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This is not the time for doctors to waste their money on advertising
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The Caduceus
A series on “the medical practice” is particularly relevant now, more than ever. For many reasons, including but not limited to, the economy, insurance reimbursement, and the issues surrounding the health care debate, doctors are taking a huge “hit” in their businesses. The problem for doctors is that most are not good at running a business. They do not have the skills to turn things around in their favor.
This series will show doctors how to employ well proven techniques to change the way they do business and achieve success. As an example, many doctors use advertising to attract new patients. While advertising is an effective marketing tool in many businesses, it has proven to be of little benefit to doctors. The following are just a few observations on why advertising simply does not work.
When a doctor advertises his or her services, the message is not substantially different from his or her competitors who are also advertising the benefits of their services. Patients cannot choose easily among services which “look alike.”
Doctors are tooting their own horn through ads. Many people do not believe in the ad’s message. Doctors’ prospective patients already expect the ads to say, "we have new technology,” “we are experienced,” etc.
In addition, ads have little longevity. Once a doctor stops advertising, he or she is forgotten. It’s important to keep in mind that consumers are bombarded by more than 500 advertising appeals a day. A doctor’s message gets lost in an over crowded advertising environment.
Finally, advertising is far too expensive! Doctors shouldn’t be trying to build there own brand. Even more importantly, the “return per advertising dollar spent” has decreased dramatically in recent years.
In future articles, The NY Medical Practice Examiner will provide alternatives to out-dated approaches used by doctors to market their businesses.
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