How to market to the NHS
Reframing the relationship as a partnership can help you open doors to the NHS
If you have an idea that could transform healthcare, working with the NHS is likely an ambition. Whether you run a start-up looking to enhance access to mental health support or your innovation makes life behind the scenes easier, partnering with the NHS enables you to make a difference on a broader scale and benefit more people.
But it can be an intimidating prospect. Believe me, I know how tough the NHS can be to navigate, having worked there for almost ten years. Perhaps you shy away from your lofty goal or feel frustrated that your attempts have been lost in translation. Yet that means a missed opportunity to make a positive impact.
Here, I’ll address the challenges of marketing to the NHS and consider strategies to give you the confidence to share your value and open doors to the NHS.
In this post:
- What are the challenges of marketing to the NHS?
- Partner vs supplier
- How copywriting can help you articulate your value
- Copywriting strategies for marketing to the NHS
What are the challenges of marketing to the NHS?
What do you visualise when you think of the NHS? Perhaps it looms like an impenetrable fortress, full of locked doors and gatekeepers, barred to outsiders.
Or maybe the NHS is an institution raised on a pedestal. Perhaps like me, you find the concept of selling uncomfortable at the best of times. But when you layer in the emotional associations of the NHS, it can halt you in your tracks. You know services are stretched and don’t want to be seen as sales-y.
And that’s before you consider the competition. You worry your value will be lost in a sea of similar offers. It’s no surprise it can be demoralising and feel safer to hide away.
But consider what would happen if your idea didn't become mainstream. You deny people the opportunity to benefit from what you have to offer.
Thankfully, there are ways to market authentically to the NHS and feel confident that you add value.
Supplier vs partner
The key to unlocking the fortress is reframing the relationship. Positioning yourself as a supplier makes it transactional, a functional exchange of goods and services. That’s when it feels like you’re selling or pushing, which can be uncomfortable.
Shifting your perspective to working in partnership with the NHS can make all the difference. It’s about connecting with a shared aim. Perhaps your idea reduces how long young people wait for therapy, giving them peace of mind. Or maybe your innovation makes services more accessible for black, Asian and minority ethnic communities.
Focusing on a common purpose changes the dynamic. The relationship is mutually beneficial. Working together, you can make a difference.
Inviting partnerships has made a huge difference to my business. Rather than selling, you’re connecting with people who can benefit from what you have to offer. It not only eases negative feelings around sales but enables you to feel more grounded in your purpose and make aligned decisions.
How great copywriting can help you connect with commissioners
This shift in perspective encourages a focus on relationships. Great copywriting empowers you to connect at a deeper level with commissioners.
You may be surprised that writing is just one aspect of copywriting. But before pen meets paper, it’s essential to understand the bigger picture and overall strategy. Copywriting is more than simply generating random words on Chat GPT. It’s a craft that requires nuance, creativity, and humanity.
Empathy is at the heart of copywriting. It starts with delving deep into what drives your audience. What are their goals? What keeps them up at night? Copy strategy recognises people’s emotions so they feel listened to and heard. Taking time to truly understand where commissioners are coming from is the first step to building that relationship.
Of course, any partnership is two-way. It’s vital to dig deep to uncover what you offer. Copy strategy enables you to distil what makes you unique and how you add value. And that can be a real confidence boost.
Joining the dots between the commissioners’ goals and how you help transforms the conversation. Rather than pushing goods or services, you’re articulating how you can collaborate on a shared aim.
Copywriting strategies to help you market to the NHS
If you want to connect authentically with commissioners, simple changes make a big difference. Here are 3 copywriting strategies to help you market to the NHS and land your offers effectively.
1) Make it human
You’d be surprised how many presentations I sat through in the NHS where the patient was an afterthought. Don’t forget to bring out the human impact - who will your offer help? How will it transform their lives? Sharing people’s stories in their own words can be incredibly powerful.
2) Answer what’s in it for them
Paint a picture of how your innovation will benefit people working in the NHS. Consider managers as well as frontline staff. Will this new software make their life easier? Reduce duplication? Don’t leave people guessing about what it will mean for them.
3) Clarity, not cleverness
You may be tempted to throw in medical and technical terms to showcase your expertise, but it can have the opposite effect. I’m a big believer in clarity over cleverness. Keeping it simple avoids the risk of your message being lost in translation.
Summary
- Marketing to the NHS can be tough, but the rewards are great. It offers a real opportunity to reach more people and make a difference on a broader scale.
- Shifting your perspective of the relationship from a supplier to a partner can bring out a shared sense of purpose.
- Copywriting enables you to connect at a deeper level with commissioners and get to the heart of your shared vision.
- Simple copywriting strategies empower you to craft a compelling story about the value you add, helping open doors to the NHS.
Unlock doors to the NHS
Marketing to a stretched public sector can be tough - I get it. I worked in management roles in the NHS and local authorities for almost 10 years.
Drawing on these insights into what drives commissioners, I craft a compelling story that helps open doors for your business.
