Marketing Best Practices and Self Audit

for: The Wisconsin Forum for Healthcare Strategy

5/13/04

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The Challenging and Varying Rolesof the Health Care Marketer

Directors of Marketing are constantly challenged to play multiple roles within complex organizations that include multiple constituencies.

Oftentimes the marketer lacks clear direction and must balance politically-charged physician and hospital expectations against what is really best for the consumer.

This session will showcase real, down-to-earth, practical advice and techniques that have been successfully employed by the most effective health care marketers, and will feature best practices that can be applied in both small and large organizations.

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Best Practices

Marketing Organization

Marketing Management

Marketing Planning

Marketing Communications

Market Research

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What are the Primary Characteristics of Organizations with Best Practice Marketing?

The leadership sees marketing as essential as turning on the lights.

CMO has a strategic vision, is politically attuned, and has same organizational deference as the other “O”s.

Planning, Marketing, Public Relations, and Business Development all march in same direction.

Marketing is significantly involved at the front end and is a meaningful player in product/services development.

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What are the Primary Characteristics of Organizations with Best Practice Marketing?

(continued)

Internal marketing is given as much attention as “external” marketing.

Strong fulfillment capabilities are in place, e.g., call center operations.

Service line managers are marketing-minded.

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Full spectrum core competencies are evident:

Market research, information and analysis

Strategic marketing planning

Service development

Pricing (really!)

Promotion

Sales

What are the Primary Characteristics of Organizations with Best Practice Marketing?

(continued)

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Know The Role You’re PlayingAt Any Given Time

Important to know your role. Are you a: Facilitator?

Counselor?

Political troubleshooter?

Implementer?

Your role will change depending upon the capabilities of your clients.

REMEMBER, YOU ARE THE CHIEF CONSUMER OFFICER!!

Chief Consumer

Officer

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Be A Discoverer of Opportunities,Not an Order Taker

Take control of the calendar.

Develop an annual system-wide marketing plan.

Utilize the plan to prepare your annual budget.

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Be A Discoverer of Opportunities,Not an Order Taker (continued)

Deter the itinerant requests for services

Trying to keep everyone happy is disastrous!

Prioritize requests for services according to well-understood and well-communicated criteria: higher priority goes to those requests that directly support the strategic plan, have high image impact, or are strong contributors to net income

There are times when you must “just say no.”

If feasible, form a Marketing Advisory Board to provide a buffer; build ownership and educate.

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Marketing Approval Flow Process

1. Identify Need for Support

Complete marketing support request form

2. Diagnose Request/ Complexity

Assess priority; compatibility with strategic plan

3. Refer to Marketing Advisory Board

4. Letter of Expectations

5. Assign marketing team

6. Complete work 7. Evaluate results

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ANNUAL MANAGEMENT CYCLE-- A Market-Based Planning Calendar (CY) --

FebruaryComplete environmental & competitive analysis (planning & marketing departments)

JuneDepartment directors

complete their next year operating budgets

MarchTop management begins

strategic planning

April Top management

completes strategic planMay Board of Directors reviews and adopts strategic plan

November Assess marketing impact

and fine-tune plan for next 3 quarters

January Review previous year’s achievements

JulyComplete marketing plans for fall launch

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Business Planning

Strategic Plan

Operating Plans

Capital Budget Operating Budget

Marketing Plans

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Think Like a Consulting Agency Thinks

Your clients – service lines, departments, physicians – have expectations for your services. It is important to clarify these expectations from the outset.

Ask these questions before undertaking marketing assignments:

What could be done without?

What are the low vs. higher priority assignments?

What should be out-sourced?

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Consider What to Outsource

Primary market research

Strategic marketing plans

Advertising: creative development and production

Media buying

Call center operations (at least for first year)

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Always, Always Have a Written“Letter of Expectations”

Statement of scope of services to be delivered

Clear delineation of roles and responsibilities

Timetable and budget

Contingency clause (CRITICAL!!)

Signatures

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Discipline the Strategic MarketingPlanning Process

Know the key clinical service interdependencies Map how business comes through the door Identify no more than three priority service/focal areas for

your annual marketing plan Put resources where they will have the most impact in terms of

brand and business development (% net income contributor or high image magnet)

Market can absorb only so many messages Have a specific marketing plan in place for each of the

priority areas

Special Consideration for Systems: Market to the strengths of the entities

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Marketing’s Version of the Food Pyramid(For Purposes of Illustration Only)

Primary Care/Ambulatory Services/Women’s Health

Digestive Disease,Orthopedics, Medical and

Surgical Subspecialties

CV, Neuro, Oncology

High-End Tertiary: Burn, Transplant33oo

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Why a Self-Audit?

Helps demonstrate the value of marketing.

Can provide an objective basis for justifying further resource development.

Better to know the blemishes and fault lines before your boss does!

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How to Use the Audit

The audit is the basis for putting together your department’s yearly operating plan and budget.

Share results with the management team.

Use results pro-actively to alert others to the key improvement initiatives.

Check on progress quarterly.

Update the audit annually; use it as a benchmark tool.

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Scoring the Audit

In place and optimally effective

In place, but could use improvement

Starting to work on it

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Self-Audit: Marketing Organization/Structure

1. Is the most appropriate organizational structure in place for carrying out the marketing program?

2. Does the marketing program have the same level of “heft” within the organization that is typically accorded to chief finance, nursing, operations and information officers?

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Self-Audit: Marketing Organization/Structure (continued)

3. Is the marketing program integrally related to and work closely with other corporate functions such as strategic planning and business development?

4. Does the marketing department have all of the requisite skills typically needed for effective marketing plan development and implementation? Are there deficiencies in the capabilities of the staff and if so, what needs to be done to improve on or correct the deficiencies?

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Self-Audit: Marketing Management

5. Are marketing priorities set so that there is no confusion over which programs receive marketing support?

6. Does the marketing director set overall marketing strategy according to a prospective marketing plan?

7. Does the marketing director achieve consensus among internal constituencies as to the marketing priorities?

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Self-Audit: Marketing Management (continued)

8. Does the marketing department provide periodic updates and reports to senior management and to clinical leadership on marketing progress?

9. Is marketing staff responsive and courteous with respect to service requestors?

10. Is the marketing budget zero-based?

11. Does marketing have a means of demonstrating its value to the organization?

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Scoring the Audit

In place and optimally effective

In place, but could use improvement

Starting to work on it

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Self-Audit: Marketing Organization/Structure

1. Is the most appropriate organizational structure in place for carrying out the marketing program?

2. Does the marketing program have the same level of “heft” within the organization that is typically accorded to chief finance, nursing, operations and information officers?

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Self-Audit: Marketing Organization/Structure (continued)

3. Is the marketing program integrally related to and work closely with other corporate functions such as strategic planning and business development?

4. Does the marketing department have all of the requisite skills typically needed for effective marketing plan development and implementation? Are there deficiencies in the capabilities of the staff and if so, what needs to be done to improve on or correct the deficiencies?

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Self-Audit: Marketing Management

5. Are marketing priorities set so that there is no confusion over which programs receive marketing support?

6. Does the marketing director set overall marketing strategy according to a prospective marketing plan?

7. Does the marketing director achieve consensus among internal constituencies as to the marketing priorities?

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Self-Audit: Marketing Management (continued)

8. Does the marketing department provide periodic updates and reports to senior management and to clinical leadership on marketing progress?

9. Is marketing staff responsive and courteous with respect to service requestors?

10. Is the marketing budget zero-based?

11. Does marketing have a means of demonstrating its value to the organization?

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Self-Audit: Marketing Functional Capabilities

12. Does the marketing plan have clear goals and objectives as well as identification of persons responsible for achieving these goals within an agreed-upon time frame and budget?

13. Does marketing provide evidence of systematic measurement of the initiatives that are undertaken?

14. Are resources allocated according to objective criteria and in a fair and equitable manner?

15. Is an “evidence-based” approach taken to undertaking marketing initiatives?

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Self-Audit: Marketing Functional Capabilities (continued)

16. Are external media relations handled appropriately?

17. Based on the gravity of a particular issue or situation, are the right spokespeople utilized for press conference and press briefings?

18. Is the department achieving an effective balance in utilizing outsources as opposed to internal production resources?

19. Are written communications produced in a quality manner?

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Self-Audit: Marketing Information System

20. Are key service line portfolio analyses in place?

21. Are maps developed of how business comes in the door?

22. Is an up-to-date qualified list of the major referral sources maintained and followed up?

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Self-Audit: Marketing Information System (continued)

23. Is a community perceptions survey completed every other year?

24. Is a physician perceptions survey conducted at least every three years?

25. Is an employee attitude survey conducted periodically?

26. Is employer research updated periodically?

27. Is focus group research regularly done to deepen the understanding of key constituencies?

28. Is mystery shopping employed to test service delivery performance?

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Self-Audit: Service Development and Pricing

29. Is Marketing involved at the front-end in program planning to ensure that programs are designed to meet customers’ needs?

30. Does Marketing advise on pricing, particularly where services may have substantial out-of-pocket costs to customers?

31. Does Marketing consider all possible fail points in the delivery of a service, and advise on ways that services can be delivered more efficiently or effectively?

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Scoring the Audit

In place and optimally effective

In place, but could use improvement

Starting to work on it

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Self-Audit: Marketing Organization/Structure

1. Is the most appropriate organizational structure in place for carrying out the marketing program?

2. Does the marketing program have the same level of “heft” within the organization that is typically accorded to chief finance, nursing, operations and information officers?

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Self-Audit: Marketing Organization/Structure (continued)

3. Is the marketing program integrally related to and work closely with other corporate functions such as strategic planning and business development?

4. Does the marketing department have all of the requisite skills typically needed for effective marketing plan development and implementation? Are there deficiencies in the capabilities of the staff and if so, what needs to be done to improve on or correct the deficiencies?

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Self-Audit: Marketing Management

5. Are marketing priorities set so that there is no confusion over which programs receive marketing support?

6. Does the marketing director set overall marketing strategy according to a prospective marketing plan?

7. Does the marketing director achieve consensus among internal constituencies as to the marketing priorities?

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Self-Audit: Marketing Management (continued)

8. Does the marketing department provide periodic updates and reports to senior management and to clinical leadership on marketing progress?

9. Is marketing staff responsive and courteous with respect to service requestors?

10. Is the marketing budget zero-based?

11. Does marketing have a means of demonstrating its value to the organization?

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Self-Audit: Marketing Functional Capabilities

12. Does the marketing plan have clear goals and objectives as well as identification of persons responsible for achieving these goals within an agreed-upon time frame and budget?

13. Does marketing provide evidence of systematic measurement of the initiatives that are undertaken?

14. Are resources allocated according to objective criteria and in a fair and equitable manner?

15. Is an “evidence-based” approach taken to undertaking marketing initiatives?

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Self-Audit: Marketing Functional Capabilities (continued)

16. Are external media relations handled appropriately?

17. Based on the gravity of a particular issue or situation, are the right spokespeople utilized for press conference and press briefings?

18. Is the department achieving an effective balance in utilizing outsources as opposed to internal production resources?

19. Are written communications produced in a quality manner?

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Self-Audit: Marketing Information System

20. Are key service line portfolio analyses in place?

21. Are maps developed of how business comes in the door?

22. Is an up-to-date qualified list of the major referral sources maintained and followed up?

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Self-Audit: Marketing Information System (continued)

23. Is a community perceptions survey completed every other year?

24. Is a physician perceptions survey conducted at least every three years?

25. Is an employee attitude survey conducted periodically?

26. Is employer research updated periodically?

27. Is focus group research regularly done to deepen the understanding of key constituencies?

28. Is mystery shopping employed to test service delivery performance?

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Self-Audit: Service Development and Pricing

29. Is Marketing involved at the front-end in program planning to ensure that programs are designed to meet customers’ needs?

30. Does Marketing advise on pricing, particularly where services may have substantial out-of-pocket costs to customers?

31. Does Marketing consider all possible fail points in the delivery of a service, and advise on ways that services can be delivered more efficiently or effectively?

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Self-Audit: Marketing Planning

32. Are marketing plans for each of the priorities developed with and through multi-disciplinary marketing teams?

33. Are marketing goals clearly stated and are objectives spelled out in measurable terms?

34. Are the strategic initiatives organized by target market segment?

35. Are reliable tracking mechanisms in place?

36. Does the department conduct an ongoing management development course for line managers in relevant marketing topics?

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Self-Audit: Advertising

37. Is the brand message distinctive, memorable, and expressive of your positioning?

38. Does marketing actively manage the brand through consistent message content and uniform graphics?

39. Are you appropriately using the Yellow Pages as a part of the advertising budget?

40. Are media planning and buying based on sound strategy and achieving maximum continuity in the marketplace?

41. Are appropriate dollars being allocated to each of the various media vehicles?

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Self-Audit: E-Marketing

42. Is there an internal Web Board (membership consisting of IT, medical staff, administrative and marketing)?

43. Does Marketing actively manage website communications?

44. Is the website interactive and does it allow for users to build an affinity?

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Self-Audit: Sales

45. Is an organized, performance-based, and incentive-driven personal selling program in place?

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Self-Audit: Media and Public Relations

46. Based on the gravity of a particular issue, are the right spokespeople utilized for press conferences and briefings?

47. Is an ongoing media training program in place, particularly for training key physicians?

48. Are meetings held at least annually with the editorial staff of the local newspapers?

49. Are news releases targeted appropriately and is there more emphasis on meaningful content than on quantity of releases?

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Self-Audit: Media and Public Relations (continued)

50. Is there an evident and effective crisis management plan?

51. Is there an effective speakers placement service?

52. Are members of the management involved with community agencies and organizations?

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Scoring the Audit

Total “3-star” ratings:

39-52: Leading-edge marketers

27-38: Keep up the momentum

13-26: Moving forward

0-12: Getting started

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From Audit to…Marketing Superhero

CMO

MarketingBestPracticesSelfAudit

Rynne Buckley Marketing and Communications…1603 Orrington...Suite 1100…Evanston, IL 60201…847-328-9050…www.RynneBuckley.com