Google Developing Strategies to Keep Employees Happier, Healthier

Posted by: Kirsten Taylor // April 25th, 2012

There has been a lot of discussion as of late about the future of healthcare, but some companies are working to change the way their employees will require it altogether. Google has developed a set of strategies to help their employees stay healthier, as they believe this makes them happier and work harder.

To accomplish this, Google formed a special HR department called “People Analytics” to analyze consumption behavior and point employees in the right direction. Additionally, they restructured the literal setup of their cafeteria to make the salad bar the first thing people see, mark healthy foods with green tags and high-calorie foods with red, place water bottles at eye-level, and more.

Google also had a graphic designed to help market these changes, hoping to inspire other companies to do the same, which will maybe change the healthcare discussion.

@KirstenETaylor

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Minneapolis Marketing Firm, Russell Herder, Achieves Certified Partner Status with Google AdWords

Posted by: Neil James // April 24th, 2012

Minneapolis Marketing Firm, Russell Herder, Achieves Adwords Certified Status

MINNEAPOLIS - Russell Herder, a Minneapolis marketing firm, is proud to announce that it has earned recognition as a Google Adwords Certified Partner.  Achieving agency-level certification, Russell Herder joins the ranks of only a handful of companies within the Minneapolis market.

To achieve the status of Google AdWords Certified Partner, Russell Herder digital experts successfully passed a rigorous set of search engine marketing exams which covered such topics as keyword research, the AdWords interface, and making the most of other various online marketing and analytical tools that Google provides.

“We are proud to add the accolade of Google Partner Certified to the agency’s credentials and accomplishments,” said Carol Russell, CEO Russell Herder. “Our clients have enjoyed measurable ROI through the delivery of Google AdWords management service for some time and now this certification will allow us to further enhance the successful strategies we’ve developed to achieve the best possible results for our clients.”

Russell Herder’s digital division provides a variety of digital marketing solutions, including pay per click advertising, social media marketing, web analytics, email marketing, search engine optimization and much more. The professional digital marketing experts at Russell Herder provide custom-tailored solutions that focus on helping clients make improvements to grow the profitability of their online marketing efforts.

About Russell Herder

Founded in 1984, Russell Herder provides integrated strategic solutions to regional and national clients. With offices in Minneapolis and Brainerd, Russell Herder develops strategies that link creative, research, advertising, public relations and digital communications into powerful, results-driven platforms. For more information, visit russellherder.com.

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How to Accept That Your Patients are Googling Symptoms and Deliver Better Care

Posted by: Neil James // April 9th, 2012

In a new article for Time Magazine, Dr. Zachary F. Meisel introduces readers to the concept of the “Google Stack” – the collection of printouts from various websites outlining virtually every condition that explains a patient’s symptoms. While the behavior of cyberchondriacs can certainly inhibit the delivery of quality care at times, according to Dr. Meisel, more and more often, patients are benefitting from going online prior to medical visits, and their self-diagnoses are becoming increasingly more accurate.

Whether or not this behavior should be encouraged, Dr. Meisel says, is the wrong question – it is happening to the point where it is now a fact of normal patient behavior. As such, care providers need to adopt strategies that maximize the benefits of finding health information online, including:

  • Adopt care strategies that endorse the process of patient self-education
  • Direct patients to websites whose content is peer-reviewed and evidence based
  • Recognize that, in more cases than not, patients are doing the best thing for themselves by going online before their clinic vicit

@NeilAndrewJames

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Google Plus (Google+) For Healthcare and Hospital Marketers

Posted by: Neil James // February 15th, 2012

Just when you thought you got this Facebook and Twitter thing figured out, here comes Google+ (or Google Plus) – Google’s latest foray into social networking. According to Hubspot, nearly 40 million users have hopped on the Google+ Train, generating nearly seven million weekly visits!

In a new article for Wax Impressions, Mike Sherman discusses what healthcare and marketers about how Google+ might impact their hospital’s social media strategy. Sherman discusses how, unlike Facebook and Twitter, Google+ has a far greater potential impact on search results. Further, Sherman states, the “+1” and “Circling” capabilities of Google+ make it easier than ever for patients to share their clinical experiences with their social networks.

@NeilAndrewJames

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Nearly Half of U.S. Physicians Just Google It Like the Rest of Us

Posted by: Neil James // November 16th, 2011

Okay healthcare marketers. Take a look around a make sure there are no doctors in sight.

Are they gone? Okay, lean in. We have something to tell you.

Sometimes, doctors don’t know everything.

We know! Despite what you may have been led to believe, like the rest of us, doctors have occasional gaps in their knowledge.

So where do they turn to fill these gaps? According to a new survey by Wolters Kluwer Health, as discussed by Katherine Hobson in a new article for the Wall Street Journal, professional journals (68% ) and colleagues (60%) are unsurprisingly cited as the most frequently tapped sources for information used to diagnose, treat and care for patients.

But interestingly, according to Hobson, 46 percent cited general web browsers, such as Google, Yahoo! and Bing and frequently used sources for clinical information. Further, Hobson states, more than four in 10 physicians regularly used free online services such as WebMD.

Why the reliance on search engines? Hobson says that search engines are plenty capable of delivering good information. The difficulty lies in separating wheat from chaff. This is a task, Hobson argues however, that lends itself well to most medical backgrounds.

@NeilAndrewJames

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Long Tail Search Marketing For Healthcare Marketers

Posted by: Neil James // April 11th, 2011

Long Tail Search marketing For Healthcare Marketers

Let’s say your Chicago-based hospital has one of the nation’s top orthopedics programs. You want to rank #1 on Google for the keyword, “orthopedics doctor” right? Who doesn’t? But what if you could fill your beds for two years by ranking number one for “orthopedic surgeons Chicago” and “orthopedic doctors Chicago”? After all, now you don’t have to compete against the search marketing efforts of orthopedics clinics in Detroit, New York, Miami and the rest of the United States.

Welcome to the basic concept of long-tail search marketing for healthcare marketers, a concept expanded upon by Anna Webster in a new article for HealthLeaders Media, Googled: How One Hospital Boosted Its Search Results. According to Webster, putting an emphasis on “long-tail” searches – queries with three, four or even more keywords, particularly with a regional emphasis – can keep clinics from battling major entities such as WebMD in their search marketing initiatives.

@NeilAndrewJames

Image Credit – Search Engine Guide

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Dr. Google Referring More Physicians Than Ever

Posted by: Neil James // March 24th, 2011

Dr Google Referring More Physicians Than Ever

Google likes to think of themselves as the world’s largest librarian, cataloguer of all information online. This makes sense given their academic roots. But did you know that Google is already one of the most prolific sources of physician referrals in history? According to a new study by Comscore, as chronicled in Physicians Most Likely to Reach Health-Related Content Through Natural Search and Direct Navigation, the majority of physician visits to websites containing health information were driven by natural search in addition to direct access. More than half of physicians who arrived at physician locator and general health information sites arrived via organic (non-paid) search.

@NeilAndrewJames

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Attack of the “Cyberchondriacs”

Posted by: Meghan Blackford // March 17th, 2011

Attack of the Cyberchondriacs

Don’t we all Google our symptoms when we’re sick? Maybe you’re on the fence, trying to decide if that disconcerting sensation in the back of your throat is strep or perhaps the beginning of laryngitis. Maybe you’re a bit under the weather, and you’re looking for some OTC remedies to get you through the winter. Whatever the case, at one time or another, most have turned to their computer in search of helpful health information. But waters can quickly turn murky when sources conflict or people take what they read as gospel.

According to author Kevin Pho in his most recent post, Patients Google Their Symptoms, Doctors Need to Deal With It, health information online is akin to the “Wild Wild West.”  Pho describes patients who have come into to doctors’ offices with pages and pages of research showing plausible ailments. He advises that “cyberchondriacs,” be guided to reputable websites with accurate information, to avoid confusion and unnecessary anxiety.

@MJBlackford

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Does Your Clinic Have the Health Information Patients Are Seeking Via Google?

Posted by: Neil James // February 10th, 2011

Does Your Clinic Have the Health Information Patients Are Seeking Via Google

The wealth of knowledge possessed by everyone who wears your clinic’s badge could fill a small library. Beyond the immense well of medical knowledge, your staff understands health insurance, billing, aftercare and all of the other elements that comprise the patient experience. Your website can’t possibly accommodate all of that information, but it should be able to answer your patients’ most common questions. So what are your patients asking for online? A new report from Pew Internet & Research identified the ten most commonly searched for treatments on WedMD in 2010: pain-relievers, anti-depressants, high blood pressure medication, corticosteroids, hysterectomy, diabetes medication, ADHD medication, antibiotics, colonoscopy and cholesterol-lowering medication. Making sure your website meets its visitors needs is becoming increasingly important as Pew reports that over half of all Internet users go online to find specific information about medical treatments and procedures.

@NeilAndrewJames

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