Healthcare Web sites need to be functional not flashy, says Michael Salius, president of Salius Communications, the PR agency talent behind the award-winning MedSpan Web site (http://www.medspan.com). The site was recognized last month by the Hartford Town and Country Club with a Gold Mercury Award in the category of new technology-based applications.
As the first provider-owned healthcare network in Connecticut launched in 1990, Medspan needed a Web presence that communicated its affordable plan pricing for HMOs, preferred provider organizations and point-of-service products but also conveyed a fun, interactive preventive health/wellness component.
For health and wellness online marketing ideas, this site is worth checking out. One of the site's main attractions is its healthy weight calculator which allows visitors to determine their body mass index (what medical professionals use to determine appropriate weight levels) using a digital scale. If the calculator determines an overweight BMI (27.8+), the site directs the surfer to healthy diet tips.
Wellness features like the calculator provide MedSpan with a wider consumer appeal than if it were to solely push its health plan product lines, according to Salius.
The site also features physician, hospital and pharmacy directories, health plan summaries, tips for healthy living and pages of general information. "We made the site simple, effortless and fun for all of the targets to use by streamlining the design, minimizing the downloading time and automating the logo throughout," says Salius of the $20,000 campaign that launched last October. Web development involved input from MedSpan's communications department (two staffers), and the agency (content) Brainbug, a multi-media design firm based in Hartford.
The site is now generating about 234 hits/month from surfers primarily in Connecticut, as well as Rhode Island and Massachusetts. The most popular areas are "Welcome to MedSpan," "MedSpan's Provider Directory" and "About MedSpan," according to Matthew Kripps, MedSpan's director of information services.
Now MedSpan is looking to capture the senior market (for its new Medicare risk products) and will use its health/wellness approach to attract them. Senior-focused exercise programs and diets will be the new hooks for the site, according to Salius. (Salius Communications, Michael Salius, 860/231-7770; MedSpan, Matthew Kripps, 860/616-2220; Brainbug, 860/278-2200)