urban centers. Confusion with billing abounds, particularly with insurance plans using visit limits that run up against outcome discussions. 

The Voracious Data Consumer

As we mentioned, “trust” is now an active verb that now includes up-to-date stats, constant communication, and transparency. Even in some of the most casual of message boards, the sharing of testing and death counts drives discussion. The good news is we have seen them often cite hospital systems as sources and appreciate frequent communication; the bad news is that is now a near-constant expectation and testing that trust with new or revised claims about safety for “reopening” in any way creates a very different conversation.

Canaries in the Coal Mine: Oral and Eye Health 

Dentists, ophthalmologists, and optometrists are all scrambling to react and adapt to the current crisis - and to new demands. Inconsistent safety and staffing messaging abounds while they battle with demands of safety proof, telehealth consultations, and confusion surrounding whether they are, “essential.” However, they also represent providers who were not on the front lines and aren’t located on campuses consumers see as ground-zero for the virus. This scramble is emblematic of the next couple months for all independent provider offices as a new normal tries to settle in. But if some are successful in adapting, they may also set a new level of expectations for their audiences as they interact with your service lines. A very different empowered, expectant patient may be coming into view.

Conclusion

We realize there are some incredibly stark (and in some cases shocking) regional/state differences in the discussion we’re seeing – it is the very definition of “your mileage may vary” and the need to look closely at your own markets. But it also showcases that the national data may not apply in the same way or have very distinct nuances locally. Often in conjunction with our research we have been partnering with traditional research efforts such as Klein and Partners (surveys, hospital preference studies) and others whose surveys and interviews help paint the rest of the picture when respondents are prompted. 

Listening to what your audiences specifically are saying and doing week to week is key. These shifts in perception and nuances in behavior are knowable right now – in your region, in your state, and in the country at large.

We’re in for a heck of a ride with this behavior. Watching the waves will become increasingly important so you can ride them and not get dragged under as you try to come back to shore.

--Dean Browell, PhD