The word marketing is usually associated with a negative connotation when used in conjunction with health care, but it
need not always be so. A good clean marketing not only help the health provider but also the health care recievers on an equal
if not a greater magnitude. The section contains tips on how to go about marketing your practice:
Marketing Plan:
- You must define the services you are delivering.
- Communicate the message to those persons and organistaion that will derive benifit from your services.
- Familiarise yourself with basic communication and marketing tools that will help you effectively convey your message.
- Ensure a top level of customer satisfaction,make sure that the customer service is a part of your culture by your
approach to your patients, staff, referral sources and your insurance payers.
How are you communicating?
Patient Education:
Pre vist information: websites, wriiten materials, brouchers etc.
Through out the clinical encounter.
Post discharge.
Referral source communication:
Hospital and staff.
Referring Physicians.
employer and their employees.
Case manager.
Communication Medias:
General consumer advertising.
Direct Marketing ( Letters, News letters, etc)
Public service announcements.
Websites.
Personal Contact.
Professional Speaking engagements.
Keeping an information of good referral source:
- Nurses.
- Primary care physicains.
- Chiropractors and bone setters.
- Media.
- Satisfied patients
- Internet.
- Yellow Pages.
- Case managers.
- ER and consukts.
- Hospital referral services.
Personal Marketing:
First impression: Always keep your best foot forward, remeber you have only first chance to make a first impression. You
should encite a confidence for yourself in the person you are meeting. " To win a man to your way of thinking first convince
him you are a friend."
Appearance:
Neat and clean.
Hair groomed and well cut.
Professional Clothing.
Speech:
Have agood tone: Cheerful, condescending, concerned depending on what the situation demands.
Improve your Inflection:
Practice stressing key words or phrases.
Breathe slowly and deeply.
Lower your pitch to sound reassuring and authorative.
Increase the pitch to convey enthusiasm and energy.
Put a smile in your voice.
Improve your volume control.
Get over yourself: Leave behind the intimidation, arrogance and egotism that you imbibed during your residency
years.
Key practice ares to understand:
Clinical services ( staff and physicains).
Physician governance and leadership.
daily management.
Front desk and patient acesses.
Coding/ billing and insurance.
Marketing.
Payer contracting.
Medical record keeping.
Human Resource management.
Key performance indicators:
Market penetration.
New patient volume.
Accounts recieveable and payable.
Overhead percentages.
Operative to Non operative ratios.
Some factors that impact patient inflow:
- Waiting time.
- Feedback on test result.
- Telephone Ettiquettes.
- Adequate parking.
- Phone calls returned.
- Helpfullness of the administrative office.
- Receptionist friendly and knew their name.
- Staff eager to help.
- Comfort of facilities.
- Acting on feedbacks from patients and referral sources.
