If growth is stalling, the problem is rarely the media plan. It is friction in the patient experience that marketing cannot fix after the fact.

On this episode of Ignite, Cardinals VP of Brand Marketing Ashley Petrochenko sits down with Ben Whitaker, Director of Digital Strategies, Marketing, and Communications at UofL Health, to unpack why sustainable healthcare growth starts long before the appointment and often breaks at the digital front door. Drawing on 25 years of digital and SEO experience across industries, Ben shares how consumer behavior, not new tactics, should shape SEO, AI search, site experience, reviews, and scheduling. This conversation matters now as AI accelerates search behavior and raises the stakes for accuracy, trust, and usability across the entire patient journey.

You'll learn:

• Why SEO still underpins patient acquisition in an AI-driven search world

• How small experience gaps quietly kill conversion and retention

• What healthcare marketers can fix without waiting on a full redesign

• How marketing can lead cross-functional alignment around patient access

If improving patient access and driving real growth are priorities for 2026, this is the episode to listen to next.

RELATED RESOURCES

Connect with Ben - https://www.linkedin.com/in/bentwhitaker/

What is a Patient Journey? Examples to Grow Your Practice - https://www.cardinaldigitalmarketing.com/healthcare-resources/blog/what-is-a-patient-journey-grow-your-practice/

Optimizing for AI Search: A New Era in Healthcare Marketing - https://www.cardinaldigitalmarketing.com/healthcare-resources/blog/optimizing-for-ai-search-a-new-era-in-healthcare-marketing/

How to Build a Full-Funnel Healthcare Marketing Strategy - https://www.cardinaldigitalmarketing.com/healthcare-resources/blog/healthcare-full-funnel-marketing-strategy/

How a Primary Care Provider Futureproofed Their SEO in an AI-Driven Search World - https://www.cardinaldigitalmarketing.com/healthcare-resources/blog/search-content-strategy-ai-landscape/