But Wait - There's More! Even More Powerful Techniques Medical Marketing Can Learn From DRTV

Do your medical marketing materials fade awaySince there aren't many people who respond to
as soon as you produce them? Do they lackmedical marketing materials by asking the
excitement, a sense of urgency andambulance driver to turn around and take them
effectiveness? Here are 3 more techniques fromto that hospital they heard about on TV, most
the bare-knuckles world of DRTV (that's Directmedical marketing is about relationship building.
Response TV).Nothing kick-starts a relationship like giving folks
That doesn't mean you have to make obnoxioussomething for free. Free stuff (you can call it by
commercials for Ginsu Surgery ("But Wait! There'sits fancy marketing name: a Value Added Offer)
More! Well also throw in a free rhinoplasty!"). Whatgets people's attention.
you need to do is try to forget about theWhat should you offer? It can be anything from a
response of the Head of Cardiology, the HeadFree Guide on preventing or treating a common
Nurse or any other Administrative Head in yourkiller like diabetes to free screening for indicators
hospital. Before you create a healthcareof disease like heart disease or high blood
organization marketing plan, medical marketing kitpressure. One of my clients, a large regional health
or any medical marketing materials, you reallysystem, offered women free tests for indicators
need to focus on the only people who can makeof heart disease. The women who received those
your marketing a success: your patients, andtests were 60% more likely to come to this
what they really want. Not what YOU want themhospital for heart treatment. That program was
to want, but what they really really want. Use anyso successful that they're expanding it to include
means to find it out, from in-room interviews tomen.
telephone surveys and mall intercepts, but findAnother killer idea Direct Response marketing can
out. Knowing what your patients want is theteach medical marketing: What gets measured
critical first step to medical marketing that getsgets improved. Here's a hot news flash: Direct
results.Response is set up to measure...response. You
OK, here's another important suggestion -know in24 hours whether your commercial is
sometimes size really does matter. That simplyworking like it should be. There are affordable and
means the wonders of medicine and your uniqueeasy ways to measure response. One of the
selling proposition are almost certainly tooeasiest: put a different phone number in every
complicated for a 30 second commercial. If youcommercial, of every length, on every station,
have an important point of difference that's tooand measure call volume. Then you'll know that
complicated for a short commercial, consider apeople are responding to your :120 second
half hour 'infomercial'. Nothing sells a new productcommercial on Fox News at twice the rate as the
or procedure better than a long formatsame commercial on MSNBC.
commercial.When you think of it, most people who put
The biggest barrier to a long commercial are thetogether healthcare organization marketing plans
dollars involved in production. But non-prime DRTVdon't ever know if anyone is responding to their
media costs are so much less expensive thatmedical marketing materials. Most medical
your cost of production soon fades away. On topmarketing gets thrown on the air, or onto a
of that, there's another hidden bonus that canbrochure rack, or on a billboard with little strategic
make your long format commercial the hero ofthinking. If forced to answer truthfully, most
your healthcare organization marketing plan: longhealthcare marketing directors have little idea
spots always get better response - always.whether their campaigns are working. Don't let
Response that will put your ROI on steriods.that be you.