"We Have No Need For Marketing"

Sometimes doctors are their own worst enemies when it comes to business related financial decisions.

I had some discussions recently with a member of a large group of doctors who, like most all physicians these days, have seen their incomes decrease. 

They are all busy.  In fact, each partner would say he has no room to see additional patients.

Therefore, each one's ability to increase his revenue is limited.

So they are hiring new doctors in order to add more new patients and to decrease overhead for all.  

That's a good plan.

Then, what's the problem?

They refuse to allocate any money for marketing the practice or their new partners!

In some sense that is understandable because they view marketing as just one more expense.  That is one stack of dollars not making it to their pockets. And since, reimbursements have decreased, they want to cut expenses.  Marketing then gets cut.

But there is a fundamental flaw in their reasoning!

Marketing, done right, is not an expense. It is an investment!

So, although they would deny it, they are basically refusing to invest in their practice. 

They say, they aren't refusing because they are hiring new partners. 

But, that requires essentially nothing of them.

Sure, they upfront the start-up costs for the new partners. But, they know they will be paid back, usually with some interest.

They are doing this out of selfishness.  It is just a way to increase their own revenue. 

But why not also add in the marketing needed?

Refusing to market the group is so short-sighted.

There are several reasons for refusing to market their group or their new partners.  Here are the reasons:

1. Arrogance - They say they know their business better than anyone else, so they don't need to hire some marketer, even if the marketer has significant healthcare experience.  Yes, they may know aspects of their business, but they don't know marketing.  Marketing changes rapidly. What is working well today won't be in three months.  There is no way a doctor can stay up to date on marketing the way a good marketer does. Just like there is no way the marketer could stay up to date on all aspects of medicine the way the doctor does.

2.  Complacency - These doctors say they have always been busy, so they aren't worried. They say they got busy quickly without much marketing when they joined the partnership, so the same will happen for the new doctors. There are two big mistakes in their reasoning here.

One is that markets change over time. What happened 10-15 years ago when they joined is very old news now. There were not nearly as many healthcare providers in their area all those years ago. Patients have more choices now. So, the doctors that will stay busy are the ones doing a great job of marketing and giving patients a good reason to see them.  With no marketing effort, their competitors have the upper hand in the goal of acquiring more new patients.

The second big mistake is that they aren't aware of the changing population in their catchment area.  They say their group has had a great reputation for decades. Therefore, they don't need to do any marketing.

That may be true, but the new people who have moved into the area don't know that group or their great reputation. Many of the population who supported that group have grown old and many have passed away.

So, if they aren't giving patients a compelling reason to see them, the patients will see another equally qualified provider who does give them a compelling reason.

Also, these doctors have admitted not doing any marketing when they joined the partnership 10-15 years ago.  Therefore, there has likely been no marketing by them for decades, because few, if any, doctors did much marketing more than 15 years ago.

Patients ages 16 through 45 have become very accustomed to businesses marketing to them and desiring their business.  Will they choose a provider who has never reached out to them over one who repeatedly reaches out to them?  Unlikely!

3.  Lack of knowledge - Doctors don't ever think of themselves as lacking knowledge, but choosing not to do any marketing displays a serious lack of knowledge. And viewing marketing as an expense demonstrates a serious lack of knowledge. Marketing is the lifeblood of every business in every industry.  Why doctors think somehow it is different for them also demonstrates a serious lack of knowledge. It is not different!

Marketing, done right, is an investment.  The money spent on marketing will bring in new patients and will help retain more existing patients. That's what every healthcare business needs. That's how you increase revenue!

The real question is, what is the return on that investment?

If it is a positive ROI, it should be continued until it stops working.

If it is a negative ROI, it should be revised or canceled immediately.

As Dan Kennedy, the great direct response marketing guru says, "whoever can spend the most money to acquire a new customer wins."

In healthcare terms, that means, whatever doctor or group can set up their marketing to the point that they can spend more than their competitors to acquire new patients and retain existing ones, and still make more money than they spend in doing so, wins!  Period!

In the face of declining reimbursements, marketing is not what should be eliminated from the budget.

What you need to figure out is how to spend even more on marketing.

​It is well worth it!