SCOTTSDALE, Ariz., June 30, 2020 – Amendola Communications, a nationally recognized, award-winning healthcare and health IT public relations and marketing agency, has promoted Philip Anast to the position of General Manager, the agency announced today. Anast is a PR agency veteran with more than two decades of experience in account leadership and executive roles at B2B, healthcare/health IT and technology agencies. In alignment with Amendola’s policy to promote from within, Anast previously served as a Senior Account Director at Amendola, providing strategy and oversight for numerous client accounts over the past three years.
As General Manager, Anast is taking on a number of leadership roles. On a daily basis, he handles employee and client relations, and is managing agency-wide best practices. He also manages major agency projects and evaluates and implements new products and services that expand the agency’s digital marketing, social media and analytics capabilities.
“Philip has built an impressive career at PR agencies of all sizes and is ideally suited for the role of Amendola’s General Manager,” said Jodi Amendola, founder and CEO of Amendola Communications. He is objective, solutions-oriented, and cares about agency employees and clients. Philip is not only an exceptional account director, he also brings to the table strong managerial experience.”
In addition to his General Manager role, Anast serves as strategist for a number of accounts.
Anast has served in senior positions in large and small agencies over the years. Prior to joining Amendola, Anast was Vice President at Chicago-based PR firm Tech Image. During his 15-year tenure there, Anast was instrumental in managing client programs, providing strategic counsel, pitching new business, growing client relationships, teaching best practices and managing finances.
During his prolific career, Anast has provided public relations expertise to clients such as HP, Language Analysis Systems, Motorola, PricewaterhouseCoopers, Kaufman Hall, Vocera (VCRA), Capsule Technologies, Lightbeam Health and others.
“I’m pleased to step into the role of General Manager at Amendola. I see Amendola growing on multiple levels, including our client portfolio, service offerings and account director and support teams,” Anast said. “My chief goal for the new role is to set us up for success as we expand our footprint in public relations, digital and content marketing, and social media.”
About Amendola Communications Amendola is an award-winning, national public relations, marketing communications, social media and content marketing firm. Named one of the best information technology (IT) PR firms in the nation four times by PRSourceCode, Amendola represents some of the best-known established brands and groundbreaking startups in the healthcare and HIT industries. Amendola’s seasoned team of PR and marketing pros delivers strategic guidance and effective solutions to help organizations boost their reputation and drive market share. For more information about the PR industry’s “A-Team”, visit www.acmarketingpr.com, and follow Amendola on Twitter and LinkedIn.
Media Contact: Marcia G. Rhodes Amendola Communications 480.664.8412 ext. 15 mrhodes@acmarketingpr.com
One of the biggest changes that has happened in healthcare IT (HIT) public relations over the last 10 years is the increased demand for vendor-neutral byline articles, blog posts, and other materials.
It makes sense from the publications business model perspective. With ever-thinner margins they can’t afford to keep a legion of writers on-staff, or even to pay a legion of freelancers to write for them.
So, they supplement their own articles with content provided by various vendors. The caveat, of course, is that it must be vendor-neutral. In other words, it can’t overtly promote a particular company’s products or services. Instead, it must address a general industry topic, or adopt a general industry point of view.
While it makes sense to those of us directly involved in HIT PR, the idea of being vendor-neutral doesn’t always appeal to everyone within the organization. Especially those who are closest to the products, such as product managers.
“What’s the point of writing an article or a blog post if we can’t link back to our product (or service)?” they’ll ask. “Do we think customers or prospects will hunt for it on their own?”
While it’s easy to understand their concern, it represents transactional thinking. They expect readers will be so wowed by a product or service that they’ll click on the link immediately. And start engaging in the sales process.
That would be nice. But it doesn’t represent reality. Most products and services in HIT tend to have long sales cycles due to the cost, complexity, or disruption involved in replacing what an organization is already doing with a new solution.
That begs the question, “If the goal isn’t to secure a direct sale, then where’s the value in contributing the article at all?” Actually, there are several benefits.
Opening the conversation
In some cases, organizations who have been doing things a certain way for a long period of time may not realize they have a need. Or there is a different, better way to accomplish what they’re doing.
For example, a health payer may have systems and technology in place that enables them to process claims at a rate that keeps them profitable. But they may not realize they could be doing it in one-quarter of the time at one-eighth of the cost.
Or a provider may have analytics that are giving them a comprehensive view of what is happening in the organization. But they may not realize the same data could be telling them what to do next instead of looking back on what they’ve already done.
The vendor-neutral article or other materials become the opening salvo, alerting them to possibilities they haven’t even considered. That doesn’t mean they’re going to run right out with a credit card in their hands. But if they come to realize everything isn’t as hunky-dory as they thought, it creates an opening where none existed before. And guess who they’re going to look to when they start looking into solutions?
Establishing expertise around a topic
What if they organization realizes on its own that it needs to make a change? If the decision-makers don’t know how to address it internally, or they don’t have the resources to dedicate to it, most likely they’re going to perform some type of search to see who has expertise around that topic.
Returning results tied to articles from respected industry publications will have far more credibility than simply returning sales sheets. It will show your organization understands the problems HIT faces and is trying to help solve them. As opposed to your competitors who are simply trying to sell products.
Offering these vendor-neutral articles or other materials in a knowledge center on your website also helps establish your expertise. And your desire to work with them as a partner.
By demonstrating you understand what is happening within the big picture of healthcare, customers and prospects will get more of a feeling you’ll help them address their specific issues. Rather than just try to sell them whatever product you have that comes closest.
Once they feel you understand their needs, you can direct them to the product(s) or service(s) that address their issues.
Building your brand
Most vendor-neutral materials are created with the express desire to have an immediate impact on sales at some level. But they also provide another valuable function. They help build the brands of companies as well as the individuals attached to the materials.
Typically, we will ask clients what they want to be known for in a branding exercise. The answer is never a product. It’s always some sort of solution to an industry problem.
There’s no better way to get that message out there than to create materials that support this point of view. If you want to be known as the company that simplifies collecting from patients, producing a series of materials that explain what the need is and what needs to be done, at a high level, helps you capture that position. Especially if all your competitors are only offering up product-related materials on their own websites.
Establishing a strong brand gives buyers confidence that they are making a safe choice in a risky, uncertain world. That’s especially valuable for start-ups and/or companies venturing into new areas. You’ll be chosen more often if you look like the smart choice.
Accelerating the sales cycle
One of the least-understood aspects to public relations, especially in the digital age, is the value doesn’t come solely from the original placement. It’s what you do with the placement afterwards that really makes the difference.
A vendor-neutral article that has been published in a respected industry media outlet opens up all sorts of additional, sales-accelerating opportunities.
It can be added to your website, preferably in a knowledge center as mentioned earlier. That way, when a customer or prospect is looking around your website they get a sense that your organization is an industry expert, not just a seller of products.
It gives salespeople another reason to contact customers and prospects with a twist. An email that shares knowledge from company experts is far more likely to be read than another overt sales pitch.
Sales can use it both in an email blast to everyone and as an answer to specific inquiries, too. Imagine the power of a response that includes both the vendor-neutral article and the product or service that fulfills the needs the article lays out.
Vendor-neutral materials are perfect for sharing on social media. The organization can use its own channels, and even post in groups it belongs to (where appropriate). High-quality content will be of much greater interest than a product message that can be easily dismissed.
The more you use them, the more customers and prospects will become groomed to the idea that you have the solutions they need.
Taking the long view
For most HIT products and services, the sales cycle is a long one. It takes multiple touches, many of which will come before you’re even aware a buyer is interested.
Authoring vendor-neutral articles, blog posts, or other content helps you raise awareness of your organization. It also demonstrates you understand the challenges facing customers and prospects. It’s then a shorter leap to demonstrating how your products or services solve those challenges.
Just another article about how Millennials stink and how they are ruining everything. Right? *Insert eye roll* While I disagree with this outlook on Millennials, possibly from personal bias, no one can ignore the fact that this generation is edging their way into the decision maker’s seat as they are now the largest generation in the U.S. labor force. Their buying power is growing as both consumers and as professionals.
Working their way through markets like bulls in a china shop, Millennials have changed/killed/rebuilt industries like transportation, retail, healthcare and may be credited for creating the IoT (Internet of Things). B2B companies will soon have to face the music and adjust as Millennials will inevitably change their industry too, that is, if their world hasn’t already been flipped on its head.
Here are 4 trends healthcare will see as Millennials make their way through the industry, and how health IT companies and health systems can relieve the pain.
#1 – They take it personally
The problems Millennials have encountered in healthcare themselves are now fueling their drive to fix it. Growing up in a consumer’s economy where customer service and convenience is expected at every turn, it’s no secret healthcare has been behind the curve of this trend-turned-tradition.
One out of five people surveyed by PNC listed unexpected/surprise bills as the number one billing-related issue. With out-of-pocket costs on the rise, millennials are more inclined (41%) to request and receive estimates before undergoing treatment. Only 18% of seniors and 21% of boomers reported asking for or receiving information on costs upfront.
Health IT companies that can show the Millennial decision-maker how their product improves their bottom line and fixes a problem they know personally will be the winners. The patient experience plus revenue generator should be an attractive buy for this generation.
#2 – Delight Millennials or face their wrath
This is probably where we Millennials get a bad rap. Or a least one of the many ways where we have supposedly ruined everything. It’s not so much that we need to be delighted because we are spoiled brats; rather, we grew up in a time of customer service innovation. Combine that with the social boom where anyone and everyone could have their voice heard and it creates both opportunity and risk. If we enjoy something, or worse, if we hate something, we know exactly how to get the message out to the masses.
Millennials opinions as customers are no longer limited to their personal social circles. The real danger or potential danger is that they think to tell the masses first. Their parents generation might go on Facebook after a few days and leave a review but, Millennials have already Snapchatted the problem to their peers, tweeted at you and your competitor, complained on Reddit, dropped a one star on Yelp, Facebook and Google, and started following your competition on Instagram.
This generation (and those that come after) take online reviews very seriously. Keeping a positive brand sentiment and the ability to track or improve it will be key for health systems and healthcare IT companies.
#3 – They won’t conform to traditional healthcare
While having a regular physician may be the best for care, it’s not the best for convenience. Millenials expect doctors to be able to see all of their medical history at a moment’s notice and pick up wherever the last physician(s) left off. Their abandoned shopping cart follows them around for their entire life. Why can’t their health records? While it may be just a pipe dream to those who actually interact with EHRs, the complicated problems with interoperability are not well known to the public.
With little to no understanding of interoperability issues, staying loyal is more of a cost than a benefit. Options in telemedicine and doctor finding tools make it more convenient and cost-effective for Millennials to stray from their primary care physician. They can go anywhere that their insurance will cover, so why only go to their PCP during work hours?
Millennials are 31% more likely than their colleagues ages 35 and up to feel uncomfortable leaving work for preventive care appointments. Health IT companies navigating this process are attractive to Millennials and health systems looking to retain the healthy young clientele.
#4 – STOP and think before jumping on a trend
Facebook live streams, podcasts, Instagram accounts and the expensive mobile app are just a few examples of trends that need to be understood before they are implemented. Forcing apps when most Millennials have limited mobile space and few health needs is a cringe-worthy problem I have seen too many times. Baby boomers and Gen Xers certainly see these apps differently and could be a better market to target.
Do your research. Ask your target market if there is already a solution that solves the problem. Figure out how to make it better. Don’t just think outside the box, erase the box and start thinking. Uber didn’t help the taxi industry find customers easier. They changed the resource, workforce and access to transportation.
As this generation makes its way through healthcare, I expect to see many changes that could be painful. Health systems and health IT companies will have adjust to the needs of the new decision makers, and disruption as we know it will be disrupted.
SCOTTSDALE, Ariz., July 19, 2017 Amendola Communications, a nationally recognized, award-winning healthcare and healthcare technology public relations and marketing agency, announced today that Philip Anast has joined the agency as Senior Account Director. Anast will create and manage client programs, provide strategic counsel and positioning, and pitch media and other digital influencers for the agency’s healthcare/healthcare IT clients.
Anast brings 22 years of experience building, managing and executing PR programs for technology providers. He most recently served as vice president of client services for Tech Image, a digital PR agency and subsidiary of SmithBucklin, the world’s largest association management company. As executive team member at Tech Image, Anast was responsible for administering best practices, managing finances and overseeing client relationships in the agency’s hardware-software practice.
During his almost 16 years at the firm, he served supply chain, data integration and digital display clients targeting the HIT vertical and was a regular attendee of RSNA in Chicago since 2008, positioning client diagnostic monitors and other technologies with radiology and other imaging publications. He also served the telecommunications and unified communications sectors, working with providers and equipment manufacturers.
Agency CEO Jodi Amendola said: “Philip brings a deep set of skills and experience launching companies, brands and products across a broad spectrum of technologies, so we look forward to his delivering value to our healthcare/HIT clients. His knowledge positioning technology clients targeting the HIT vertical will bring new perspectives to our already strong Amendola PR and marketing teams.”
“Over the years, I gained familiarity with the work of Jodi and her team, and am grateful for the opportunity now to contribute to Amendola’s growth,” Anast said. “The pace of change affecting today’s businesses is unprecedented, especially in the healthcare sector. New technologies and advances in medicine and approaches to healthcare are disrupting the status quo. I look forward to working with our clients to use the power of storytelling to ensure their unique capabilities and ingenuity reach the right influencers.”
Anast holds M.S. and B.S degrees in Journalism from Northwestern University in Evanston, Ill.
SCOTTSDALE, Ariz., April 04, 2017 Amendola Communications, a nationally recognized, award-winning healthcare and healthcare IT public relations and marketing agency, announced today that Meridian Medical Management, a leading provider of revenue cycle, business intelligence, EMR and system integration services for large, multi-specialty physician groups and academic practice plans, has engaged the agency for its content creation services.
“Meridian Medical Management requires an agency that understands our market and produces quality results,” said Bill Stone, executive vice president of sales & marketing for Meridian Medical Management. “We searched for a partner with the ability to elevate and extend our marketing reach. Amendola Communications experience and capabilities in our industry will be of great benefit as we continue to grow and gain market traction.”
With more than 20 years of experience, Meridian Medical Management aids independent medical groups and leading academic medical centers, helping them realize new revenue sources. The company promotes quality and revenue growth initiatives through delivering technology, analytics and revenue cycle services to its customers.
“Meridian Medical Management enables healthcare organizations to optimize their revenue cycle, including identifying new opportunities,” said Jodi Amendola, CEO of Amendola Communications. “Our proven track record in promoting healthcare IT companies will be valuable in getting the word out about Meridian. We are excited to work with Meridian to develop content that will drive their marketing goals.”
The agency will work to elevate the Meridian brand to the forefront of the healthcare revenue cycle and analytics market. Under this agreement, Amendola will be responsible for delivering content demonstrating the thought leadership and expertise of Meridian Medical Management ‘s subject matter experts including blog posts, case studies and other materials.
About Meridian Medical Management
Meridian Medical Management, a portfolio company of The Gores Group, is a leading provider of revenue cycle, business intelligence, EMR and system integration services for large, multi-specialty physician groups and academic practice plans. Leveraging over a decade of experience, Meridian’s team of professionals provides revenue cycle performance, business intelligence and practice growth to some of the most prestigious medical groups in the country. For more information, please visit www.m3meridian.com.
