The Marketing Equation: Are You Using it?

BY DOUG SIMS

Marketing has changed over the last 4 to 5 years. You need to ask yourself, "Have I kept up with the times?" and "Am I taking the right steps when it comes to marketing my practice?"

Many ophthalmology practices attempt to "brand" themselves by running newspaper, radio and television ads based on outdated "branding" techniques from the 50's, 60's and 70's.

While it is true that if you spend enough money you can build a brand in your hometown or area, what is it really accomplishing? The best-case scenario you can hope for under these conditions is that when a perspective patient decides that he/she needs to see a doctor about a problem with his/her eyes, he/she might think of your brand. That's a pretty expensive way to build an ophthalmology or refractive practice.

What is Marketing Really Supposed to Do?

On a very fundamental level, a practice's marketing plan should be designed to gain a prospect's attention and help facilitate the educational process. Your job is to distinguish yourself from competitors and make it easy for the prospect to take the next step.

Proper marketing should educate the consumer to a point where he/she now knows why you are a better choice than your competitor and enable them to make an informed decision rather than one based solely on price.

A Common Mistake – Platitudes

One of the biggest mistakes marketers make is saying something that everyone else is already saying. The message is stated it in such a routine way that potential patients just tune it out.

For example, take one of your ads or one of your competitor's ads. Remove the name and address of your practice and put in the name and address of your competitor. Does the ad read the same? In most cases, it does.

If every ad, and therefore every practice, sounds just like every other practice then the only way a consumer can select one practice over the other is by cost comparison. You are forcing prospective patients to make decisions based only on price since they cannot differentiate you from other practices. You need to improve your strategic marketing plan.

Strategic Marketing vs. Tactical Marketing

Strategic marketing has to do with what you say, how you say it and to whom you say it. In other words, it's the content of your marketing message.

Tactical marketing is the execution of your strategic marketing plan. It is the medium by which your message is delivered. This includes generating leads, placing media, creating marketing tools and implementing a follow-up system.

There is a distinction between strategic and tactical marketing. Most people mistakenly assume that when talking about marketing, you are automatically referring to tactical marketing — placing ads, generating leads, sending out mailers, attending trade shows, creating brochures and implementing a follow-up system. They fail to realize that the strategic side of the coin is almost always more important than the marketing medium.

What Do John/Jane Smith Really Think?

When trying to get your message across, it has to be conveyed at the same emotional level as your potential patient and said in a way that will be accepted. In order to do this, you have to have some idea of how your John/Jane Smith thinks.

While you might not be able to hire a marketing firm to conduct in-depth surveys or run an extensive research project, you do have patients you can do a thumbnail research project on. This may sound ominous, but a few questions are all that need to be asked:

1. What were your main concerns before coming in for ____ procedure?
2. What stopped you from moving forward earlier?
3. What would have would have helped you in making the decision?

How the Marketing Equation Works for Your Practice

There are basically three steps to the equation, that if followed correctly add up to success.

■ Interrupt. You need to capture the attention of your prospective patients. You can accomplish this effectively by using something an idea that is familiar, unusual or problematic (or a combination of these). A small business needs to use "hot buttons" to get their prospects' attention. For example, what is the biggest "hot button" for a LASIK prospect? The answer is fear. Use the answers from the above short survey to find the right button to push.

■ Engage and Educate. Once you have captured the prospective patients' attention by identifying their fears and concerns, engage and educate them on how advances in whatever surgery or treatment you are targeting have made the procedure safe and how to choose a surgeon that's right for them.

■ Offer. This final element of the marketing equation is critical. The offer must be low risk and preferably free. Many LASIK practices think that offering a "free" consultation is a good offer, but it is really not low risk. The patient must feel as though he/she already knows enough about the procedure to determine that he/she would want it if he/she is a good candidate and can afford it.

Most prospects are still missing key elements of knowledge and therefore, will not take you up on a free consultation. According to national reports, only about 5% to 9% of the potential LASIK market have taken advantage of the procedure. This means that there are candidates out there waiting, researching and talking to friends about the procedure but have not taken the next step yet.

A better offer for a potential patient is to bring your practice into his/her home via an informational DVD or report that educates him/her about the procedure you offer and shows why your practice is different from other offices.

You are in practice due to your conviction that you are helping patients with a service that will benefit and enhance their lifestyle. Apply what is described in this article and see your practice expand. In essence, the marketing equation is: interrupt + engage and educate + offer = increased revenue for your practice so that you can promote your convictions on a wider and wider scale. OM

Doug Sims is president of Fast Track Marketing, Inc. He can be reached via his Web site at www.fast-trackmarketing.com.