Road to Recovery: Latest Survey Shows Slow Return to Pre-Pandemic Marketing Efforts 

The Digital Healthcare Marketing Trends Survey, now in its 12^th Edition, is an industry litmus test that reveals the challenges and opportunities for growth and transformation in provider organizations of all sizes.

// By Ben Dillon //

There’s no arguing that the COVID-19 pandemic impacted every industry, but it hit the healthcare sector in a uniquely devastating way. As most of the economy began to rebound in 2022, healthcare fell into a post-pandemic financial crisis brought on by a combination of COVID-19 subsidies ending and catastrophic staffing shortages during the “Great Resignation.”

As we collected data for our 2024 Digital Healthcare Marketing Trends Survey this spring, one of the trends we aimed to capture was healthcare’s financial recovery that we hoped was underway. Thankfully, the data didn’t disappoint — we see signs of recovery in our survey results, in other reports we follow, and in our interactions with health systems across the country.

Unfortunately, not every health system is recovering in the same way. Some organizations are doing great, while others still struggle to find their way to stability. Some won’t ever find that stability and will become another casualty of the pandemic.

Many organizations we surveyed are investing full speed ahead in digital marketing. Most often, these are digital leaders who are already ahead of the game. Other organizations expect further cuts and struggle to build and maintain core capabilities. The gap between the haves and the have-nots continues to grow.

Here, we share some of the major themes from our research — positive trends as well as ongoing challenges — and what’s on the road ahead.

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