Marketing Flashcards
JD Stowe, In the Effective Marketing Manual courages a shift from traditional marketing strategies to more realistic strategies, and he believes the four (or five) - P’s of Product, Place, Price, Promotion, and Position need to be redefined into:
*Emotion - clients want comfort
*Value - Practices can compete on price or quality
*Virtual - technologies are ever changing and creating new normals for practice.
*Excel - create an extraordinary experience for every client with every visit
*Experience - clients wants to be treated well and the practice creates the experience.
The Marketing Matrix (or the 4 P’s) - The traditional theory that believes although we cannot control consumer habits, we can control the 4 P’s that help us meet the perceived need.
*Product
*Price
*Promotion
*Place (Distribution)
**Deciding on how to manage the 4 P’s is directly related to your demographic research results.
Considerations in Marketing and Situational Analysis —->
Demographics —
Defining your market: It is important to know the details of your country your region.
Considerations in Marketing and Situational Analysis. —>
Client and Patient base:
An effective practice knows the demographic characteristics of the local population.
Considerations in Marketing and Situational Analysis —>
Assess the competition —
*Distance from your practice
*Number of doctors
*Impression of facility (new, old, large, small, etc.)
*Number of clients ( a guess)
*Probable gross revenue
*Strengths
*Difference in fees or perception of fees
**It helps to measure the strengths of a competitor to assess whether the same elements are strengths or weaknesses in your own practice.
Considerations in Marketing and Situational Analysis —>
Settings Objectives: objectives are the FIRST strategy of goal setting.
*Specific - List specific elements
*Measurable - Create a baseline and a system for measuring results.
*Achievable - Does the practice have a necessary resource to achieve the objective.
*Realistic but challenging - Worth doing but realistic enough to succeed
*Time - dependent - target end date. Is the date flexible.
Considerations in Marketing and Situational Analysis —>
Measuring outcomes:
*Determine the ATF (average transaction fee) for the practice and individual doctors and set targets for increasing it.
*Number of TRANSACTIONS per year per doctor, begin with $5,000 per year per doctor as a reasonable guideline.
*Number of VISITS per year PER CLIENT, aim for 10 visits or more.
*Number of ACTIVE CLIENTS per year per doctoring for $1000
***The numbers above are benchmarks to use to compare your practice productivity to other practices, and to measure before and after outcomes of marketing initiatives.
Communication in Marketing and Situational Analysis -
Communication - Marketing is about communicating the passion and value behind products and services and can be done with;
*Non-verbal: Eye contact, body language, congruency with the other person’s style.
*Listening
*Sequencing: a logical chain of thought that begins with the client.
*Scripts: Avoid speaking from prepared scripts. Define “points to follow” in a specific conversation as a loose guideline.
Indirect Marketing - a marketing technique that is used by practices on a daily basis and includes:
*Client education - including materials sent home with every visit.
*Confident and consistent messaging from every team member.
*Clean, organized and odor free facility.
*Professional, clean and friendly employees.
*Professional, yet warm relationships with clients.
Direct Marketing - Centers on bringing new clients into the practice and expanding services to current clients and is delivered in countless ways.
***Client Communication is the Key to increasing compliance, and retention. **
Internal marketing - the focus is to retain current clients and can include:
*Recalls for every patient that has visited the practice.
**Surgical recalls the evening of the surgery, and three days later.
*Reminders via email or postcard should have a strategic schedule for delivery.
**Do not deliver more than 4 weeks in advance of the due date.
** Should be convenient, such as a direct call button on e-mail reminders.
*News letters, welcome cards, post cards or report cards.
*Telephone etiquette, warm greetings, or always running appointments on time.
*Staff enthusiasm
*And anything that makes the client/patient experience better.
External Marketing - aimed at advertising services to potential clients. The key is to determine the prospective clients and patients and determine the best method to attract them. Some examples include:
*Social media
*Websites
*Outdoor signage
*Open House
*Hosting community classes
*Office Tours
Website development - allows for direct, indirect, internal and external marketing. Hire a design company to develop and maintain the website or manage it within the practice - but be certain it does not look like any other veterinary website in the community
Target Marketing - is specifically directed at a particular group. The manager can determine the distinct needs of a group and target marketing efforts to those needs.
Examples include target marketing towards:
*Specific breed conditions or treatments.
*Species focus
*Diseases and conditions
*Ages; puppies/kittens, seniors
*Environments; outdoor pets, indoor only pets, kennels, boarding barns, urban.
Retail Marketing -
Making the decision - three MAIN considerations when considering a retail space:
1) Your vision: does retail fit with your vision?
2) Image: your image is your brand. When you define the image you want to present to clients, you can determine if you want retail revenue center and how it will appear if you do.
3) Space: pure practicality, do you have the space for retail?
Retail marketing - marketing retail it effectively
4) Assign a designated driver. A specific employee who has the time and takes the effort to asses the retail area regularly and is responsible for:
*The retail space
*The products
*Strategies used sell the products
5) Staff training. Employees need to have knowledge of the products and the manager should spend at least 30 minutes a week reviewing key selling points with the team in order for them to respond to client interests and questions. A valuable introductory phrase to a client viewing a product; “A lot of people buy that because…..
Retail marketing - marketing retail it effectively
6) Need of the facility:
*Address traffic flow and bottle necks to create a space convenient for clients to shop.
*Ambience must be warm and friendly and uncluttered.
*Interior decorators can be a reasonable long term investment.
7) Veterinary recommendations:
*Doctors must know what is on the shelves and actively recommend products.
* “Believe — Offer — Sell” Choose products that the practice believes in.
8) Assumptive sale: one sale strategy is to assume the client will buy a product or service instead of asking.
Retail marketing - marketing retail it effectively
9) Advertising / promotion : 1-3% of revenue is a budget target for advertising or promoting retail products.
Most effective advertising is word of mouth and testimonials are a great way to incorporate word of mouth in your promotion.
Retail marketing - marketing retail it effectively
Unique retailing = uncommon items.
*Blend medical care with products - exercise toys aid a weight loss program.
*Market research - research what you plan to sell before selling it.
**Product knowledge - the entire team should know each products unique selling points. Know features and benefits;
~ Feature - details of the product that makes it distinct.
~Benefit - intended solution to the problem or need of the consumer. (What’s in it for you)
Retail marketing - marketing retail it effectively
*Actively market products Vs just placing them on shelves.
*Accommodate children, they can influence product sales.
*Show product in use.
*Return policy: generous return policies have proven an excellent strategy
*Know your pricing advantage using four basic strategies;
1) Unique
2) Value - added
3) Value - based
4) Volume
Retail marketing - marketing retail it effectively
16) Display Strategies -
*No product higher that 5’ and no lower than 1’ from the floor
*Group product for convenient comparison for the client
*Keep displays open and uncovered
*Keep products in view of receptionists to reduce theft
*Keep products stocked and avoid singles on the shelf.
* Display area near invoicing for impulse buys.
The resistance Principle - describes the fact that for any price, there will be resistance.
**If only one person complains about your prices, you’re too low.
** If every client complains, your obviously too high.
*Price products and service to have 15-20% resistance and accept the fact that there will be resistance from a small percentage of clients. This percentage is appropriate for a business if it is to push the envelope for profitability.
