As a health care marketer,  you’re constantly trying to prioritize which tactics will be give you the best ROI.

If your marketing team is small or already stretched thin, it’s easy to forget about the bigger picture and make mistakes that can hurt your bottom line.

Here are 6 mistakes you might be making and how to solve them.

1. A lack of c-suite buy-in

One of the biggest challenges health care marketers face is getting c-suite buy-in for content marketing. Particularly in hospitals or large health care systems where content marketing is a new idea, it can be a hard sell.

One of the best ways to get your c-level executives on board is to build a business case for it. 

Show them that one-way marketing, regardless of industry, is no longer effective and creating relevant, timely stories is vital for lead generation, acquisition and retention.

Another way to get c-suite buy-in is to show them examples of how their competitors have used content marketing to generate revenue.

2. No content marketing strategy

 According to a 2016 report by the Content Marketing Institute, only 32 percent of B2B marketers have a documented content marketing strategy even though 85 percent cite lead generation as their most important goal.

Just as you have a marketing plan, your team must develop a content marketing strategy if you want to get c-suite buy in, get your allocated budget for content marketing approved and ultimately follow through on your goal to drive sales.

3. No buyer personas

You may understand who your customers are, but without documented buyer personas, no one on your team will be able to create content that truly speaks to your audience.

Buyer personas should include demographics, identifiers, goals, challenges and pain points, and how your company helps solve their problems.

You should also take the time to conduct interviews with your customers so you can compile quotes and understand what they need from you. 

4. Not giving the media what they need

If you want to get media coverage, make it easy for the media to find you. Make sure your website and press releases include the name of the person or people who handle public relations or marketing and make sure those people include their titles on their LinkedIn and Twitter profiles.

5. Social media is subpar

According to a report by Expio, 41 percent of patients use social media to choose a specific hospital or medical facility.

Yet social media for lead generation is still one of the areas where many health care organizations lag behind.

Be sure to share relevant and timely health care content and make it a point to engage with your followers.

6. You hire any freelance health care writer 

If you don’t have a team of writers, or a colleague who only handles content marketing, content creation can be challenging.

When you search for a freelance health care writer, make sure you hire someone who writes for the health care industry, understands your business and can take all of your great ideas and make them work for you.

Although there are so many ways journalists, editors and producers find story ideas, the press release is still a tried and true method for getting the media’s attention, especially for healthcare companies who have new studies, survey data and stories to pitch.

In fact, 70 percent of reporters use press releases to get supporting facts and 66 percent use them for interesting story angles, a Business Wire Media survey found.

Not only do trade outlets and business journals need these types of stories to keep their readers up-to-date on industry happenings, but simply distributing a press release is good for SEO and brand awareness. Although you certainly don’t want to inundate the media with tons of emails, you should aim to send a press release at least once a month.

But what if you don’t have anything “new” or news-worthy to write a press release about? No problem. Here are 10 questions your team should be asking to uncover new ideas.

1. Has your company hired a new C-level executive, recruited a new employee from a competitor or promoted a key player?

2. Have you seen an increase in your quarterly sales or a surge in stock value?

3. Will you roll out a new product or service?

4. Have you expanded into a new market, merged or acquired another business?

5. Have a forged a strategic partnership?

6. Have you implemented a new way to reduce costs, improve customer retention or increase ROI?

7. Is your company hosting an event or attending a conference or trade show?

8. Do you have a new spokesperson or are you partnering with a celebrity for a new campaign?

9. Has your company earned a ranking or special recognition?

10. Have you teamed up with a non-profit or are you participating in a charity event?

Whether you’re about to launch your healthcare startup or you’ve been in business for a few years, getting media coverage should be part of your business plan. A healthy dose of public relations builds brand awareness, establishes thought leadership and drives traffic to your site.

Yet simply issuing a press release to announce your launch isn’t enough. You need to figure out what your story is, why anybody cares and the best way to tell it.

Here, find out what media outlets really look for when they decide to run a story and how you can get the coverage your healthcare startup needs.

1. Pitch stories, not sources

Ask any journalist and they’ll tell you that they get hundreds of pitches each week from public relations firms and about 99 percent of those emails are either left unopened or deleted.

Why? Because many of these publicists make one crucial mistake: they pitch their clients, not their clients’ stories.

Journalists, editors and producers have a long list of go-to experts that they can usually get on the phone for an interview within minutes.

What they really need however, are stories. But not just any story. They need stories that have a unique perspective, a fresh spin and are relevant to their readers.

So instead of simply issuing your press release and crossing your fingers, think about what your company’s story is or how you can contribute to the conversation in a way that hasn’t been covered before.

2. Establish thought leadership

To establish credibility and build brand awareness, have your marketing team ghostwrite thought leadership articles and pitch them to trade outlets.

Research several potential outlets and study their content. Look at the types of stories they run, the average word count and the style and tone. Most outlets have guidelines for guest contributors which will also give you an idea about what they look for.

Most importantly however, is to think about the challenges your industry faces and offer real solutions that no one else is talking about.

3. Think like a publisher

Smart healthcare startups know that consistently creating content is necessary for brand awareness, SEO and generating leads. As you hire your marketing team, you will need to create buyer personas, a content marketing strategy, an editorial calendar and an inventory of your content.

If that seems too advantageous right now however, focus on writing at least two blog posts a week and share them on social media.

4. Offer a study or survey data

Just as healthcare startups thrive on data, journalists, editors and producers also rely on the numbers to make a story timely, relevant and credible. Whether it’s the results of a clinical trial, a new study or survey data, make sure you lead with data.

5. Foster relationships

Don’t worry too much about not having media contacts because if you have a great story, a journalist will be interested. In fact, according to a survey by Muck Rack, 91 percent of journalists respond to PR people they don’t know.

When you have had your first placement, find opportunities to keep the momentum going. Whether you received another round of VC funding, hired an executive or developed a new product, continue to pitch the media.

Once you’ve been interviewed for a story, a journalist will be much more likely to contact you again if you can offer great ideas, contribute to the conversation and know how to give a great interview. Also, make it a point to read their stories and follow them on social media to understand the types of stories they write.

In today’s competitive healthcare space where consumers are empowered with choices about the providers and health insurance plans they choose, it’s more important than ever for healthcare marketers to connect with their leads on a personal level.

Whether you’re a hospital, a private practice, a health insurance plan or B2B healthcare brand, the best way to build your credibility and validate results is with case studies.

Yet not every patient, member or client will be the right customer to feature.

Before putting an ask out to any customer, there is some work you must do ahead of time to ensure that you not only have the right customer, but that your case studies will be a powerful tool to convert prospects. Here are 4 tips to get your started.

1. Let your personas be your guide.

Casting a wide net and trying to target every visitor that clicks on your site is a fruitless effort.

The same goes for case studies.

When you start to identify potential customers for your case studies, it’s vital that you know who your buyers are, what are the specific challenges they face and what their objections are to what you offer.

Then when you talk to your physicians or your sales reps, you’ll be able to tell them the type of customer you need instead of asking for any customer who is willing.

2. Amazing doesn’t cut it.

Just because one of your physicians has a great relationship with a certain patient doesn’t mean that person will be a good fit.

When looking for customers to feature, make sure they have a good story to tell. Sure, maybe the patient improved her cholesterol numbers or lost 50 pounds, but if there’s nothing else that makes the story compelling or your leads can’t connect with the story, it will make closing the deal that much harder.

3. Do a pre-interview.

The customer you have chosen might sound great on paper but when you get him on the phone, he’s either not willing to share as much as you thought he would or it feels like pulling teeth to get the information out of him.

One of the best ways to make sure you get what you need is to send the questions ahead of time so your customer can prepare or conduct a pre-interview to vet customers before making a final selection.

What’s more, when it comes to B2B, many companies have legal departments to contend with or have restrictions on what they will and will not talk about. Although it may not be a deal breaker, you should know ahead of time what is off limits so you’ll know how the story will pan out.

4. Be transparent.

When I was writing case studies for a client, the doctor who was asked to find a patient said that he had a great patient for me to interview. But once I got the patient on the phone, she didn’t want to use her name, reveal her profession or talk about her health condition. The result? A boring, bare bones story that did nothing to help them close deals.

So whether it’s one of your physicians or a sales representative, make sure that they explain to your customer exactly what the case study will be used for and what they will be asked.