Marketing is full of acronyms on how healthcare providers
and vendors should be marketing aimed at various industries and audiences based
on their peculiarities. This is not to slam any of them for they are more or
less successful depending on how the enterprise in question implements the
concept and processes organizationally. And commits the necessary human and
capital as needed to fully implement.
Having worked in many of those environments, it’s amazing
how some healthcare providers and vendors claim a methodology only to short cut
the implementation, not train new staff, or not allocate the resources and then
wonder why it doesn’t work. Hmm….
So this time I am throwing my hat into the marketing system
name game for healthcare providers and vendors, offering up a new methodology.
And here is why.
Healthcare is changing so rapidly and moving in direction
never before experienced that the old ways of marketing just don’t work like
they used too. There are a lot reasons for that but the biggest one is lack of
senior management focus. For example, one year its “patient focused” or “sales
focused”. The next year we are “product or care focused”. Then it becomes “customer and sales focused”. And the best of all “we will be feared” in
the market focus.
And marketing is left holding the bag each time the focus or
direction changes.
What is needed is a marketing framework that marketers can
use to withstand rapid disruptive market changes and innovation, as well as
senior management unpredictability. The shiny new program that works today may
not work tomorrow. But some basic principles apply in any market. And by focusing on those basics in an
integrated fashion no matter what senior management does (short of liquidation
or acquisition), marketing can be successful when all around is seemingly in
chaos.
That’s the basis for AGREE marketing.
Acquire, Grow, Retain,
Engage, Experience
The organizational marketing plan should have a detailed and
highly integrated section of the marketing plan for each of the above areas. Don’t make assumptions that one is doing this
already. One may have bits and pieces scattered throughout the plans, or they
may be assumed. But I am willing to bet that it is not detailed in a coherent
strategy and tactical execution plan along these five dimensions.
This is not easy, but no matter what the organizational
focus, direction or pronouncements of senior leadership with the flavor of the
day, AGREE marketing will keep focus on
what is really important, and that is creating and keeping a customer for
growing the healthcare enterprise.
Growth is good. Change is always. And marketing goes on.
Agreed?