JDAnthony

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Is anyone else secretly glad that the holidays are over? Yes, the holidays bring parties and family get-togethers and cards from people you care about...and don't you love the lengthy, typed-out annual family "record of events" holiday card? Twelve months of detail about Johnny and Susie, the family's many accomplishments, birthdays, real estate purchases and many other milestones of great importance - all marking the family's unfettered success. Done well - these letters offer interesting, informative glimpses into the lives of treasured friends and family. It is information you want and need. Done poorly - these letters are dreadful as they package the family into a product that is being sold and marketed as the "perfect, successful All-American family." Since I am not the first person to mock the lengthy holiday missives, I want to be the first to draw a comparison between the "dreaded" holiday letter and your website. Maybe not YOUR website, but MANY websites alienate visitors because they are too self-centered. Too self-absorbed and "puffed-up." When people visit a "self-centered" site, they leave it quickly and do not retain valuable information. Valuable information will be overlooked if it is embedded in a long-winded, one-sided "conversation." To understand what makes a website selfish and arrogant, try to recall your last conversation with a self-serving and arrogant individual. Can I safely assume that most of the words spoken included: I, me, my, myself and mine? A startling number of websites commit this same crime. The New Year is underway and for many medical service companies, their websites are another year older, another year out-of-date. Digital Strength is top of mind while the world-wide web continues to grow, becomes more expansive and to some - more of a mystery. Last week, a friend and Director of Creative Services for a large advertising agency, called the Internet "The Big Mystery." Her clients are terrified of it - and understandably so. Medical service companies with a limited understanding of the role, purpose, expectations and usage associated with a website, adopt a "do no harm" mentality. With this timid and reactive approach, the website is created solely as a credibility-building tool missing major opportunities to help, inspire and re-assure. Self-serving online applications (such as patient registration) and generic content purchased from a third-party, like Band-Aids, are not permanent solutions. These options do not build your brand or customer loyalty. The website address is being used on every piece of collateral, advertisement and marketing as a "call to action." However, when people go to the website, it does not help, inspire or re-assure; therefore, it disappoints. It is self-serving rather than serving the needs of the visitor. In the medical industry, trust is a key issue. Peoples' health, sometimes their lives, depend on shared knowledge and timely, relevant information. If the website is going to be the hub of that knowledge, then our focus needs to be on distributing that knowledge in the most effective way possible. This means that the message cannot be "all about me.

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