Digital marketing innovation and post-pandemic recovery: a comparative study of private hospital visitation in Bali’s tourism-dependent economy

This study investigates how digital innovations contributed to increasing patient visits to private hospitals in Bali, a region heavily dependent on tourism, in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic. By applying Rogers’ Diffusion of Innovations theory along with Mediascape theory, it explores how regulatory limits - specifically Indonesia’s Health Minister Regulation No. 1787/2010 - and Bali’s tourism reliance influenced the adoption of digital marketing strategies. Data collected from interviews with directors and marketing teams from 20 private hospitals, combined with content analysis of platforms like Instagram, YouTube, Facebook, TikTok, and hospital websites, reveal key outcomes. During the pandemic, many hospitals faced a sharp decline in non-COVID patient visits, with 25% experiencing drops exceeding 50%, and overall declines averaging between 30% and 50%. Prior to the pandemic, only one-third of hospitals used websites for promotion; after COVID-19, Instagram became the leading platform at 55% adoption, followed by multi-platform approaches at 10%, and Facebook at 15%. The shared digital content mainly consisted of service details (60%), health education (10%), and webinars (30%). Notably, 90% of hospitals reported a rise in patient visits correlated with their digital promotion efforts. Instagram had the highest effect on attracting visitors but entailed moderate regulatory challenges, while YouTube provided moderate benefits with fewer regulatory concerns. Regulatory constraints included bans on discount promotions and limited cross-border patient outreach, differing from European standards. The study concludes that despite these legal restrictions, digital promotion was effective in aiding recovery, offering a model adaptable to other emerging tourism economies, such as those in the Mediterranean and Southeast Europe.