Health care advertising has a few characteristics that set it apart from
promoting brands in other industries. Not only are there specific
legal guidelines that must be followed, but other best practices
should be part of any health care advertising plan. The
health care consumer can be particularly vulnerable, since illness, affected reasoning, or emotions could have an impact on decision making. Likely, the facility being
represented has ethics mechanisms in place to help adhere to
guidelines, but it is good to have a solid understanding, based on
education and research, before a project begins.
1.
High standard of ethics
Since
health is what those in the health care industry are selling, common
sense dictates that any marketing plan should be approached with only
the highest code of ethics. Local, state, and federal laws offer a
structure for protecting the health care consumer, but a good agency
should help take things to a higher level of respect. The approach
should be tailored to the particular context of the facility.
2. No
conflicts of interest
There
can be no conflicts of interest in health care advertising. Many
health care groups already have codes of conduct to help self
regulate. An agency representing those groups must help keep the
message black and white, with no gray areas. Medical institutions
need to profit in order to keep their doors open, but anything that
sways medical professionals in the way they perform their job is
unacceptable.
3.
Quality control
No
advertising should contain incorrect information. Anything less than
grammatically perfect is a failure. However, with the myriad of
advertising approaches, there is always the risk for something that
fails to hit the mark. For health care advertising, a poorly worded
social media post could cause confusion or injury. It is imperative
that everything be correct as it is rolled out during the campaign.
From printed materials, to websites, to social media, special quality
control measures should be used.
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