From sharing health tips and insights to encouraging healthy behavior, insurers play a role in keeping their members educated on health-related topics. Why? Studies have shown that consumers who are informed about their health are more likely to have better health outcomes. As such, it’s advantageous for health insurers to team up with physicians and health systems to provide their members and prospects with valuable advice about health conditions, symptoms, procedures and more.
There are many avenues available to marketers to distribute this information – direct mail, social media marketing, outdoor, etc. – but it makes particular sense for insurers to turn to video for health education purposes. In fact, research from Oxford Academic suggests that patients who want to strengthen their health literacy are interested in doing so through video content. Additionally, when health education videos are utilized, patients are often more engaged and activated in their care.
Not only is video a preferred medium for education among consumers, it also answers the question “how do our members find these tools?” – the other half of the equation. Properties like YouTube and company websites are a logical place to house or repurpose educational content, making the search process simpler for those interested in this information.
Here are a few ways in which health insurers around the country are relying on video content marketing to help members improve their overall health:
Connect members with tips from providers
Blue Cross Blue Shield of Louisiana is among the BCBS-affiliated plans to use “Second Opinion” videos sponsored by the BCBS Association (BCBSA) in its Twitter stream. This series of videos, which feature a pre-roll sponsorship message from BCBSA captures tips from doctors on everything from what you should know about the common cold to how to know when to take your child to the emergency room. Here’s one instance in which BCBS Louisiana promoted the video on recognizing head injury:
Encourage health screenings
Preventative screening can be life-saving, but also tricky for patients to keep track of. Video is an easy way to communicate screening best practices and emphasize at which age patients should be screened for different conditions. In this video from Meridian Health New Jersey, Dr. Mark Krasna discusses the benefits of early detection through screening.
Share health advice with seniors
As many seniors age, their mobility decreases. By using video, insurers are able to communicate with elderly members about important health information without members having to leave their homes. Dr. Lena Bretous, medical director for BCBS of South Carolina, shares tips on healthy aging in this video.
Help members recognize the signs and symptoms of illness
“My left arm went numb, and soon after that my right arm went numb,” begins Chris Toizzo, a Kaiser Permanente member and employee, in a video being used to help women recognize heart attack symptoms. The video combines Chris’ story with expert commentary from a cardiologist.
Create an informative video library on the insurer website
The wellness section of the Blue Cross Blue Shield of Louisiana website features a video library that includes videos about anatomy, health conditions and medical procedures. This image links to a particular video in the series that helps women know what to expect during different kinds of breast biopsies.
Whether it’s at a medical center or through a telemedicine program, doctors always are the best place to turn for medical advice, but health-education videos certainly provide members or prospects information that they may not otherwise have access to. Video content isn’t created to take the place of doctors’ visits, but as a way to keep members educated about when they should be seeing a doctor and what to expect when they make an appointment.