Insights: Healthcare Marketing

What do your referring physicians really think about you and your practice? 

Have you ever asked? 

One of the first things we recommend when working with a new client is that they allow us to interview some of their referral sources — both their top referrers and a few who perhaps don’t refer as much as the practice would like them to. We ask the client to contact the referral sources first to seek permission and open the door for us to contact them. This approach allows us to have open conversations with these referring physicians, asking them about their experiences and opinions with the practice — the good, the bad and the ugly. And the result is honest feedback and recommendations that we can take back to our client to help them improve. 

In healthcare, we have worked hard in recent years to make patients feel more “connected,” whether it be patient portals, electronic health records or smart phone apps. All of these things can certainly enhance connection and the patient experience. However, they MUST be supported by human connections — by real relationships with you and your staff. A warm welcome, a nurturing visit, someone who remembers you and what is most important to you, an unexpected follow-up note or call. These are the personal connections that have always been and remain the heart of good healthcare.

If you were going to set out on a road trip, one of the first things you would probably do is plug the destination address into your phone or GPS to map out your route to get there.

Marketing works the same way. You can’t set out on the road, initiating strategies and creating content, without knowing:

1. Where you want to end up (your measurable goals)
2. How you are going to get there (your marketing plan)
3. Any obstacles that might get in your way 

And it is worth investing the time and effort to carefully research and chart your route. After all, the best trips (and most effective marketing campaigns) usually follow the road less traveled. 

There is a video clip that seems to circulate social media in recent years whenever there is a disaster — natural or manmade. It is an interview with beloved children’s TV pioneer Mister Rogers talking about how whenever there was something scary or catastrophic on the news when he was a child, his mother taught him to always look for the people who were helping and find strength and courage in them. 

One of the first exercises we do with every practice we work with is a SWOT analysis — looking at their strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats. We perform our own but then we also ask the practice — each physician, the administrator/office manager, and key staff members — to do so as well. 

A well-done SWOT is more than just a consulting tool. Done properly, it can be an invaluable opportunity to slow down, focus and evaluate. It requires that you look honestly and introspectively at what is working well and what needs attention. It also means taking time to focus on your competitors and how they are performing and differentiating themselves in your market. 

Let’s break down the key components:

We’ve all experienced it at some point — a genuine greeting that instantly brightens our day or puts us at ease. Earlier this week I walked into a new medical building in my community, and their “concierge” at the desk warmly welcomed me and personally directed me to where I needed to be. It felt good, and it made me feel good about coming there. 

Are your patients experiencing the same sort of greeting? 

Your employees are a direct extension of you and often have even more direct interaction and conversation with your patients than you do. At times, they are quite literally your right hand, your voice, and sometimes even your memory.

Are they happy? Do they feel appreciated?

Here are a few simple ways to reconnect with them:

What have you done for me lately? 

It is a trite statement, but one that rings true for many referring physicians if they don’t feel recognized and appreciated. 

Here are a few simple ways to reconnect with them:

It’s so easy to go through our work lives thinking no news is good news. If no one is complaining — patients, staff or referral sources — life must be good.

Yet, despite our increased “connection” through technology, we, as a society, tend to be more disconnected than ever before — in some cases this is actually because of technology. 

Rather than directly addressing conflicts or concerns with you, patients and referral sources may simply move on. And often, by the time a practice realizes that has occurred, it is too late — new relationships have already been established.

So how can you prevent this?  Reconnect.  

There are a lot of simple ways you can do this. Let’s start with patients:

It is the title of a current pop song, but it also rings true for our healthcare system.

We may be more “connected” then ever before thanks to technology and electronic health records, but we are having less human interaction and fewer genuine conversations. Yet, one-on-one interaction is key to developing and strengthening any successful relationship — personal or professional.

You can’t single handedly change the entire “system,” but you can take steps to initiate conversations within your own practice and community — among staff, among your partners, with patients, with your referral sources, and with your neighbors. Find out what is important to them. Solicit their ideas and feedback. And because very few do this anymore, people will take notice.