Healthcare is more of a trust issue & is not like something you buy & use. It's not a commodity or a brand. Most people won't take a chance with their health. Personally, as a customer, people don't see healthcare as an industry.

I agree with Amy but would also like to add the fact that because healthcare is one of the most heavily regulated industries, many of the marketing methods used in other industries may either not be applicable or may not even be legal or ethical. As part of a large MCO, we have many challenges regarding how we can market to potential Medicare members and educate the public on different and new product offerings, while not crossing the lines into anything considered as “predatory marketing".

I agree with Amy and Armando. I also believe that it is hard to market healthcare because healthcare is not something an individual wants to buy. In a very general sense, people think of needing healthcare when they are sick. Another challenge may be that it is hard to pinpoint a price/cost. In other purchasing situations, when consumers consider buying a product or service, they make a choice on whether the value for the price is enough.

Laura

I would argue that marketing methods are rampent in healthcare, and affect the healthcare market significantly. Turn on the TV for 10 minutes and you are guaranteed to see a drug or DME ad.

For example, take a look at the top ten Rx from 2001:

http://www.umdnj.edu/umcweb/marketing_and_communications/publications/umdnj_magazine/hstate/winter_spring01/features/feature01_drugs.htm

Many of these medications are "lifestyle" medications - some with limited science.

As far as MCO advertising - you have to realize that in health care the consumer and the payer are different people. That ultimatelly affects how and why you advertise.

Much of the emphasis is on the consumer in this discussion on marketing. There may also be a lack of consensus within the healthcare organization as in what to market and how to do it.

Many interesting and thoughtful comments here. I think the marketing issue in health care is very mixed, HCO by HCO. Much of it is driven these days by budget -- or lack of budget.

There is also the need to make sure that all materials meet FTC guidelines. For example, if you have a billboard that says "The highest quality of care in the city." Do you have documentation, proof that you offer the highet quality care in the city. The FTC has been lack on investigation into such claims, but I believe they will begin to do so under the next Administration.

Funny billboard I saw the other day: "Legally we can't say we are the best." With the logo. I wonder what the FTC would say about this one?

Full disclosure -- I work for an investor-owned HCO. I've often thought about our public hospital systems, those funded by taxpayers' dollars in order to take care of indigent patients, who have seemingly never-ending dollars to use on advertising, billboards, mass mailings. Any thoughts on this one?

Great question. I believe the real answer to the question lies in whether or not you believe health care is a service for the common good of our communities or a service provided as a business. Clearly, it is a little of both. However, if you view health care more as a service for the common good of your community, you are probably more likely to be involved in collaborate efforts with your competitors than not. Consequently, there is a complex dynamic in play when determining what to market. In the end, keep in mind that providing a perfect experience is the best marketing!

Timothy, I fully agree with your statement about providing a perfect experience. There is no marketing source more valuable than word of mouth referrals. I believe there is branding in health care and the marketing tool that serves this industry best is "direct relationship marketing" - building rapport and relationships with the physicians who support the facilities, the vendors, the patients, etc. All are "customers" in one respect or another.

Actually, I believe healthcare is indeed a commodity...a special one...but a commodity nonetheless. Providers who can provide exceptional customer service and excellent patient outcomes will rule the day.

I believe that the main hurdle behind marketing within the healthcare industry is that the consumer in many instances does not have the full choice, he/she is bound to only the choices offered to him/her by the managed care plan, insurance company etc. however, there are certain services within the healthcare industry that can be marketed easier than others. As such marketing efforts within healthcare can only be segmented and rarely targetted to the mass

I'm not sure if there will ever be an end to this thread of comments. This is such a dynamic and interesting topic for all HCO's. We're all faced with variables that we cannot control such as the MCO's/payors dictating HCO's and providers. However, we're also faced with the reality that healthcare is a business and marketing is a major part of the success of that business. Securing market share in your primary market is crucial and communicating that your facility has the clinical expertise, state of the art technology, customer satisfaction and accessibility that other facilities nearby do not, is even a greater challenge. Our HCO does a good job promoting itself as an entity but the service line specific marketing is where we fall short. This is where non HCO businesses thrive with good marketing programs. Their service line is usually 1 or 2 services or products and they do a nice job branding and promoting that service line. Some HCO's have multiple service lines or COE's to promote which may actually "Muddy the waters" a bit. From my perspective, it is difficult to apply standard business related marketing strategies to healthcare organizations. We need to be creative and we also need to be cognizant of our service area, our competition and our market share. I think that marketing for HCO's is multi-faceted and is more site specific. I also believe that it is certainly a much needed entity for survival in this day and age. I'm not sure if there will ever be a right way to market to PCP's and other referring providers but communicating with consumers is something that we can do and measure.

I think Garrett is absolutely correct in that healthcare is a business and to survive we need to have an adequate marketshare. When an organization makes an investment in technology and staff training the public needs to know about it and become informed consumers. This is true with service lines as well as practitioners.