By Holley Stein

My confession: It’s been 30 years since I last paid my respects to an ice cream truck.

I’ve heard the music, I’ve watched it drive by, I’ve seen euphoric kids swarm to it and I’ve been tempted. I’ve even pulled out the $1.25 or so needed to get an orange creamsicle only to put it back in my wallet. I wondered if treats from the ice cream truck are as good as I remember. Surely it has to be. Children still promise parents all sorts of things to get them.

I helped plant flowers in the front and side flower beds up in the country last weekend. The weather was hot and sticky and I was thoroughly out of my comfort zone. Picture Eva Gabor in Green Acres. While knee deep in soil and all that comes with it, I heard the ice cream truck coming up the street. I ran inside, grabbed my $1.25 and bought an orange creamsicle.

Was it as good as I remembered? It was awful. I gave my dogs a bite of the ice cream off my fingers and threw it in the sink.

I don’t think the treat has changed. My tastes and what appeals to me, has.

The same is true for healthcare. Consumers are more educated. They’ve read the media and websites and as a result, their tastes are more defined. The promise of reform and technological advancements is changing expectations and the tastes of consumer audiences have most likely matured. Healthcare companies should not wait a decade to review how it communicates its plan to address issues and opportunities to internal and external audiences.

Here are tips to ensure your communication is still relevant and doesn’t come off artificial and sticky:

• Conduct employee surveys. Do your employees know how changes in healthcare reform affect your company and its services? Design an internal communications strategy to help keep them engaged and informed.
• Have your internal R&D team or an outside company conduct focus group research on your external audience. What is your marketing and communication telling them? What do they want to hear?
• Research what customer bloggers are saying about your company and its competition. If they are saying a lot, create a social media strategy to make sure you are communicating with them directly.
• Review company key messages to address what you’ve learned and update your communication and marketing material