When you launch a new company, you wear many hats. When we launched StarBridge Advisors in 2016, I agreed to be responsible for marketing, social media and the website among other things. Why me? I 
was the most social media savvy of the three principals. But “savvy” is a relative term.
I have learned much these past few years and have much more to learn. Fortunately, there is no lack of resources for learning in this continually evolving space. Our website, blog, social media presence on LinkedIn and Twitter, and collateral continue to evolve as we learn what works and what doesn’t.
I listen to Whitney Cole’s Mission Marketing podcast for interviews with marketing experts. I read articles on how best to leverage social media. I tap into the experience of marketing experts I know. And I get ideas from what I see other firms doing.
This week I had the opportunity to attend a portion of the 6th annual HITMC (Healthcare and IT Marketing Conference). I was asked to be on a panel sharing the customer perspective – drawing on many years as a CIO and buyer of products and services. Of course, being on the other side now selling and marketing our health IT advisory services, I was also excited to learn from others.
From the customer perspective my advice was build relationships with prospective clients, provide content that they are interested in, avoid gimmicks, and avoid being the pushy salesperson no one likes. Know your target market and your prospective clients – think “precision marketing”.
After a day immersed in marketing topics with the healthcare IT marketing community, here are a few of my takeaways:
- There is no secret sauce or silver bullet. You need an overall cohesive strategy with clear measurable objectives and a willingness to adjust as needed.
- Content is key. Take time to develop good content. Re-use and rework it for maximum leverage in different forms (i.e. blogs, conference presentations, webinars) and through different channels. Develop your content pillars.
- Your contact list is gold. You need to be able to slice and dice it for targeted marketing.
- Leverage the #HITMC community not just for a few days but all year. The #HITMC community is collaborative and willing to share. There is no judgement. It’s ok to be vulnerable and ask questions.
New York Times bestselling author, Dan Heath, was the keynote speaker sharing insights from his latest book, “The Power of Moments”. He challenged us to build peaks, not just fill potholes. And he emphasized that “responsiveness makes people feel noticed and valued”. He summarized the key points as:
- Great experiences are built on peaks.
- Fixing problems won’t raise peaks.
- We build them with elevation, insight, pride and connection.
- Interpersonal peaks hinge on responsiveness.
Kudos to John Lynn and Colin Hung for organizing this lively and informative conference. It was great to meet so many creative marketers. I look forward to getting the presentations from all the sessions I couldn’t attend and continuing this learning journey.
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