Why Engaging Your Partners in Healthcare Is Your Secret Sauce
Remember the 4 P’s of marketing? Product, Price, Place, and Promotion. Those little alliterative rules are so memorable and fun (we’ve even written a blog post about it!), but they don’t always apply to all clients. In some cases, the 4 P’s are even quite outdated. Even if the alliteration is fun! They don’t reflect the real-time relationship marketing strategies needed today.
For example, let’s look at healthcare, where promotion is still relevant but not nearly as much as participation. (Another P word!) In fact, participation is so key that we would argue that organizations that consistently engage with their external partners unlock entirely new forms of amplification, support, and advocacy. And that’s the true secret sauce. Engagement brings new voices, new visibility, and fresh energy to your brand, creating a sense of community around your products or services.
At COHN, we strongly (nay, Passionately!) believe that meaningful partner engagement beats passive awareness every single time. We’ve proven this approach again and again through award-winning work with organizations like Donor Alliance, Craig Hospital, and Valley View Hospital. The most effective campaigns we see are the ones rooted in real relationships, not transactional marketing efforts.
The Value of Partnership-Driven Growth and Relationship Marketing
When your organization builds strong partner relationships, the benefits multiply in ways you simply can’t achieve alone. For example, strong partnerships:
- Extend your message through trusted, third-party voices
- Open doors to new audiences through co-branded outreach and events, improving retention rates and patient loyalty
- Deepen credibility and trust by associating your brand with respected partners who share your mission
- Build momentum through collaboration, so you’re not relying only on internal resources
- Improve your competitive advantage by activating your partner network and using their communication channels to share impact stories
A great example of this in action is Donor Alliance’s Donor Dash. Donor Dash has become a community-wide platform because of its donor engagement-first approach. Partners include hospital partners, transplant recipients, donor families, sponsors, volunteers, and more. These wide-ranging partnerships have scaled the event’s visibility and built lasting public trust.
Another example is our work with Kidneys for Communities. Through strategic brand storytelling and smart web activation, we helped this client quickly build a national network focused on living donor awareness. And the partnerships that came out of that work are helping sustain momentum today, strengthening customer relationships and supporting customer feedback loops.
Check out the great work we’re doing with First Responders here.
From Transactional to Transformational
How’s that for an alliterative headline?! I bet you remember that one. But back to the blog post for a minute… one of the most important shifts healthcare marketers can make is moving partnerships from transactional to transformational. A logo swap or basic sponsorship won’t cut it anymore if you want to nurture effective relationships that drive long-term engagement.
We find that partners become true brand advocates when they feel seen, valued, and connected to your mission. That’s how you turn transactional marketing into meaningful relationship marketing.
Authentic engagement means shared goals, shared wins, and shared storytelling. Some of the best ways to elevate partner relationships include:
- Co-authoring educational or awareness content
- Cross-promoting initiatives that benefit shared audiences
- Collaborating on community events or impact-driven campaigns that demonstrate real-time commitment
At COHN, we help clients turn basic sponsorships and collaborations into true relationship-building. Our integrated model makes sure strategy, creative, and content all work together, so every partner activation aligns with your larger brand story and customer engagement goals.
What Real Partner Engagement Looks Like
When we talk about engagement, we mean intentional, ongoing behaviors. Some of the best practices we recommend include the 4 C’s of Engagement (which we just coined right here in this blog. Take note!)
- Co-Create: Collaborate on content and experiences that benefit both sides. For example, you could create partner Q&A videos, co-developed toolkits, or shared awareness assets.
- Celebrate: Recognize and spotlight your partners, both publicly and personally. This could include campaign recaps, donor spotlights, thank-you videos, or collaborative media coverage.
- Communicate: Stay connected year-round. Don’t just check in when you need something. We recommend regular updates, partner briefings, and behind-the-scenes previews of upcoming initiatives.
- Connect: Introduce your partners to each other. You’re building a community, not just a contact list. This can take the form of special events, roundtables, or collaborative content series.
Real-World Inspiration: Donor Engagement in Action
If you want a great example of what partner-first marketing looks like, check out Donor Alliance. This client doesn’t just list partners. They activate them. Through donor stories, annual campaigns, hospital collaborations, and initiatives like Donor Dash, they:
- Share the spotlight in communications
- Showcase partner impact stories
- Build a network of recurring collaborators
The Ripple Effect of Meaningful Engagement
When you engage your partners well, the benefits don’t stop at a single campaign. You’ll see ripple effects across your organization. For example:
- Visibility: Campaigns reach broader audiences through partner amplification
- Loyalty: Engaged donors and partners are more likely to stay involved long term
- Attraction: New partners are drawn to your professionalism and authenticity
- Morale: Your internal staff feels energized by external recognition and collaboration, creating a sense of excitement and purpose
We’ve seen these effects play out in healthcare organizations large and small, from Kaiser Permanente to Panorama Orthopedics to many others. Their success shows how important relationship marketing and customer feedback are to amplify your mission.
Key Takeaways for Healthcare Leaders and Marketers
As you think about partner engagement in your own marketing, here are a few quick takeaways.
Audit your partner list. Who are your most engaged allies? Who might need re-engagement? These are simple things to correct as long as you keep an eye on your partnership engagement. Also be sure to make collaboration part of your annual strategy. Budget for it. Plan for it. Do it!
As a brand agency, we always want to make the case for partners to become a part of YOUR brand story, not an afterthought. Use content, storytelling, and recognition to build a partner-first culture. And remember, if you’re not treating partners as extensions of your brand, you’re leaving both impact and opportunity on the table—missing out on the customer loyalty and competitive advantage that strong relationships provide.
COHN Marketing: Turning Engagement Into Your Greatest Asset
At COHN, we help healthcare and nonprofit brands move beyond messaging into true relationship marketing. From strategy to storytelling to execution, we help you activate your partner network and amplify your mission.
With more than 20 years of integrated marketing experience, and award-winning campaigns in the healthcare space, COHN knows how to turn your partnerships into a real competitive advantage. Let us help you transform your partner engagement, improve donor feel, and use customer feedback and real-time insights to maximize impact.
