Cadu Medina may well be the new, friendlier face of marketing. After four years in the San Francisco office of Young & Rubicam – a global advertising agency – Medina and his family relocated to Prescott, where his wife had spent her childhood. Here, the 40-something Medina launched craf2m (cadumedina.com), a marketing strategy and coaching firm.
“Becoming a marketing coach changed everything for me – in business and in every other way,” Medina said. “To reframe an expression, ‘It’s not just business. It’s personal.’”
This was the kind of experience and passion Yavapai Regional Medical Center (YRMC) wanted to assist with the development of its new blog, YRMC HealthConnect (yrmchealthconnect.org). The blog – recently redesigned by a multi-disciplinary team, including craf2m – has a new look and more mobile friendly features. It’s also connecting people throughout the community to YRMC in more significant ways.
What does a blog like YRMC HealthConnect offer that other forms of community outreach channels do not? According to Medina, it’s the opportunity to engage with readers through stories. “Content marketing,” as it’s called, is effective because it allows organizations to develop more personal, deeper and meaningful relationships with their customers.
“The marketing industry walked away from this for a while,” Medina said. “Marketers were talking at their customers rather than talking with them. Content marketing has changed this. We listen to our customers, refine our message to give customers what they want, and ultimately provide them a better product or service. What impressed me about YRMC is that their team gets this. That’s why I was so excited to be part of this project.”
The YRMC content marketing strategy gives readers the opportunity to subscribe to YRMC HealthConnect and receive new content directly on their smart phones or tablets. In fact, 60 percent of blog content is viewed on mobile devices.
From YRMC HealthConnect, readers also can connect to YRMC’s vast social media network, including:
- com/YavapaiRegionalMedicalCenter
- com/YRMCYourHealthyKitchen
- com/PonderosaPediatrics
- com/MyHealthMascot (Wellby Yavabear)
- YRMC’s YouTube Channel (youtube.com/channel/UCZGC2lYqCa4FaM8EWhuK9_g)
- com/yrmcquadcities
“We knew the content marketing approach would be very compatible with YRMC’s relationship with our community,” said Ken Boush, YRMC’s director of marketing and communications. “Because of that, YRMC HealthConnect has quickly become a destination for many people in our community. We deliver up-to-date, rich content on the blog. There are interesting patient profiles and features on new, innovative YRMC services. Lots of readers explore YRMC’s popular nutrition program, Your Healthy Kitchen, on HealthConnect. Our readers also learn about new doctors in the community and check out our calendar of health care presentations from top medical experts. And let’s face it, it’s just lots of fun.”
The community agrees. In May, page views on YRMC HealthConnect shot up 129 percent from April. And what stories were people reading on YRMC HealthConnect? The most popular were:
- Valvular Heart Disease: A Quiet and Dangerous Disorder
- Heart Pillow Encourages Heart-to-Heart Conversations
- What’s Cooking? Good Food and Good Health in Your Healthy Kitchen!
- NAZ Suns Go Pink for The BreastCare Center at YRMC
- Randy Meyers Embraces a Heart-Healthy Journey
Check out YRMC HealthConnect (yrmchealthconnect.org) and subscribe so you can join the conversation and stay connected to YRMC. QCBN
By Bridget O’Gara
Leave a Reply