Before deciding on a marketing strategy for your medical practice, first determine your target market. When choosing a target market, you need to consider several factors. Healthcare marketing is not unusual to have several different target markets for each of the various medical products and services that you provide.
If you have a family practice or, for example, if you are a general dentist, your target market will differ significantly from that of a specialized practice, such as a cosmetic surgeon or dermatologist. Although there may be some common factors in the two markets, the differences will be the determining factors.
Consider the following three critical factors protecting the market for your medical practice:
Location: Most potential patients will want relatively quick and easy access to healthcare. It is unlikely that they will drive an hour or more for earache or toothache. Therefore, the family doctor's target market will include potential patients within a radius of 7-10 miles. For a specialist, a potential patient may be prepared to continue treatment if this specialist effectively demonstrates how she can meet the needs of future patients using effective health marketing strategies. Thus, a specialist, like a cosmetologist or aesthetics specialist, will have a wider market in terms of location.
Demographics: this will include age, gender, income, and possibly occupation of the intended patient. The family doctor may want to contact young families in the hope of establishing long-term relationships with them. Target age groups that provide you with the maximum opportunity to cope with the types of cases you want to treat and help you extend your practice in the long term. A surgeon with an emphasis on cosmetic surgery can find for them the best age demography - women 30-50 years old with a higher income in professional occupations. Remember that the markets you choose will depend on the types of products and services you offer.
Needs: You should also consider the needs of your local community when developing your target market. For example, take a family practitioner. A family may want a provider who offers comprehensive assistance for the whole family so that all family members can be treated by the same doctor. If you are able to relate to the whole family since childhood, you should think about targeting families with children of a certain age and higher. If doctors specializing in patients with special needs have a void and you are treating patients with special needs, turn those patients into your target market. Similarly, if you are close to a large population of older people and have products and services that can meet their medical needs, think about including them.
When brainstorming the potential markets of your medical practice, take a close look at your current group of patients. Your existing patients are a good source for determining which of the listed areas will be most important when cleaning your target market. Look at the location, demographics and needs of your best current patients, and then try to target potential patients who are similar to them. You can do this by learning more about your current patients through surveys to get more specific information about your “ideal” patient condition and needs.
Your strategic medical marketing plan can only be successful if you determine your target market accurately. Once you have identified your market, all your efforts should be directed towards bringing these potential patients through your practice.
With a clearly defined target market, your health care marketing plan should focus on relevant media in this area. Public or district newspapers are good places to consider if your target market consists of many older people. If your market has a much younger base, then you can consider advertising on the Internet.
For services such as cosmetic surgery, your market can be reached through certain magazines or websites. By knowing where potential patients can be either reading or surfing, you can maximize your impact on the people with whom you are targeting with a health care marketing plan.
Spending money on advertising in places where your target market is unlikely to see or read, simply wastes valuable resources. You get more punches for your dollar, carefully considering each exposure opportunity and your potential to bring you patients.
The doctor’s marketing plan does not work or succeeds depending on the accuracy of what you consider when determining the target market. Find the time needed to have a clear idea of who you want to go through the doors of your practice, and then use this understanding to move confidently towards your goals.
