Cleveland Clinic's Pioneering Approach to Content Marketing + AI

A Content Disrupted podcast with Amanda Todorovich, Executive Director of Digital Marketing at Cleveland Clinic.

Cleveland Clinic’s Pioneering Approach to Content Marketing + AI with Amanda Todorovich from Skyword on Vimeo.

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Join us for an in-depth conversation with Amanda Todorovich, the driving force behind Cleveland Clinic's digital marketing success. As Executive Director, Amanda has spearheaded the transformation of Cleveland Clinic's online presence, turning it into a global leader in health content. In this episode, she shares her expertise on creating data-driven, empathetic content that builds trust and engages audiences. Amanda discusses the challenges of navigating an ever-expanding digital landscape, offering practical advice on channel selection and content optimization. She also provides valuable insights into the responsible integration of AI in healthcare marketing, providing a framework for responsible implementation and governance. With practical advice on navigating budget pressures and demonstrating ROI, this episode is a goldmine of information for marketing professionals seeking to elevate their digital presence and scale content marketing successfully.

Episode Highlights:

[04:22] Building a Content Marketing Powerhouse: Cleveland Clinic's Digital Evolution - Amanda chronicles Cleveland Clinic's remarkable journey from a small blog to a global health content powerhouse. When she joined in 2013, the blog was a hodgepodge of topics driven by internal stakeholders. Amanda's approach was transformative: she scrapped underperforming content and refocused on audience needs. Recognizing that people don't typically engage with hospitals unless necessary, she aimed to make Cleveland Clinic relevant in everyday life. The strategy evolved to encompass a comprehensive health library, addressing the complete patient journey from symptom searches to treatment information. This approach led to dramatic growth in brand awareness and trust. Amanda emphasizes the importance of being a trusted, credible source of information, especially in an era of rampant health misinformation. The content strategy expanded beyond SEO, focusing on meeting people where they seek answers and providing credible, understandable information. This consistent, user-centric approach has not only strengthened Cleveland Clinic's brand presence but also helped achieve aggressive goals cost-effectively. The evolution from a simple blog to a comprehensive digital health resource underscores the power of content marketing in healthcare, demonstrating how a strategic, audience-focused approach can transform a brand's digital presence and impact.
[09:36] Strategy for Maintaining Relevance Amidst Noise in Healthcare Content - Amanda delves into Cleveland Clinic's data-driven approach to content creation, emphasizing the importance of balancing various data sources. The strategy incorporates search data, site search analytics, social media trends, and current news topics. Amanda describes a dynamic process where her team huddles daily to discuss content priorities, ensuring hyper-relevance and timeliness. Unlike organizations with year-long editorial calendars, Cleveland Clinic maintains flexibility to respond to emerging health topics. They plan seasonally for predictable health needs but leave room for real-time adjustments. This agile approach was particularly crucial during the COVID-19 pandemic, allowing them to react swiftly to changing information. The content creation process involves multiple teams: SEO experts monitor search trends, social media specialists track platform discussions, and the newsroom keeps tabs on current events. All these inputs converge to inform daily publishing decisions. Amanda highlights the importance of this collaborative, data-informed approach in maintaining relevance and trust with their audience. She notes that while organic search drives most of their traffic, the strategy goes beyond SEO, focusing on providing credible, timely answers wherever people are looking for health information. This approach has enabled Cleveland Clinic to build a strong, trusted brand presence in the digital health space.
[16:54] Navigating the Explosion of Digital Channels and Platforms - Amanda addresses the challenge of managing content across an ever-expanding array of digital channels and platforms. She emphasizes the importance of strategic decision-making when considering new platforms, rather than succumbing to pressure to be everywhere. The key, Amanda suggests, is understanding the investment required to maintain an authentic presence on each platform and evaluating whether the target audience is genuinely active there. She cautions against forcing content onto platforms where it doesn't naturally fit, as audiences can easily detect inauthentic or sales-pitched content. Amanda describes Cleveland Clinic's approach to channel management, which includes a cross-functional committee that vets requests for new channels. This process ensures that any new platform addition aligns with the overall strategy and can be properly resourced. She stresses the importance of adaptability, noting that their channel strategy has evolved over time, with some platforms being added and others discontinued based on audience behavior changes. Amanda also touches on the differences between organic content marketing and advertising on social media, emphasizing the need for clarity in these distinctions. Overall, her advice centers on making informed, data-driven decisions about channel expansion, always prioritizing the ability to serve the audience meaningfully over simply having a presence everywhere.
[25:45] Piloting AI in Healthcare Marketing: Opportunities and Challenges - Amanda shares insights into Cleveland Clinic's approach to piloting AI in healthcare marketing. She emphasizes a cautious, methodical strategy, focusing on understanding and learning rather than rushing to implement every new tool. Amanda highlights the importance of identifying where AI can be beneficial without compromising the quality and empathy crucial in healthcare content. She notes that while AI may not be suitable for writing health library articles that require medical review and fact-checking, it can be valuable in areas like content iteration, analysis, summarization, and reporting. Amanda describes their "pilot and scale" approach, where small, targeted pilots are conducted with a focus on measurement and benchmarking. This includes evaluating the pre-AI process against the AI-assisted process to ensure genuine improvements in efficiency. She cautions against the misconception that AI tools are always free or cheap, especially in regulated industries with cybersecurity concerns. Amanda also touches on the potential for AI to enhance creativity, such as by generating new analogies for explaining medical concepts. However, she stresses the importance of maintaining a balance between AI assistance and human expertise, particularly in healthcare, where accuracy and trust are paramount. Overall, Amanda's approach to AI in marketing is characterized by careful evaluation, targeted implementation, and a focus on enhancing rather than replacing human capabilities.
[31:12] Implementing GenAI Responsibly: Education, Governance, and Best Practices - Amanda outlines Cleveland Clinic's comprehensive approach to implementing AI responsibly in their marketing efforts. She describes a multi-faceted strategy that begins with education, ensuring all 300 members of the marketing communications division have a baseline understanding of AI concepts and terminology. This educational initiative also addresses potential risks and sets clear guidelines for AI usage. Amanda highlights the establishment of a Marketing AI Council, with representation from every department, which meets monthly to discuss pilot projects, updates, and potential use cases. This council plays a crucial role in developing and enforcing AI usage policies, including drafting terms of use for marketing AI. Amanda emphasizes the importance of aligning these policies with broader enterprise guidelines and legal considerations, particularly regarding intellectual property and content monetization. She stresses the need for transparency and disclosure when using AI in content creation, especially in healthcare, where credibility is paramount. Amanda also touches on the challenge of balancing innovation with employee concerns about job displacement, advocating for a mindset of AI as a tool for enhancement rather than replacement. Overall, her approach focuses on creating a structured, informed, and ethical framework for AI adoption, ensuring it aligns with Cleveland Clinic's commitment to providing trustworthy health information.
[38:57] Managing Budget Pressures and Proving Content Marketing ROI in Healthcare - Amanda addresses the critical challenge of navigating budget pressures and demonstrating the ROI of content marketing in healthcare. She acknowledges the industry-wide financial struggles and the increasing pressure to justify marketing expenditures. Amanda emphasizes the importance of consistent communication about performance, advocating for proactive reporting even when not explicitly requested. She describes her practice of sending weekly emails to stakeholders, highlighting successes, acknowledging failures, and sharing key metrics. This regular communication helps maintain awareness of the team's work and its impact on the organization. Amanda stresses the importance of recognizing partnerships and expressing gratitude, which helps build support for content marketing initiatives. She notes that this consistent communication and demonstrated success have been crucial in securing resources and expanding the team. Amanda advises against relying solely on annual metric reports, instead emphasizing the power of visible, day-to-day impact, such as Cleveland Clinic's prominent presence in Google search results for health topics. She highlights how this approach has led to leadership proactively asking about resources needed for further growth, rather than her having to make the case for expansion. Amanda's strategy for proving ROI centers on delivering consistent value, communicating that value effectively, and building trust with leadership over time.

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