Home > Blog > AdWords for Addiction Centers (part 3 of 7) Programmatic Advertising Edition

AdWords for Addiction Centers (part 3 of 7) Programmatic Advertising Edition

We began this guide by posing a simple question in Part 1 and Part 2:

Has your addiction/rehab center cracked the code on generating highly qualified leads since the shift with Google AdWords and recent changes in organic?

The addiction rehab industry is changing rapidly, and navigating through industry updates is almost a full-time job. The addiction treatment centers having the most success today have a diversified lead generation strategy.

When one or several channels inevitably under performs or lead generation shifts, a diversified strategy won’t impede call and email inquiries for intake staffs. Specifically, a holistic and diversified lead generation strategy will attract the right intakes over a sustainable period of time.

In Part 3, we’re discussing programmatic advertising, and how this channel can drive intakes for your addiction treatment facility’s marketing efforts by placing your center’s information in front of potential intakes that are the best fit for your recovery programs.

This Spotlight on Programmatic Advertising will cover:

• Programmatic Advertising’s definition
• Pros to Programmatic advertising for your addiction rehab center
• Cons (or limitations) to Programmatic advertising to driving leads for treatment facilities
• 3 Impactful ways to use programmatic advertising to diversify lead generation for addiction treatment centers

What is Programmatic Advertising?

Programmatic merges automation with online ad buying. Programmatic advertising utilizes A.I. to place media buys using real-time bidding, or RTB. Display ads are auctioned to the highest bidder. Programmatic advertising reduces the decision-making process of choosing where to place an ad, streamlines media buys, cuts back on budget bloat and produces favorable ROI.

Pros to Programmatic Advertising for Rehab Center Lead Generation

By 2022, 80% of advertising practices will be automated, according to predictions from a panel of nine marketing VP’s and speakers at Adobe’s Think Tank event at Advertising Week in September 2017. Programmatic advertising will continue to grow year over year, so the earlier your recovery center can incorporate programmatic and RTB the better.

If your addiction treatment center adds programmatic advertising into its lead generation strategy, in essence will gain its own full-time media planner. The benefits to using programmatic advertising in your lead generation program are immediate in today’s omnichannel, connected world:

• Programmatic advertising is an omnichannel solution, reaching multiple devices with different types of audiences simultaneously
• Media buys are in real-time, as are the insights – reporting is presented for easy measurement against campaign goals
• Enables rehabilitation facilities the ability to hone in on specific audiences
• Programmatic advertising works in tandem with all channels both online and offline in an addiction treatment facility’s media mix

Cons to Programmatic Advertising for Addiction Treatment Centers

Given the numerous pros addressed, one would surmise that programmatic is error-proof, but the limitations to programmatic are constantly monitored and responded to, so this channel remains viable to marketers. Ad fraud served as a roadblock to some marketers early on, but innovations and algorithm updates have made fraudulent programmatic or spammy ads easier to identify.

The best way to reduce ad fraud for programmatic is to maintain transparency and accountability with vendors and by leaning into the machine-learning tech making all this possible. Pay attention to the leads coming in and which leads are converting into intakes. When your team connects the data its receiving to which leads are closing consistently it can teach it back to the A.I. so it prioritizes outreach to developing leads that convert.

3 Tips to help Your Drug Rehab Center’s Programmatic Advertising Strategy

1. Retarget to spur engagement with interested intakes: Retargeting is a cost-effective tactic for any marketer’s toolkit. In this case, your rehab facility uses a tracking pixel with a cookie that serves a user a relevant ad for an addiction/rehab center based on the users previous session. Retargeting is also an effective way to raise awareness for a specific type of treatment your facility provides. If your facility tracks engagement metrics, retargeting can help your programmatic advertising strategy convert calls or inquiries with a strategic focus.
2. Test and optimize creative messages often: Frequent testing can help your addiction facility develop tone for its messaging, and utilizes programmatic advertising’s real-time data insights to drive more effective conversions with qualified audiences. Your drug treatment center doesn’t have to go after the hard-sell with testing, either. You can try to build awareness with softer calls to action to build awareness and trust for your treatment center.
3. Go mobile with your programmatic advertising displays: Nearly 80% of display ads are purchased programmatically, according to some of the latest data reported from Adweek. By 2019, that statistic will rise to 85.2%, according to data from eMarketer. Whether it’s an agency affiliate reaching out on behalf of an addiction facility client for a direct programmatic ad buy, or an automated, real-time bidding artificial intelligence solution, mobile will pave the way for the future of digital display advertising and will become a fixture of a holistic, addiction center lead generation strategy.

What’s next in the Rehab Facility Lead Generation Guide

Programmatic advertising can serve your treatment centers lead generation strategy in a number of ways. One thing is for certain: the future’s looking bold and it isn’t bullish to predict that programmatic advertising will play a key role for savvy addiction treatment center marketers for years to come.

TheTradeDesk provides some predictions for programmatic advertising’s impact in 2018. In our next installment, the team will take a look at the local-3 pack, and its role in a holistic lead generation strategy for addiction rehab centers. Of course, if your team is having difficulty incorporating programmatic advertising into its lead gen strategies, contact us. Our team will do its best to help your facility drive the right kind of qualified intake.