Act Now: 11 Compelling Reasons Content Marketing is Vital for Health Brands

Content creation has become a vital aspect of health marketing in today’s digital landscape. As an increasing number of consumers rely on online platforms for health information and advice, it’s essential for brands in this industry to consistently produce high-quality content to attract, engage, and retain their audience.

Health-conscious consumers are continuously searching for trustworthy and reliable sources of information across various platforms, including search engines, social media, and specialised websites. And this trend shows no signs of slowing down.

Moreover, content creation is instrumental in driving organic traffic and boosting visibility in search engine results. Health brands can effectively enhance their online presence and reach their target audience, by investing in content marketing strategies that align with the latest trends and algorithm updates.

Content creation is indispensable for health marketing. It empowers brands to build trust, improve their online presence, and cater to the ever-growing demand for reliable health information among consumers.

In the following sections, we will delve into 11 compelling reasons (including 3 reasons specific to the health & wellness industry) why content marketing is more crucial than ever for health brands in today’s competitive market.

Table of Contents

• 1 – Building Your Audience
• 2 – Cost-Effective Marketing
• 3 – Leveraging AI for Content Scaling
• 4 – Social Media Growth through Content
• 5 – Standing Out Among Content Creators
• 6 – Establishing Trust as a Health Authority
• 7 – Content Marketing vs. Branding
• 8 – Adapting to Google’s Algorithm Shifts
• 9 – Capitalising on Niche Expertise
• 10 – Cultivating In-House Content Skills
• 11 – Engaging Health-Conscious Consumers

1 – Building Your Audience

For all industries

In such a competitive landscape, relying on third-party companies or traditional media to drive traffic to websites or stores is no longer sufficient. 

With individuals, companies, and governments all fighting for attention, there’s a constant need to create content to gain a share of that attention.

The rise of online advertising costs makes having your own audience even more important. Relying solely on Google Ads, Facebook Ads, or any other providers isn’t enough. 

You can better manage your marketing expenses, by growing your own audience through email subscribers and social media followers.

Content creation is essential for building a meaningful and devoted audience. By producing quality content,  you attract new followers and keep existing ones engaged, reduce dependency on costly advertising platforms, and ensure the long-term success of your brand.

Here is a great read on the importance of building an audience.

2 – Cost-Effective Marketing

For all industries

At first glance, content creation might seem expensive, but, content marketing is one of the most cost-effective marketing tactics available.

Paying for ads, like Google Ads, can bring quick and predictable results for your online e-commerce store, but it’s also limited due to its predictability. 

On the other hand, investing the same amount in creating helpful content and promoting it may be less predictable. Still, it can lead to organic reach, sometimes sustainable organic reach, and even substantial organic exposure if your content goes viral. 

Content creation opens up the possibility of achieving a high level of exposure that traditional advertising can’t match.

Creating helpful content, investing in exceptional creative work, and promoting it on social media platforms are more cost-effective tactics and more impactful than advertising your products on the same platforms. 

You can reach your target audience more efficiently while providing value that fosters long-term relationships, by focusing on content marketing.

Read this article published by Hubspot 7 years ago, reporting on the cost of inbound vs outbound marketing.

3 – Leveraging AI for Content Scaling

For all industries

The more data you have, the better you can leverage AI in content creation. 

Creating and publishing content is the best way to accumulate data on your audience’s habits and behaviours, your industry, or your products. 

Building a valuable content strategy may require you to conduct studies, run extensive research, collect data on your customers, build an audience of active users providing feedback, record long-form videos, and store images and videos. 

In essence, you’ll need to acquire a certain level of knowledge (knowledge is a form of data).

The more knowledge you have as an individual or brand, the more you’ll benefit from AI, as it simplifies all your content creation processes.

This creates a virtuous cycle: the more you create content, the more you increase your knowledge or collect data, and the more you can create even more content. 

With AI’s help, you can now do this at scale, giving your brand a competitive advantage in the market.

4 – Social Media Growth through Content

For all industries

We touched upon this briefly in the “Cost-Effective Marketing” section, but it’s worth reiterating the importance of content creation in achieving social media success.

Without creating content, your brand will never have the opportunity to go viral. Thus, producing and promoting content on social media platforms is essential if you want even a chance to go viral.

Even without reaching virality, the cost of promoting content on social media is typically lower than advertising. 

The higher the quality of your content, the less you’ll need to spend on promotion. This is because engaging and valuable content is more likely to be shared by users, increasing its reach organically.

By focusing on content creation, you can drive growth and engagement on social media platforms more effectively and cost-efficiently than relying solely on traditional advertising.

5 – Standing Out Among Content Creators

For all industries

As previously mentioned in the “Establishing and Growing a Target Audience” section, it is essential to recognise the growing number of content creators publishing high-quality content on social media daily. 

This influx of creators is causing the content creation market to undergo a process of atomisation, with each content creator attracting smaller and more niche audiences.

As the market continues to fragment, competition for consumer attention will intensify, with everyone vying for a share of the spotlight. 

Health marketers must embrace content creation and become part of this ongoing battle for attention to stay relevant and ensure their brands remain visible in this increasingly crowded landscape.

By creating and promoting high-quality content, brands can position themselves as thought leaders in their industry, build trust with their audience, and ultimately, stand out from the competition.

6 – Establishing Trust as a Health Authority

Specific to healthcare marketing

In the health and wellness industry, consumers must trust the brands they engage with. 

External factors can easily challenge this trust, making it essential for healthcare marketers to focus on building trust through content creation.

The most effective way to establish trust around a specific topic is by becoming the go-to source of truth for that subject. Consumers will consider an individual or a brand that demonstrates superior knowledge on a topic as a trusted authority.

To achieve this status, you must create and publish a wealth of content that showcases your expertise and knowledge in your niche. 

Your brand will be seen as a reliable source of information by consistently delivering high-quality, informative content, ultimately leading to increased trust and credibility among consumers in the health and wellness space.

7 – Content Marketing vs. Branding

For all industries

Seth Godin emphasises that brands are not merely logos or slogans; they are the culmination of all the people’s interactions and experiences with a company or product.

Great brands are built on authenticity, consistency, and empathy for the customer. In light of this, content marketing emerges as the most effective way to build a brand that aligns with Godin’s description (Get Godin’s book “This Is Marketing” here).

When discussing building a brand on social media, Gary Vaynerchuk stated: “Brand is what a human being feels about you.” He elaborated on the importance of volume, social media creatives, and cultural relevance. 

His point was that to build a brand or implement branding marketing, you need to produce and promote content everywhere. Differentiation in marketing strategies will occur organically if you stay true to yourself.

Watch the video here:

Before considering branding marketing as a separate strategy, businesses should focus on creating and distributing content at scale. There are no branding possibilities without content to support such a marketing approach. 

8 – Adapting to Google’s Algorithm Shifts

For all industries

For years, Google advised website owners and SEO professionals to focus on creating great content for better search results without defining what constitutes great content. 

In response, many SEOs and marketers have attempted to manipulate Google’s algorithms to gain higher rankings and substantial organic traffic.

This approach led to frustration for content creators who didn’t always see the benefits of their efforts in producing high-quality content. 

However, in the past 12 months, Google has released several Helpful Content Updates and significantly improved its algorithm to identify and penalise those trying to cheat the system.

This presents an excellent opportunity for brands to invest in SEO content creation, as they possess the resources to produce high-quality content and can now gain rankings previously dominated by black or grey-hat SEOs.

Furthermore, it’s an ideal time for brands to develop content strategies centred around what consumers genuinely want from the internet: helpful, informative content.

9 – Capitalising on Niche Expertise

Specific to healthcare marketing

Specialist Websites Outranking Institutional Websites: The growing prominence of niche websites and the need for specialised content

Since the last major Google update on March 15, 2023, we’ve seen a fascinating shift in search rankings, especially in the health sector. Highly specialised websites now overtake institutional websites that once enjoyed top positions.. It appears that Google values the quality of content over the authority attributed to an official site.

This change opens up many opportunities for healthcare brands that wish to become the number one source of truth about topics most relevant to them. 

Brands must create specialised content to keep up with the trend and cater to their target audience’s interests. By doing so, they can take advantage of the shift in search rankings and make their mark in their respective fields.

See below a chart showing one of the most important Cancer.gov web pages’ recent drop in organic traffic:

10 – Cultivating In-House Content Skills

For all industries

While in-house marketers can rely on external experts and agencies for content creation, investing in building a skilled content creation team within the organisation can be incredibly valuable As previously mentioned, knowledge is a highly demanded asset, especially with the rise of AI, and content creation knowledge is a key part of that data.

When you create a significant portion of your content in-house, you can expect to spend less per content piece. With any remaining budget, you can allocate it towards promoting the content or scaling your efforts with the help of agencies.

By developing in-house content creation skills and fostering a culture of content creation within your organisation, you can potentially impact your market, industry, or society. This gives your brand a unique edge and a competitive advantage, further solidifying your position as an authority in your field.

See the Google Trend below for the search query “content creator”:

11 – Engaging Health-Conscious Consumers

Specific to healthcare marketing

Health has been a popular topic of discussion online since the early days of the Internet. Twenty years ago, trusting or believing much of the health information found online was difficult. 

People have increasingly relied on Google searches to answer their health-related questions in the last decade.

Nowadays, more and more people are turning to social media platforms like TikTok for health information. 

Moreover, the number of health-conscious individuals is rapidly growing, as evidenced by the increasing search volume trend for keywords like “health supplement.”

YouTube channels and podcasts focused solely on health matters have managed to attract millions of viewers worldwide, demonstrating a strong appetite for health-related content on the internet.

Given this landscape, health brands must create the right type of content to connect with their audience across all social media platforms. 

Educational content influences consumers’ health decisions and shapes their perception of a brand. By providing valuable, trustworthy information, health brands can establish themselves as authorities in their field and foster strong connections with their target audience.

Conclusion:

The importance of content creation in the health industry cannot be overstated. Despite the challenges that healthcare marketers may face in producing and publishing content, it’s crucial to find innovative ways to share valuable information with your target audience. 

Engaging and high-quality content is key to building trust, increasing visibility, and staying competitive in this rapidly evolving landscape.

If you’re looking for guidance on developing a content marketing strategy tailored to your healthcare brand, we’re here to help. 

We’re always happy to discuss content marketing matters and explore how we can assist you in navigating this complex yet rewarding area. 

Reach out to us for a conversation about how we can work together to create and implement an effective content marketing strategy that drives results for your health brand.