Exploring Three Use Cases of Generative AI in the Healthcare Industry

Healthcare has become a tough market: With healthcare costs expected to rise 7% next year, professionals are struggling to stay afloat. What provides a remedy for the increasing pressure on revenue is to attract new patients and retain existing ones – putting marketing front and center.

The good news is that new, generative AI-driven platforms are helping to tighten the marketing screw and reach more patients with less effort. Platforms like Google Bard and ChatGPT can generate content at lightning speed, helping to bond with patients and enhance an established professional’s reputation.

But while the opportunities are endless, health information is sensitive, and misinformation can have serious consequences. AI-generated content can be biased and even provide unscientific information, meaning that caution is the key to successfully using these new technologies.

Let's look at three ways AI can boost healthcare marketing – and how to use AI tools effectively and ethically.

Chatbots & AI Assistants for Handling Immediate Patient Communication

Many patients currently call a practice if they want to make appointments, get answers to pressuring questions, or look for more information about services. But because of busy lines and high call volume, they often face long waits on the phone and call demolition as a result. About one-third of patients are unwilling to wait in line, and 27.6% wait no more than a minute. So, what if there was a solution that works around the clock and relieves the strain on phone lines?

There is one: AI chatbots and voice assistants integrated into websites and landing pages. These chatbots can do various things like onboarding new customers, addressing their queries, and providing relevant information about services and co. Implementing AI-driven chatbots allows automating of patient inquiries, streamlining administrative tasks such as patient registration and scheduling, and ultimately improves patient engagement. 

But that’s by far not all. More advanced AI bots that can work with text, voice, images, and so on are revolutionizing the field by offering conversational AI capabilities and enabling personalized and on-point interactions. Voice technology further aids in assisting patients and healthcare workers with special needs, for example, those unable to utilize keyboards. 

However, offering live chat transfers or on-demand calls is still critical in addition to chatbots. Patients in urgent situations, with specific questions or critical health concerns, should be able to connect with a human. This way, medical professionals can minimize frustration and also build trust with patients. The trick is to intercept the large volume of normal and frequent patient requests, sort them out via AI Chatbots, and forward only the urgent or complex requests to dedicated staff. 

Faster Content Creation for Sparking Patient Loyalty

Since ChatGPT debuted in January 2023, AI has been transforming the entire content marketing space – and healthcare is no exception. 

Savvy marketers know the importance of compelling content to convert prospects and improve search engine rankings. Generative AI tools like ChatGPT can aid in content generation by composing engaging follow-up messages to patients, building email campaigns with educational health information or news, and writing or improving written website and blog content. This way, the technology streamlines content creation processes, making them faster and more efficient than ever before.

The key to using this technology successfully is giving very clear and specific prompts. Nuances like telling the bot to use a specific tone of voice, giving some bullet points of must-haves, or highlighting the goal of this content will improve the quality of the outcome.

We’ve played a little around with Steer’s integrated AI-driven Content Generator. The prompt: “Write an email about a general health checkup, once in an educational and once in a caring tone of voice”. These are the two results:

I wanted to remind you that it's time for your next general health checkup. Taking care of your health is important, and regular checkups are a great way to ensure you stay healthy.

If you haven't already scheduled an appointment, I'd be happy to help you find a doctor or clinic that can provide the care you need.

I'm here for you if you need anything.

Take care,

Version 2

Dear [Name],

We hope you are doing well and staying healthy! It's been a while since your last general health check-up, and we wanted to remind you that it's time to schedule your next one.

Regular checkups are important for maintaining your health and catching any potential issues early. We understand that it can be difficult to find the time to make an appointment, but it's worth it to make sure you're in the best health possible.

If you need help finding a time that works for you, please don't hesitate to reach out to us. We're here to help you stay healthy and happy.

Sincerely, [Your Name]

Powerful, isn’t it?

Be aware that the rise of AI-generated content has sparked discussions regarding ethical concerns, particularly plagiarism and misinformation. To mitigate some of these risks, it is crucial to review AI-generated text for bias, factual accuracy, and misinformation. Inputting factual content into the AI platform and leveraging its rewriting capabilities is another way to enhance adherence to facts. 

Additionally, it is advisable to double-check content and reference official sources like the Mayo Clinic or the U.S. government before giving clinical recommendations.

Effective Social Media Marketing for Community Engagement

Currently, there is no more powerful tool for attracting new customers and expanding your current market than social media platforms. With more than 75% of Americans using social media for health research and education, it is vital for doctors and clinics to leverage these platforms as much as possible. As daunting as it might seem to keep up with these trends, AI is here to help.

Generative AI technology reduces the time and effort required for social media content creation. AI tools can aid in ideation, copywriting, and image creation across various media formats, including imagery, video, music, and text. Furthermore, AI is pivotal to analyzing social media engagement data and coming up with trending content ideas that can increase reach and visibility. 

While AI can significantly enhance social media marketing, it is crucial to maintain a balance and focus on varied content. Instead of inundating platforms with excessive AI-generated posts, a mix of patient stories, healthcare advice, business insights, and behind-the-scenes glimpses of the practice should be shared. Including real-world images and videos fosters patient trust and loyalty, attracting attention and increasing engagement. The good news is that AI can be very useful here, too: It can create a content plan or post ideas based on which you can add photos, texts, or videos from your team.

As Generative AI Is Becoming Better, Its Role in Healthcare Marketing Will Only Grow

As Generative AI continues to advance, its applications in healthcare marketing are set to grow significantly. From content creation and personalization to predictive modeling and data-driven insights, using this technology will help you enhance communication and engagement and, ultimately, improve your patient outcomes. 

Staying ahead of the curve is crucial in the ever-evolving healthcare industry landscape. If you embrace Generative AI in your healthcare marketing efforts from now on, you will equip your healthcare organization to navigate the complex healthcare landscape more efficiently and effectively – and guarantee future growth.