How to Build Trust, Authority, and Advocacy for a Healthcare Software Startup

Trust and authority are like the building blocks of your success. Trust is the foundation, like a solid base for your startup. It’s what convinces people that you’re reliable and they can count on you. Authority is the structure you build on that foundation, showcasing your expertise and knowledge like the impressive walls of a grand castle.

However, building trust and authority is not just about showcasing your capabilities; it’s also about fostering a community of advocates who believe in your mission. These advocates become the supportive arches that strengthen your castle, helping to spread the word about your healthcare software and amplifying your credibility.

The HealthTech industry is fiercely competitive nowadays, and it’s poised to be worth a whopping $1.3 trillion by 2025, according to PitchBook. Standing out is a constant struggle, but it’s not just about being noticed; it’s about earning trust, establishing authority, and becoming a reliable source of information.

Now, let’s delve into the essential strategies that a healthcare software startup should implement to cultivate trust, authority, and advocacy among its audience.

Understanding Your Audience and Goals

Start by understanding your target audience’s preferences, behaviors, and pain points. This will help you create messages that connect with them. Generic messages are ineffective and can damage trust. Personalized messages that solve their problems and show empathy build trust and engagement. Remember, you can’t relate to people as numbers. Listening to and addressing their questions and concerns about your software shows that you care and are honest. Ignoring them creates distrust and harms your reputation.

Building Foundation of Trust with Content Marketing

Content marketing is the #1 digital marketing channel for cultivating trust and credibility in any B2B setting, including HealthTech. By consistently sharing well-researched, informative content, you demonstrate your expertise and reliability, making your healthcare software brand a trusted name in the field.

Moreover, healthcare is renowned for its complexity, and content marketing serves as a means to simplify these intricacies. This simplification aids medical institutions and healthcare companies as well as benefits patients and caregivers by solving their informational needs and, ultimately, making it easier to grasp the value you offer.

Demonstrate your expertise:

• First of all, it’s crucial to have a deep understanding of the trends and existing challenges within the relevant medical niche, as well as clear views on solving current problems;
• Share success stories of how your healthcare software has solved real-world problems for clients. Case studies provide concrete evidence of your expertise and the value you provide;
• Creating e-books on niche topics within healthcare software can position your startup as an authority in that specific domain.

Educate your audience:

• Regular blog posts on your website can help you educate your audience about industry trends, best practices, and the benefits of your healthcare software. Think of your blog as a drip irrigation system for trust and authority. Each insightful, healthcare-focused post is a drop, steadily nourishing your audience with knowledge and building your startup’s reputation. For example, you can write about medical billing workflow automation or the importance of data security in healthcare.
• Your white papers can delve into complex topics, offering in-depth insights and research findings. White papers serve as effective tools for attracting potential users. You can build a subscriber base by offering a comprehensive blueprint PDF in exchange for contact information. This allows you to nurture interested individuals and potentially convert them into customers.
• High-quality infographics with accurate data and reliable sources can lend visual credibility to your brand. Using trusted statistics, data visualizations, and clear citations showcases your commitment to transparency and evidence-based information. This fosters trust and establishes you as a reliable healthcare source.

Collect followers

• A large and engaged following can create a sense of social proof, signaling to potential customers that others find your software valuable and trustworthy. This can be incredibly impactful in healthcare, where people naturally seek reassurance and validation before making decisions about their health.
• Fostering a supportive and engaged community around your brand can be incredibly valuable. You can connect with healthcare professionals, potential customers, and industry influencers, creating a space for open communication and valuable interaction – sometimes on a more personal level.
• Gathering valuable customer feedback and insights, listening to and responding to your followers’ concerns and questions demonstrates your commitment to their needs. It can help you improve your software and services. This proactive approach builds trust and shows that you prioritize user experience.

Let’s keep it real, though, content marketing takes time and consistent effort, and the results might not be immediate. You need a clear content strategy, and following the latest industry trends is crucial to stay relevant.

To discover more details on how content marketing can help B2B healthcare startups build trust with their customers, read our article How to Build Trust for a Healthcare B2B SaaS Through Content Marketing and Social Media.

Platforms to Share Your Expertise

Creating quality and valuable content is important, but it may go unnoticed if your intended audience doesn’t understand it. Trust and authority can be established by engaging on publicly accessible platforms where people can readily view, read, and share their opinions. While it’s essential to publish original content on your own platform, it’s equally crucial to distribute it through well-known channels to maximize visibility and reach a broader audience.

Here’s how you can leverage various platforms to showcase your thoughts as a healthcare startup:

Quora

Quora is a free Q&A platform that covers a wide range of topics. It enables users to ask and answer questions, follow specific authors and topics, establish interest-based groups, provide comments on answers, and even advertise content.

Additionally, Quora provides its own analytics tools, allowing users to track engagement and performance metrics. It also permits the inclusion of external links to other publications, enhancing its versatility as a content-sharing platform.

The more answers you provide that visitors upvote, the higher your Quora rank and, consequently, the greater authority you will have locally on this platform. This will contribute to building trust in your brand overall.

Medium

Medium is an online platform that serves as a hub for authors to publish articles and essays on a wide range of topics. Readers can access this content, engage with it by following their favorite authors, showing appreciation through claps, and leaving comments to share their thoughts.

Medium also offers a membership program, granting subscribers access to premium content and exclusive features. Some authors choose to put their articles behind a paywall, which is a subscription-based model that allows them to earn income from their work.

Overall, this source provides a dynamic space for both content creators and readers to interact, share knowledge, and explore diverse subjects. A healthcare software startup can build authority on Medium by regularly publishing insightful articles, success stories, and thought leadership content.

LinkedIn

LinkedIn is a virtual hub for professionals, offering a platform where users can create detailed professional profiles highlighting their skills and experiences. It facilitates connections between individuals and businesses, enabling them to network, share industry insights, and engage in meaningful discussions. Also, LinkedIn provides the opportunity for users to share articles, positioning themselves as thought leaders in their respective fields.

A healthcare software startup can utilize LinkedIn to connect with healthcare industry experts, share informative content about innovative solutions, and actively engage in relevant healthcare groups and discussions to establish themselves as authoritative figures in the field.

SlideShare

SlideShare, another extension of LinkedIn, provides a versatile platform for users to publish slideshows, embed them within blog pages, download materials, leave comments, and establish links to external resources, all while gaining insights from viewing statistics. This integrated functionality allows individuals and businesses to engage with content in a dynamic and interactive manner.

Consider harnessing the power of SlideShare to craft visually compelling slide decks. These presentations can effectively simplify intricate concepts, deliver case studies tailored to the healthcare startup landscape, and communicate the milestones and success stories that showcase your startup’s achievements. This way, you can enhance your ability to connect with your target audience and convey your message visually appealing and informatively.

YouTube Webinars and Explanatory Videos

Host regular webinars discussing the latest trends and challenges in HealthTech. Invite industry experts for insightful dialogues covering topics like data security, AI integration, or regulatory updates. Share practical advice on topics like funding, marketing, or team building. Offer actionable tips and best practices healthcare startups can implement immediately. Dedicate time for live Q&A sessions after each webinar to address specific concerns and offer personalized guidance. This direct engagement builds trust and fosters a sense of community.

Create explanatory videos

• Create engaging explainer videos that showcase your software’s capabilities. Use clear visuals, screen recordings, and animations to demonstrate features and functionalities.
• Addressing common challenges healthcare startups face, you may teach them how to use your software to solve specific problems.
• Feature real-life case studies where you showcase how your software helped other startups overcome specific hurdles. This adds credibility and inspires potential customers.

Tips

• Invest in good audio and video quality. No one wants to watch pixelated presentations or listen to muffled voices.
• Following YouTube SEO practices, use relevant keywords and titles to ensure your videos get discovered by your target audience.
• Don’t forget to tell viewers what you want them to do next. Whether subscribing to your channel, visiting your website, or starting a free trial, make it clear and easy for them to take the next step.

Expertise sharing for healthcare startups also comes with its set of challenges. Monitoring multiple platforms, evaluating content performance, and engaging with comments, reviews, and inquiries is a multifaceted task that can be challenging to delegate, especially when you possess unique expertise within your startup. In addition, as you expand your presence across various platforms, the demand for managing and supporting them grows proportionally.

Content Distribution Through Multichannel Outreach

A comprehensive approach is crucial to ensure the effective distribution of your content and messages across various channels for healthcare startups and to boost brand awareness. Here, we outline the strategies and considerations specific to healthcare startups, emphasizing the benefits, challenges, and measurement techniques.

Effective SEO

Creating super high-quality and engaging content is essential, but its effectiveness heavily relies on its visibility to your target audience. Healthcare SEO is crucial in ensuring that your content appears in search engine results for relevant queries. To achieve this, it’s important to deeply understand how people search for such topics and use keyword synonyms strategically throughout your text. It’s also essential to incorporate the primary keyword (the most popular and relevant) in the page’s title and URL. When crafting the title and meta description, make them clear and informative for both human readers and search engine bots.

Additionally, internal linking to other articles on the same or related topics can improve the overall user experience and help search engines understand the structure of your website.
Lastly, maintaining content uniqueness is crucial. Aim for a minimum of 90% differentiation from existing content on the web to avoid issues with duplicate content and to provide fresh, valuable information to your audience.

Leveraging Email Marketing

Basically, email marketing serves as a distribution channel for your content, amplifying its impact and trustworthiness. Through drip campaigns, it educates your target audience and addresses their concerns. Emails persist in inboxes, always ready to be seen. Sharing links to your latest content extends their reach and lifespan, akin to sending flyers that entice users to explore more.

Later in this article, we’ll explore more aspects of email marketing that can help you build trust with your audience.

Strategic PR

While aiming for larger publications like Forbes or TechCrunch is commendable, it can be challenging due to high requirements and the specificity of healthcare topics. Starting with smaller, niche publications allows you to build a portfolio and credibility within the healthcare industry, which can eventually open doors to larger media outlets.

Remember that building relationships and securing media coverage takes time and effort. Be persistent, provide value, and maintain a genuine interest in the healthcare field to maximize your PR effectiveness.

Guest Posting

This approach is predominantly employed by SEO specialists and is sometimes undervalued within the realm of public relations. Platforms that receive tens to hundreds of thousands of monthly visitors and allow paid guest post publications can attract substantial traffic.

These platforms are quite broad, covering topics like news, politics, technologies, markets, etc., and often feature a healthcare category, which can be leveraged for a more targeted impact. Achieving a broader content spread is possible by tailoring your content to encompass more universal concerns, such as pandemics, healthcare costs, legislation, and the like. When your target audience sees your brand while looking for news, they will trust it more since it is published on a reputable resource.

PPC Campaigns

To effectively reach healthcare professionals, institutions, and decision-makers, invest in targeted paid advertising campaigns on platforms like Google Ads and LinkedIn Ads while simultaneously focusing on content promotion.

Incorporate content promotion strategies such as promoting informative blog posts through Google Ads and boosting content posts on social networks. Craft highly targeted ads, develop dedicated landing pages, and implement remarketing efforts to engage your audience.

Allocate your budget wisely, continuously optimize your campaigns, and monitor performance metrics to ensure a successful strategy. This combination of paid advertising and content promotion will help you establish your brand as a trusted source of valuable information within the healthcare industry, ultimately driving engagement and conversions.

SMM: Yes, that’s where it’s Really Beneficial for B2B

1. The right social media platforms

Determine which social media platforms resonate with your target audience and the type of healthcare content you offer.

You can share your content on various HealthTech and healthcare SaaS groups on LinkedIn. The main strategy is to join these groups and interact with them. Participating in discussions, offering advice, and showing your expertise can boost your startup’s reputation and influence in these niche communities.

Leveraging X can significantly boost your credibility as a commentator, distributor of industry news, or, even more effectively, as a content creator, using concise yet impactful tweets. You can foster engagement by sharing timely updates, industry insights, and personal perspectives. Quick responses to industry news or ongoing discussions, along with the use of relevant hashtags, further amplify your visibility and participation in conversations.

While Facebook may not be the optimal platform for healthcare software, it can still play a valuable role in helping healthcare-related startups establish trust and authority. For B2C, sharing content on health issues and providing advice; for B2B startups, active participation in conversations, sharing industry knowledge, and connecting with other professionals can contribute significantly. Hosting online events and collaborating with patient groups or healthcare experts further extend the reach to a broader audience.

2. SMM strategy

• Plan your content
  Develop a content calendar encompassing various content types, such as articles, videos, and infographics tailored to each platform.
• Maintain consistency
  Consistently post healthcare-related content to sustain engagement and visibility.
• Foster engagement
  Respond promptly to comments, messages, and mentions to cultivate authentic relationships.
• Incorporate hashtags and trends
  Utilize pertinent hashtags and stay updated with trending healthcare topics to enhance discoverability.
• Consider paid advertising
  Explore the potential of targeted ads to expand your healthcare reach and amplify healthcare content visibility.

3. Measuring SMM performance

Monitor critical metrics on each platform, such as engagement (likes, comments, shares), reach, click-through rates, and conversion rates.

If you want to learn more about how startups can use social media to increase visibility, gain trust, and strengthen their position in the market, read the article How to Amplify Your Startup’s Voice With Social Media on our blog.

Influencers and Opinion Leaders

By working with influencers and opinion leaders, you can leverage your brand credibility and gain the trust of their loyal followers. Influencer marketing helps you reach a specific and interested audience, boost your content, and discover new trends within your niche.

Identifying the right influencers

To begin, concentrate your efforts on identifying individuals who are a natural fit for your healthcare software niche. Use social listening tools to detect active voices within your sector. Consider factors like engagement levels and authenticity to evaluate their influence within your industry.

Collaboration strategies

When reaching out to potential influencers, express sincere interest in their work and consider what value your healthcare software startup can offer. This could range from early access to your products or services to opportunities for co-creating content. Consider different collaboration ideas, including sponsored content or product reviews.

Challenges

Plan the budget, as most influencers charge for their services. Ensure that the influencers you collaborate with align with your healthcare software startup’s values and authenticity to maintain trust. Measuring the direct impact of influencer marketing can also be a complex endeavor.

Measuring impact

Begin by tracking key metrics such as engagement, reach, and conversions. Implement unique tracking links or promo codes to attribute specific results to influencer efforts. Beyond that, gather feedback from customers and followers to gauge the influence of the partnership. Finally, analyze the ROI by comparing campaign costs to the revenue generated due to influencer collaboration.

Check out a comprehensive guide on influencer marketing on our blog to learn more about utilizing this strategy for your healthcare software startup.

Email Marketing

Building relationships, value, and trust is the essence of email marketing. It positions your healthcare software startup as a trusted voice through engaging emails. Email allows personalized connections with leads and customers, creating a sense of familiarity. Utilizing segmented lists and crafting tailored messages demonstrates care, fostering trust and loyalty.

Email Recipients

First, you need to develop a base of recipients by creating all the conditions for subscribing to the newsletter, promoting your content, establishing personal connections through LinkedIn, and attending specialized healthcare events.

Strategic email list segmentation

Categorize subscribers based on criteria like their professional roles, interests, engagement levels, or previous interactions. Tailored content significantly heightens relevance and engagement.

Crafting effective email campaigns

Develop engaging content tailored to your healthcare software audience’s unique needs and interests. Consider sending newsletters featuring updates, success stories, and pertinent industry trends. Customize emails to individual preferences and behaviors for personalization.

Optimizing deliverability and open rates

To ensure your emails reach designated inboxes and capture recipients’ attention, adhere to these best practices:

• Routinely scrub your email list, eliminating inactive subscribers.
• Craft captivating subject lines that entice recipients to open your emails.
• Abstain from spammy tactics, such as excessive capitalization or misleading content.
• Test email content and formatting to enhance user experience on various devices.

Email marketing can be very beneficial, but healthcare software startups face some difficulties using it. They must find ways to make their emails more noticeable in the busy inbox environment. They also need to keep their email list updated and avoid spam filters to ensure their emails reach their recipients.

Explore our dedicated article for in-depth insights into email marketing and drip campaigns tailored for B2B startups.

Contributing to Wikipedia

Wikipedia can be a great source of trust and authority for your healthcare software brand. Being linked to such a reputable platform enhances your legitimacy and credibility. Moreover, Wikipedia has high domain authority, and its links can improve your website’s ranking in search engine results.

However, ethical and careful contributions are crucial. Here’s how to leverage it effectively:

• Find relevant articles about your product’s function or domain (e.g., medical technologies, healthcare software). Correct factual inaccuracies, add neutral citations to credible sources and expand on existing sections with informative, relevant content.
• Consider proposing a new article if your software addresses a unique niche or offers significant advancements. Ensure it meets Wikipedia’s notability guidelines and focuses on objective information, not promotion.
• Clearly cite sources within the article using reliable, independent, and verifiable sources like peer-reviewed research papers, government reports, or well-established healthcare organizations. This adds to the article’s credibility and allows readers to verify the information. Avoid self-promotion and ensure sources meet Wikipedia’s quality standards.

Challenges

Wikipedia has strict neutrality and notability guidelines. You must avoid self-promotion and ensure your contributions are objective and relevant.

Your edits might get reviewed and revised by other editors. Be prepared for constructive criticism and engage in respectful discussions.

Be mindful of conflicts of interest. Clearly disclose any affiliations with your software to avoid bias.

Avoiding spam and conflicts

• Contribute neutral, relevant information that benefits readers, not just your software.
• Don’t add promotional content or links to your website. Focus on factual information and reliable sources.
• If you have any affiliation with your software, disclose it transparently on your user page and relevant edits.

Remember:

• Contributing to Wikipedia is a privilege, not a marketing tool. Focus on adding value to the platform and its users.
• Respect the community and its guidelines. Engage in constructive discussions and be open to feedback.

Additional tips

• Start small and gradually build your reputation as a credible editor.
• Connect with other editors in relevant areas to learn best practices.
• Stay updated on Wikipedia’s policies and guidelines.

Adhering to these guidelines and making ethical contributions, you can leverage such a well-known and trusted knowledge base like Wikipedia to boost your healthcare startup’s credibility and authority.

Events

Events are a powerful way to showcase your healthcare software brand and build trust and authority in the industry. Whether you join or host them, online or offline, events can help you achieve the following benefits:

1. Attract and educate your potential customers

Events can help you reach and engage your target audience with your unique value proposition and expertise. By speaking at events or hosting workshops, you can demonstrate how your software can solve their problems or improve their lives. You can also share valuable content on health topics and tips that can educate and inform your potential customers.

2. Network and collaborate with industry leaders

Events can also help you connect and partner with key players in the healthcare industry, such as experts, influencers, journalists, or investors. These relationships can enhance your credibility and legitimacy and help you expand your reach and influence. You can also work with other trusted brands that are not your competitors but share your vision and values.

3. Advocate for a better healthcare system

Events can also help you communicate your passion and purpose for improving healthcare and making a positive impact. By participating in industry events, you can align your brand with a noble cause and show your audience that you care about more than just profits. You can also advocate for change and innovation in the healthcare system and inspire others to join your mission.

Partnership with other Brands

When startups join forces with established and reliable partners who share their values and target audience, they can harness the collective strength to expand their presence in the healthcare sector.

Through initiatives like co-branded content, cross-promotions, and co-hosted events, startups can effectively introduce themselves to a new and engaged audience. These activities not only bolster brand visibility but also enhance credibility within the healthcare industry by leveraging the trust associated with established partners.

Partnering with reputable and like-minded entities allows healthcare startups to benefit from the positive associations linked to these partners. This association elevates the perceived value of the startup’s brand, as the trust attributed to one reputable brand can extend to another.

Choosing the right partners, especially when they already have trust, is very important. You need to ensure that your values and goals match theirs so that your brand can maintain its reputation and deliver a consistent message to your common audience. Pick partners that can help you reach your specific business goals. For instance, if you want to boost your brand awareness, partner with a brand that has a big and active audience. Also, don’t forget to write down the details of your partnership in a written agreement. This will help to prevent any confusion later on.

Some examples of successful partnerships are:

• A telehealth startup could work with a fitness tracker company to provide a more comprehensive health tracking and management solution.
• A mental health app could team up with a meditation app to offer a broader variety of wellness tools and resources.
• A healthcare software company could collaborate with a medical association to access a larger audience of healthcare professionals.

Native Advertising

Native ads let you use appealing visuals and headlines that draw attention and interest. This is another way to show your expertise and willingness to help and add value to your TA. By adapting your strategy to the unique advantages of native ads and platforms like, for instance, Outbrain, you can reach your target audience with informative and engaging content that builds trust and encourages action.

Use high-quality images and videos that show the quality and care of your healthcare brand. Write headlines that are simple, brief, and focused on benefits. Emphasize the specific value proposition of your software and how it can solve their problems.

Summary

Building trust, authority, and advocacy is a primary challenge for healthcare software startups once they have established brand awareness. Achieving these objectives requires patience, consistency, motivation, and a deep commitment to both your work and your customers.

To cultivate trust, authority, and advocacy, a multifaceted approach is essential. Start by creating and disseminating valuable content through various channels. Contribute to platforms like Wikipedia and engage in platforms like Quora and Medium to showcase your expertise. Active involvement on social media, collaboration with influencers, running native ads, and regular newsletter communication are also vital components.

Participation in healthcare and health tech events, as well as partnerships with reputable non-competing brands, can further bolster trust and authority within your industry. By diligently pursuing these strategies, you can establish a solid foundation of trust, authority, and advocacy in your healthcare software startup.

Let’s connect!

Get a 30-minute consultation and explore how Glorium Marketing can collaborate with your healthcare software startup to establish a solid foundation of trust, enhance your authority, and cultivate a devoted community of advocates within your target audience.

AboutOleh Puhach

Head of Growth Marketing