If you are a physician or healthcare provider, chances are that building your brand has taken a backseat to patient care — as it should. However, with the rise of consumerism in healthcare, you may want to reconsider your brand strategy as we usher in the new year.
That’s because in the healthcare world, things are changing. Your brand — how patients perceive you — will play a more important role in the success or failure of your business this coming year, more than ever before.
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You have probably already noticed, but the Affordable Care Act sped up the rise of consumerism in healthcare the last few years. With patients paying for more of their healthcare expenses out of pocket, they have taken on the consumer mindset. In the healthcare services they receive, they are now looking for:
- value-driven services
- convenience and ease of use and
- expectations of an outstanding experience every step of the way
While the Affordable Care Act played a huge role in the rise of consumerism in healthcare, it wasn’t the only driving factor.
Why Is Consumerism In Healthcare Rising?
Think about how easily you can access nearly everything else you need in your life.
Hungry? There’s an app for that. Oh, and by the way, they deliver. Need a lift? There’s an app for that — be there in 5. No time to grocery shop? Order online, click to checkout, pull up and they will load it into your trunk for you. Need almost anything else delivered? There’s Amazon Prime for that — free shipping and all!
With easy, fast, convenient access to meet so many other needs in our lives, our brains are being wired to expect that from every industry now — including healthcare.
The New Healthcare Consumer
Patients, or consumers, are now looking at healthcare services the way they look at any other service. They want convenience and ease of use. They want to make fully informed decisions and they want to feel that once they have made their decision that it was the right one. They expect transparency. They are looking for their healthcare dollars to be well spent.
To meet these growing consumer demands, are innovative healthcare services such as:
- concierge medicine
- retail clinics
- virtual doctor visits
With these types of services now instantly available to your patient, what is your office doing to stay ahead of the competition and the fast, new, convenient services being offered in healthcare?
Today’s patient values transparency and is doing research before they come to you. That’s why things like online reviews and reputation management are so important. They want to know what type of experience to expect before they spend their healthcare dollars with you, since they know they have a choice. They want to be fully informed and want all that information up front with no surprises in the end.
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How The Rise of Consumerism in Healthcare Applies To Your Brand
With this changing healthcare landscape, consumer healthcare decisions will become more marketing driven. What your office does best, needs to stand out to patients. A marketing team can help you amplify this message. Contact us today to schedule a strategy session and evaluate your brand strategy for the coming year to attract many more happy patients to your practice.
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