Insights on Healthcare Marketing

Time to go out and meet a potential new referral source.
Time to handwrite a personal thank-you note to a new patient or referral source.
Time to call a patient after a procedure or difficult illness to see how they are feeling.
Time to get involved with a community organization.
Time to personally thank your top referral sources on a regular basis.
Time to reach out and apologize when something goes wrong or someone must wait too long.
Time to recognize a colleague or staff member who does a great job.

Often it is the little things that create the deepest connections and propel your practice the most.

One of the most powerful quotes I’ve read in a long time:

“Your customers will never be any happier than your employees.”
                        — John DiJulius, Entrepreneur and Customer-Service Guru

Think about it. Health care is a service, an experience. And it is dependent upon human interactions and relationships. Your employees ARE the face of your brand. Are they happy?

Have you ever seen or received one of those coins or notes that says, “Caught being good?” 

I love the concept. We’re all familiar with random acts of kindness. Why not perform random acts of acknowledgement?  

In our busy, digital world, it is easy to feel invisible. So, take notice! Show appreciation. Let someone know you see them — that what they are doing truly matters. It can be a staff member, a colleague, a referral source or a community partner. It can be something small (sometimes this can be the most powerful kind of recognition) or something large. 

Recognize …

Have you ever seen or received one of those coins or notes that says, “Caught being good?” 

I love the concept. We’re all familiar with random acts of kindness. Why not perform random acts of acknowledgement?  

In our busy, digital world, it is easy to feel invisible. So, take notice! Show appreciation. Let someone know you see them — that what they are doing truly matters. It can be a staff member, a colleague, a referral source or a community partner. It can be something small (sometimes this can be the most powerful kind of recognition) or something large. 

Recognize …

“You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view…until you climb into his skin and walk around in it."                       
                                                                                                                                                                                                                  — Atticus Finch, To Kill a Mockingbird

Empathy. It is the experience of understanding another person's thoughts, feelings, and condition from their point of view, rather than from your own. It sounds soft, but in the “disconnected” world in which we all live and work, practicing empathy is actually strategic.

Rainy days. They can be pretty miserable, and we have certainly had more than our share lately in Central Florida. However, they also provide your practice an opportunity to shine and make someone’s day a little brighter through a small random act of kindness. Here are a few we’ve come across in our community:

I recently read where fewer Americans agree with the statement that “most people can be trusted” than at any time in the past 40 years. Yet, building trust is critical to any successful business relationship, and I would argue especially in the business of delivering healthcare. 

So how can you build trust with your patients, referral sources and even your staff? I believe there are four basic steps:

Every day your organization has choices:

• Bait and switch or honest advertising.
• Trickery or transparency.
• Empty promises or fulfilled truths.
• Scripted responses or genuine conversation.
• Broken links or technology that transforms.
• Endless phone loops or extravagant human welcomes and assistance.
• Lengthy on-hold wait times or prompt responses.
• Buried rules and exclusions or clear communication.

Too many organizations today make the wrong choices. The consequences? Angry patients, negative reviews, low retention and a skeptical market. They put all of their energy and resources into acquiring new patients rather than delighting the ones they have. 

Everyone wishes they had one. And at times, it seems as if some practices believe that an experienced, savvy marketing team has the tools to make marketing miracles happen for them.  

They don’t though. In fact, there is very little, if anything, your marketing team can do for you if your practice is not personally invested. And by that, I don’t just mean financially, I mean spending time, focus and energy. 

Because at the end of the day, truly successful marketing is about relationships and experiences. And while a good marketing professional can lay out a fantastic plan, help open doors, spark connections, and provide you with creative and compelling tools, the true power of success lies within you and your team. 

How does your practice welcome a new physician? Too often, I find new physicians are “baptized by fire,” immediately thrown into a busy practice after just a couple of days of “orientation.” They are provided policies and procedures, but do they have an opportunity to learn and embrace the culture of your practice? Do they fully understand expectations and accountability? Have you engaged them in practice marketing? Have you provided them the tools to market and grow their practice?

Here are a few tips to improve the on-boarding process: