“Health is our greatest wealth,” writes the United Nations in a paper on how health insurers can foster better health outcomes.
In the United States, more than 66 million people get their health coverage from Medicare and every year, Medicare participants can select their annual plans during Medicare’s open enrollment period, which takes place from October 15 - December 7.
This time window, Medicare Annual Enrollment Period (AEP), is when enrollees can change Medicare choices – making important health care decisions that will impact them for the year ahead.
For marketers, now is the time to begin planning for how to reach Medicare participants during this key timeframe with important information about health insurance options.
Newspapers are an excellent way to communicate Medicare open enrollment marketing messages. Here’s why.
Reaching Medicare participants with newspaper buys
Given that Medicare participants are largely adults aged 65 and older, it’s essential to remember that this demographic are avid consumers of print media, especially local newspapers. Moreover, seniors often find newspapers more credible and trustworthy compared to many digital sources.
Here are a few of the strategic advantages of print newspaper advertising during Medicare AEP:
- Local targeting capabilities: Newspapers also offer fantastic local targeting capabilities, including the ability to strategically focus on specific zip codes, cities, or counties, making it ideal for local Medicare agents and providers. Beyond just geographic targeting, local papers have deep connections with their communities, resulting in more engaged and loyal readership.
- Extended shelf life: Seniors typically like to research and compare plans thoroughly, and a physical ad can serve as a lasting reminder, making the long shelf life of print ads another significant advantage. Unlike fleeting digital ads, a newspaper ad can stay on a kitchen counter or desk for days, providing multiple impressions and more consideration time.
- Distraction-free environment: Unlike digital platforms, print newspapers have less ad clutter and no disruptive pop-ups or autoplay videos. This lack of distractions leads to higher ad visibility and a more pleasant reading experience.
- Seamless integration: Newspaper ads can also seamlessly integrate with digital and broadcast campaigns. Including QR codes and website links in print ads can bridge offline to online conversions, amplifying the overall media strategy.
- Cost effectiveness: From a cost perspective, local newspaper advertising is often more affordable than TV or national digital ads. Plus, many newspapers offer special inserts or features during AEP, focused specifically on health and Medicare topics, providing an ideal placement opportunity.
How Mediaspace can help
Incorporating newspaper ads into marketers’ AEP media strategy helps to reach the right audience, build trust, and drive leads through a proven, cost-effective channel. When combined with digital, direct mail, and broadcast, it can significantly boost visibility and response rates.
It can be challenging, however, to identify geo-targeted publications and negotiate the most cost-effective, streamlined, and value-enhanced buys.
Mediaspace brings unrivaled expertise in strategizing, executing and managing local newspaper buys. Reach out to Mediaspace now to prepare for the key Medicare Annual Enrollment Period (AEP).
