Paid search initiative contributes to exceptional demand for groundbreaking “Inspire Therapy”
As the first healthcare system in the state of Ohio to debut a revolutionary new treatment for obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) called “Inspire Therapy,” University Hospitals needed to find the ideal customers to fill up its program as quickly as possible. Upward, a longtime paid search partner of University Hospitals and similar regional healthcare enterprises, delivered more qualified leads than the client could accommodate.
A Good Night's Sleep for a Segmented Audience
Over 18 million people in the United States suffer from sleep apnea, but the client needed to find customers who met extremely specific participation requirements – like individuals who had tried but failed with continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) treatment regimens.
CPAP, while effective, can be prohibitively uncomfortable – up to 50 percent of patients simply can't tolerate the clunky mask, which forces air into the patient's airway. Patients who tried CPAP and failed as recently as one year prior were likely to give up on treatment for their condition altogether, falling out of contact with doctors. These prime potential patients and their loved ones would be overjoyed to find an effective, tranquil treatment – if only they knew what to search for.
Twelve years and $50 million in the making, Inspire Therapy can make peaceful, safe sleep a reality for moderate to severe OSA sufferers – and University Hospitals brought this treatment to the region for the first time. The Inspire Therapy implant functions like a responsive pacemaker for the respiratory tract, sending electric pulses to stimulate airway muscles during sleep.
A rare opportunity presented itself: University Hospitals could establish itself as Northeast Ohio's premier Inspire Therapy provider before their fierce regional competitors debuted their own programs. University Hospitals challenged the search team at Upward to develop an incisive, cost-effective strategy to gain a foothold as quickly as possible.
Upward responded with a focused PPC campaign dedicated to attracting high quality web visitors from the region – especially those looking for treatment alternatives to CPAP, as well as those searching for new treatments for OSA. Ultimately, the client and search marketers would measure success by the number of eligible appointment requests. A well-defined target, combined with an aggressive bidding strategy underscoring the value of any conversion, proved effective in reaching that goal.
Awakening New Visitors
The campaign brought in an average of 290 web visitors each month, and on-page statistics reflected the PPC campaign's precise targeting. Even though some visitors may not have been exactly sure what they were looking for, they got the critical details they needed.
The client quickly filled its schedule at a low cost per acquisition with informed, eligible leads. Upward had to pause the campaign in December 2014, only because the client had run out of room to accept more appointment requests.
An outstanding example of a short-term PPC campaign helping to meet long-term objectives, the Upward search team played its part in establishing University Hospitals as the premier regional destination for Inspire Therapy consultation.