TV and Digital Communications in the Era of Health Insurance Branding
By Martha C. Rivera, Director of Strategy and Insights
With the support of Nicha Ruchirawat, Junior Executive
At a moment when U.S. health insurance companies must have already realized that the Obamacare reform imposes serious marketing efforts from their part to effectively engage health insurance audiences, a key question is what could be the two most effective media channels to communicate their brand messages to new, prospective health insurance enrollees.
As an estimated 42% of the currently uninsured who are eligible for individual health care exchanges are from the multicultural segment, understanding their media consumption patterns seems critical.
TV is one important channel to keep in mind. According to Nielsen’s report on “The State of the African-American Consumer,” and “The Hispanic Market Imperative,” African Americans and Hispanics spend 213 hours per month and 126 hours per month watching TV, respectively. Additionally, “on the go” communication channels are going to play a highly effective role. In fact, research shows that 33% African Americans and 60% Hispanics households own Smartphones. They tend to use their mobile phones for emailing, accessing internet, social networking and downloading media.
“Multicultural advertisements calls for sensitivities to the differences in media consumption behaviors among different cultural groups,” said George L. San Jose, president and chief creative officer at The San Jose Group. “For health insurance companies, aligning media consumption behavior with marketing campaigns is the key to targeting the multicultural audience and wining consumers most affected by the healthcare reform.”
The differences in behaviors and trends between the cultural groups and the general market need to be taken into account. Following media trends within the multicultural segment is essential for health insurance brands to reach out to their potential new customers arising from the health reform.
