Using the Power of a Health Risk Assessment To Build the Brand and Drive Business

by Mark S. Gothberg

In 2009, just 6 percent of consumers were aware of the name Texas Health Resources, even though the organization treated one in four patients in the Dallas-Fort Worth metropolitan area and the corporate entity had existed for 15 years. Consumers were much more aware of its three main entities – Presbyterian, Arlington Memorial, and Harris Methodist. Literally, the organization had to start from scratch when it decided to rebrand all its hospitals and facilities with the Texas Health Resources name.

“We started with mass media to drive awareness,” says Deena McAllister, director of brand man­agement. “You couldn’t [find] a billboard, bus ad, radio ad, or tele­vision commercial without spotting our advertising. We drove aware­ness of Texas Health Resources to 74 percent by the end of 2010. But then we needed to build a reputation for what we are all about.”

The heart and vascular service line was selected to lead the product-specific brand-building effort. Seeking to position the organization as a leader in this service area, Texas Health wanted its marketing efforts to include a call to action that could be tracked and measured and mes­saging that would resonate with all its facilities in both metro and rural markets. Ultimately, the program needed to drive referrals to doctors and volume to its hospitals. A heart health assessment was selected as the vehicle that could provide strong interaction with consumers and, hopefully, help achieve the organiza­tion’s business objectives.

Why an online heart health assess­ment? “The answer lies in three simple words,” says Joel Cessna, vice president of sales at Minneapolis-based Medicom Health Interactive. “Engage, capture, and motivate. An assessment engages by generating interest and involvement, provides the organization with an opportunity to capture information for future follow-up, and can motivate the participant to take action.” Cessna joined McAllister in a presentation on Texas Health’s use of a heart health assessment at the Sixteenth Annual Healthcare Internet Confer­ence held in Las Vegas. McAllister supplied updated information re­cently.

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