Extenal Marketing

[Cowboy]

I have used a few vehicles for external marketing in my days and found that only a few work. With radio and television being the most expensive, yet reaching more of a mass with seeming less yield, I have deemed those methods as ineffective. There are the current ones I use; Phonebook, coupon mailer (local - exclusivity), and B to B. I have also eliminated the newpaper for simple ads. I have not ruled out the newspaper for article anouncements or topics for public education. However, I have read a few articles from OD's, and MD's that state speaking to communities through Senior centers, Health Fairs, Hobby Clubs, etc., proves to be the most effective source of external marketing. The con to this is the time it may take away from the office, or add work hours during the weekend or after hours during the week. I am not opposed to the extra hours, rather, before I commit to broadening my horizons to this method of marketing, I would like to get some input from those who have an opinion on this subject - whether you have or have not done such a thing.
Thanks in advance for reading and replying.

Cowboy
:cheers:

[For-Life]

The problem with advertising in general is that we want to see an instant jump in sales, and it does not always happen. A consistent advertising and promotional plan can lead to a steady increase in business.

The only way you can get a quick jump in business is through advertising a promotion, ie: 10 percent off or $50 off. But you then have to question what the long term affects of it are.

We sometimes deem mass media as a poor means, but the question is if it is a poor means or are we using the means poorly?

I still believe that television is duable, but it has to be done right. It has to have a long term commitment and done throughout the WHOLE year (not just here or there. Note too that this is refering to our industry). Television gives the benefit of sight and sound; however, it should not be used to promote a specific or in depth message, because you just do not have the time.

If you want to advertise a show or something with a lot of information, you can use the newspaper, but for newspaper go big or go home, because small little ads will not do justice. Also, with the newspaper, watch for the target market. If you are advertising stuff that younger people may buy then it may not be the best place.

[MedicLINK]

Cowboy, it sounds like your perceptions of direct media (presentations, mail-outs, etc.) versus mass media (radio and television) are very similar what mine used to be. I’ve since discovered that my perceptions were being affected by my ability to track the results of my marketing initiatives. Phonebook listings, mail-outs, B2B and presentations are less expensive and easier to track the results because you know the names (or in the case of presentations, recognize the faces) of the people you are targeting. As a result, when one of those people respond to your marketing, you can easily identify them and site the effectiveness of your marketing. By contrast, radio and television are relatively expensive and results are difficult to track. Because you don’t know exactly who is being exposed to your ad, when random people respond, you may not associate that response as being caused by a particular marketing initiative. After awhile you start to think “I’ve spent all of this money on radio, but I haven’t seen any results. Radio is a waste of money.”

The key to identifying the effectiveness of your marketing initiatives then becomes putting in place a method for tracking your results. A very simple way to do it is to simply ask patients as they leave the practice if they mind saying how they heard about you. By asking how people are hearing about you, you can get a very good idea of what initiatives are working and what aren’t.

Once you start associating marketing initiatives with specific visits, you can begin performing more detailed analysis on the type of people that each initiative brings in; how much they spend on average, what kind of items they purchase, what gender seems to be most affected, etc. With that type of information, it’s easier for you to evaluate what media you should be allocating your money towards and what media might need a message tweaking.

[Cowboy]

Thanks for your responses thus far. Your answers and insights are useful, however, I am still trying to get to the source of the question: External marketing via seminars, senior centers, hobby groups etc., have they been as effective for those who have tried it versus the other vehicles of advertising and marketing such as tv or radio and such, as some of the OD's and MD's have stated in articles.
MedicLink, great response. I have measured the effectiveness of my current choices of media marketing, and every patient is asked how they heard of us and to the point of what made them choose us. I agree that perceptions are not the same as factual data and the only way to get such is to do the research. Hence, the reason I am throwing this thread out there, I don't want to jump into something, spend money only to find out that there are no measurable datas to collect.

Keep 'em coming

Cowboy
:cheers: