There’s one thing all midterm election voters can agree on: We’re glad it’s over. But whenever there’s a massive investment in marketing and advertising a product (or, in this case, a candidate), those of us who are healthcare marketers need to pause and ask, “Is there a lesson we can learn here?”

In this case, there’s at least one: Stay on message.

Healthcare marketers—indeed, any kind of marketer—should learn from the examples of both parties. Don’t try to say everything. Stay on your message—the one that you developed before the heat of battle. Too often, marketers grow tired, bored or angry and want to shift their focus. But moving off the main message does a disservice to your audience and what they care about. When we change our message abruptly and whenever the winds blow, we confuse the audience—and could lose them along the way.

Except for some pharmaceutical advertising, healthcare marketers rarely have the resources to engage audiences to the degree we experienced during the midterm elections. But if you trust that you know what your audience cares about, you’ll win more than you lose.

Photo | U.S. Park Service

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