Discuss how the 5 Ps of healthcare marketing and research
In this unit, you will become the investigator of three (3) health care systems and predict which one has the most promising marketing potential. By the end of this unit, you will be able to proficiently discuss how the 5 P’s of healthcare marketing and research-supported assessment strategies impact the marketing potential of a healthcare system.
Select and provide a general overview of three (3) real-life health care organizations that interest you*.
Discuss the 5 Ps of health care marketing of each health care organization that you selected.
Using an assessment or evaluation strategy, discuss the marketing potential of each and predict which one has the most promising marketing potential (i.e. SWOT analysis, Porter’s Five Forces analysis, etc.).
Be sure to support your assertions with evidence-based research, scholarly articles, and well-supported strategies that support your predictions.
3-4 page paper excluding front and back matter (APA standards apply).
*Hint: Try locating health care systems that you are familiar with, would like to network with, have heard concerns about, or ones that are completely unfamiliar to you.
Reference: https://data.medicare.gov/
If you work in healthcare marketing, you are probably familiar with the 5 Ps of marketing:
However, you may find you spend most of your time, energy and resources on a single ‘P’, promotion. Your marketing plan may look much like a communication plan with advertising, promotion, public relations, sponsorships, and social media planned throughout your fiscal year. But if this is the case, are you really leveraging your role as a marketer to further your organization’s objectives?
Broadening our perspective can help our organizations more. While we don’t have control over all the Ps, we certainly have influence.
Let’s look at Place for example, where customers access our products and services. Health system have many different places consumers can access care. As do your competitors. You may be able to influence the Places or channels to provide care through research and planning. Insights themselves can be important influencers to your leadership.
Consider providing a competitive assessment for your primary and secondary service areas.
Be sure to include your own health system in the matrix in order to compare the accessibility of your organization relative to the competitive set in your market. Can consumers reach you as easily as they can reach your competitors? Can your organization readily fill the access needs of your market?
This type of analysis paints a picture for your executives about the accessibility of the places you provide service. It also allows them to consider innovative solutions for bridging the gaps. A strategic partner providing 24/7 access to a nurse may solve a triage challenge without having to add physicians. Expanding access to scheduling by phone or online may improve patient volume.
Another area marketers can expand their influence is by being the voice of the customer within the organization regarding the Product delivered. It is easy for leadership and physicians to focus most of their attention on efficiency, quality, reimbursement, safety and other aspects of operating a healthcare organization. But they often have blind spots in terms of how their activities affect external audiences. Customer research and mystery shopping can generate insights to help leadership understand how their activities affect customers, positively or negatively.