Monigle in the news: Self-care – the emergence of new health behaviors

This article is built on findings from Humanizing Brand Experience Vol 5 —a joint report of Monigle and the Society for Health Care Strategy and Market Development (SHSMD) of the American Hospital Association (AHA).

After more than two years living through a pandemic, self-care has taken on a whole new meaning. As people scrambled to cope with changing guidelines, advice, and socio-cultural dynamics, many turned to self-care as a way to take control of their own or their family’s health and wellness on their own terms.

Read the full article, Self-care: the emergence of new health behaviors and the role of content in this quickly changing ecosystem, featured in the most recent Society for Health Care Strategy and Market Development (SHSMD) Spectrum Newsletter.

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Article highlights and summary:

As self-care takes on a new significance in the way people manage health, care, and wellness, brands will need to define their own role in this ecosystem more clearly. This could mean leaning more heavily into content and programming that supports and keeps consumers safe as they “doctor” themselves. This could be about partnership with the brand playing a role as the path to potential resources. This could also mean brands as curators of solutions with some sort of seal of approval for things that represent a certain level of quality or safety.

Self-care represents a new challenge for healthcare leaders to navigate. Some level of self-care has always been present in the broader healthcare industry, but the results of COVID, shifting cultural norms about health and being healthy, and the economic and access challenges found across the industry have put a spotlight on the role of this behavior for healthcare leaders. To be successful, brands need to define how they want to exist for people in this context.

Three tactics will be key to success:

1. Know your role: What role do you want to play when it comes to self-care? The content leader, the partner facilitator, the content curator? Healthcare brands need role clarity in order to define strategies and tactics that help consumers take action related to self-care in a seamless way. With Cleveland Clinic’s depth and history, the organization can flex its role across the different platforms where the brand delivers content. As you rethink the role of content, clarity of your role will be key.

2. Understand the ecosystem: Do you know how and where your target audiences and your communities are most likely to pursue a self-care path? Mapping consumer experiences, specifically with your audiences and/or your communities, can unlock insight into where you should take action to meet individuals where they are. According to Mr. Matsen, the best place to start is in your community. He explains, “start with what’s most relevant in your own market and address a specific topic that will best serve your own community.” You don’t have to do everything all at once. That will make your own content revolution too overwhelming. Pick a topic that’s front of mind within your communities and start there.

3. Content is an investment in the future: It is important for healthcare leaders to help their peers to understand the role of content in this self-care space as a long-term investment in the organization’s success. According to Mr. Matsen, “the beauty of doing content vs. short-term paid media is that it’s evergreen…if you optimize it and tag it, it becomes an annuity.” This is a challenging conversation in an already challenging economic environment, and it represents an opportunity for organizational alignment to ensure that we balance short-term business and long-term brand goals.

To learn more about self-care and what this means for your healthcare brand, read the full article and reach out to us to start a conversation.