Medical Marketing: Strategically Driving Healthcare Sector

Innovative medical marketing, with modern communication tools including social media, helps in creating a new healthcare ecosystem and drives growth strategically.

The Indian healthcare sector is at the cusp of transformation and a new health economy is emerging fast. Indian Healthcare market is expected to grow between USD 450 million & USD 470 million by 2025. (Ref- PwC Report- https://www.pwc.in/assets/pdfs/publications/2014/india-healthcare-market-potential-opportunities-for-market-entry.pdf).

The new healthcare ecosystem will define the healthcare delivery and products space with a very large network of hospitals, eminent private practitioners, speciality clinics, diagnostics and medical technology (Med Tech) that address the needs of quality and affordable services. In this context, medical marketing is going to be a critical component for the development of the healthcare sector. Given the increasing demand for healthcare services and the critical role of providers, including practitioners and health institutions, the time is right to align the new ecosystem to view medical marketing as a strategic driver.

Medical marketing is not a new phenomenon. However, conventional marketing tools have now given way to innovative practices and processes combined with a multidisciplinary approach. The new approach draws its strength from traditional marketing principles and adds science-based strategies to prevention, health promotion and health protection. Drawing from fields such as marketing, communication, and public health promotion, medical marketing provides a framework of theories, strategies and techniques that can be used to guide work in public health research, interventions, and communication campaigns. New age tools for information and communication using smartphones, social media and digital marketing have transformed the way the Indian Healthcare sector looks at medical marketing now. Medical marketing consists of a complex framework that provides guidance for designing health interventions, campaigns, communications, and research projects.

It is promising to note that the sector realises that efficiency and innovations are key drivers to expand the market. Medical marketing primarily aims at expansion of the existing markets. This will need a complex, time-bound and strategic initiative, not some simple push interventions. Here, we need to underline that the regulatory uncertainty and pricing pressure were top sustainability concerns plaguing India’s healthcare providers. Competitive intensity, a severe deficit of public trust and intense activism were other leading factors. Hence, there is a strong need for increasing transparency, improving hospital and patient connect, and dispelling the negative perception of the industry. With the aim of balancing the need for returns to the investors and affordability for patients, there is a need for hospitals to look at their marketing strategies for broadening their scope and coverage for services they offer.

Leading healthcare providers in India have been resolute to deliver world-class care at a fraction of the international costs to the people of India and also to those who come to us from around the world. Medical marketing has been playing a crucial role in the development of the Indian Medical Tourism or Medical Value Travel sector. In most major disciplines including Transplants too, our capabilities and outcomes are at par and sometimes even better than several international hospitals and the costs are a mere 20% as compared to hospitals in the developed world.

For medical marketing purpose, we have several unique features which can be leveraged. It is well acknowledged that the Indian providers have been regularly delivering clinical outcomes that are at par with the global best centres.

Hence, it is paramount that the Indian practitioners and health institutions adopt a robust medical marketing plan and strategy to leverage their strength in the sector. However, we need to follow some principles for ethical and rational marketing, without in any manner, soliciting patients directly. Medical marketing strategies are important for business and service promotion. Implementing the wrong marketing strategies could cause severe damage to the credibility and brand image.

Here are some DO’s and DON’Ts for Medical Marketing

DO’s

Identify and Define Target Market: First of all, we need to identify and define the target market in terms of the service offering. Clarity on ‘who needs our services’ and ‘would they be able to afford?’ – is needed to identify right target groups. Well-targeted marketing is the best way to attract new patients. Target marketing is always advisable for health institutions against mass marketing, as the later may cause avoidable spending.
Pass on key Messages: A clear message needs to be passed on to the customers/patients. Key messages should not only be clear about the products and services but, they should make patients feel confident about the services we offer and they should be comfortable to use our services. It is crucial that our patients need to believe that our services are what they need.
Counsel patients and educate them: There are several ways to counsel and educate our patients. Educating our target groups is the key to successful medical marketing. We can educate our patients by providing beneficial information on our website about common illnesses and concerns. Our websites need to be professional and customer-friendly. Holding CMEs (Continuous Medical Education) programmes for physicians and other Healthcare staff frequented by patients to further increase their understanding of medical conditions & bring them up-to-date with the current trends in the medical field.
Keep on Innovating: Our marketing materials should not be deceptive and instead should create realistic expectations. Each piece of marketing material needs to be accurate and concise. Customers always appreciate transparency and honesty. Medical marketing strategies are successful based on the tools, techniques, and methods we use.
Create a simple contact platform: Our actions should give trust to the potential patients to contact us, whether they are for scheduling an appointment, or receiving free brochures etc. We should have at least one call to action on each page of our websites. Whether we are handing out brochures, flyers, hanging posters, or business cards, we need to be effective by handing out more than one media source. Please make sure that your actions on the ground ( hospital or healthcare delivery area) speak louder and give a completely different level of experience to the patient.
Bank on ‘Word of Mouth’ Publicity Too– Patient to patient referrals is more effective. It works best when you have the emails of past and present patients to send newsletters and other health-related content through email with their prior consent. Current patients can give business by referring their family and friends and this solely depends on their actual experience. We are witnessing positive results in this context while dealing with overseas patients.
Community Outreach Programme–You can make your business known by being active in the community through outreach and awareness drives. Through these marketing tools, people and community know about new treatments and procedures offered by you or your healthcare facility. Practitioners can join groups and clubs in their community, offer expert advice on topics in the specialised field and attend community events, which all good ways to gain the trust of the community. Conducting events within your geography like the simple BLS ( Basic Life Support) training will help develop a positive image of your organization. Once you and your business are well-known, you would certainly have a higher probability of the community preferring to use the healthcare services.
Abide by Law: Before practitioners start advertising their practice, it is always advisable for them to know the laws associated with their method of advertising. Advertising efforts will attract new customers, but should not violate any norms, rules and regulations. Health institutions need to comply with all regulations and norms for transparency and accountability.

DON’Ts

Offer no false Assurance: It is not at all advisable to offer discounted services to attract more customers. Even a waiver can lead to unethical practice. Discounts, waiver and incentives will do more damage than helping in enhancing business.
Do not wait for patients: We need to be the first mover. Waiting for patients to find us is the worst thing we can do. To get customers to come to your business, use a variation of marketing methods and be as proactive as possible. Apply all marketing strategies and be proactive.
Avoid unsolicited calls and connect: Making unsolicited phone calls or promotional connect using e-mails is unprofessional, especially if the person has never been your patient. Permission to make these calls is required.
Do not confuse customers with medical terminology: Customers will never understand the point you are trying to make when you overuse medical jargon because they have more than likely never been to medical school, and are unfamiliar with the terms. Overusing medical language is a sure way to confuse your customers.
Do not indulge in unethical practice or overcharging: Do not tell any patient you will discount their services if they purchase another service you provide at full price. At the same time, never indulge in activities which may lead to overcharging of the services. Unethical practices and overcharging violate several laws and can initiate penal or legal action in addition to creating a trust deficit and loss of brand image.
Do not confuse Marketing and Advertising: Marketing and advertising are two different things. Marketing refers to the techniques we use to plan things for our business, while advertising is paid announcements to the public about our business. Advertisements are worded in a way to persuade customers to try our business.
Do not mess up with fees: It is always better to have a clear understanding of fees and charges with patients, vendors and other agencies involved. The cost of services should be discussed before the task is started in order to maintain strict transparency.

Medical marketing is an ongoing process and we should not expect quick results. Positive outcomes will happen over a period of time with the thorough implementation of strategies and plans. Hence, do not expect an outcome immediately. Keep innovating for better outcomes. It is a journey which one has to live along with our patients.