Growing Referring Physician Lifetime Value

Growing Referring Physician Lifetime Value

• 1.
  Physician  Marketing  &  Outreach   Growing Referring Physician Lifetime Value   Gelb, An Endeavor Management Company 1011 Highway 6 South P + 281.759.3600 Suite 120 F + 281.759.3607 Houston, Texas 77077 www.gelbconsulting.com                              
• 2.
  Physician  Marketing  &  Outreach     ©  2015  Endeavor  Management.  All  Rights  Reserved.       Page  2     Overview   Today’s  hospitals  and  healthcare  systems  are  increasingly  becoming  more  focused  on  building  and   sustaining  relationships  with  referring  physicians  as  a  key  market  segment.  Many  leaders  are   looking  for  new  and  innovative  ways  to  engage  referring  physicians  in  an  effort  to  grow  referral   volume  and  share  of  wallet.  A  common  challenge  is  that  referring  physicians  are  becoming  less   interested  in  the  typical  outreach  tactics  employed  by  today’s  physician  relations  programs.         How  can  hospitals  and  healthcare  systems  increase  awareness  and  build  relationships  with  an   audience  that  is  becoming  resistant  to  traditional  methods  of  outreach  and  marketing?     Gelb  has  worked  with  a  number  of  top-­‐rated  academic  medical  centers  and  hospitals  to  assess  the   referring  physician  experience  and  develop  strategies  to  grow  this  unique  market.  We  have   interviewed  thousands  of  referring  physicians  across  markets  and  specialties,  giving  us  a  unique   perspective  in  the  goals,  wants  and  unmet  needs  of  this  important  market  segment  -­‐  one  that  may   contribute  to  over  50%  of  new  patient  volume.         At  Gelb,  we  believe  that  designing  innovative  strategies  to  target  referring  physicians  requires   three  areas  of  focus:  Market  Insight  &  Opportunities,  Strategic  Planning  &  Execution  and  Program   Effectiveness  Measurement.  Ideally,  this  is  an  on-­‐going,  iterative  process  -­‐  providing  a  method  for   continuous  insight  development  and  execution  improvement.    This  white  paper  examines  these   three  areas  of  focus  and  provides  actionable  insight  and  prescriptions  to  help  leaders  in  physician   relations  and  marketing  identify  market  opportunities  and  grow  customer  lifetime  value.      
• 3.
  Physician  Marketing  &  Outreach     ©  2015  Endeavor  Management.  All  Rights  Reserved.       Page  3     Market  Insight  &  Opportunities   With  over  50  years  in  marketing  research  experience,  we  consider  insight  development  as  the   foundation  to  the  creation  of  innovative  strategies.    Generating  market  insight  and  identifying   opportunities  requires  exploration  of  several  areas  of  inquiry.    Three  primary  goals  of  this  inquiry   are  to  segment  the  market  in  meaningful  ways,  to  size  the  market  for  key  services,  and  to  assess   the  competition.     Market  Segmentation   First,  it  is  important  to  review  your  current  market  segmentation  schema  for  referring  physicians.     Development  of  meaningful  referring  physician  market  segments  and  personae  is  key  to  strategic   planning  and  effective  execution.    With  the  proliferation  of  tools  and  technology  to  enable  1:1   marketing  and  outreach,  a  robust  market  segmentation  can  help  physician  relations  programs   leverage  these  tools  in  ways  to  build  substantive  relationships  with  physicians.       We  recommend  going  beyond  basic  demographic  segmentation  by  incorporating  both   psychographic  and  behavior-­‐based  data  into  the  development  of  referring  physician  segments.     This  approach  will  enable  you  to  design  a  custom  approach  to  target  your  communications  and   tactics.    Below  are  some  segment  characteristics  you  may  consider:     Category   Example   Demographic   • Geography  (in  Market/Extended  Market)   • Years  in  Practice   • Organization/Practice  Structure   • Affiliations   • Specialty   Psychographic   • Communication  Preferences   • Professional  Interests   • Wants/Unmet  Needs   • Need  for  Personal  Relationship   • Attitudes  and  Perceptions  of  Brand   Behavior   • Referral  Patterns   • Practice  Referral  Process  (Makes  Appts.  for  Patients  vs.  Patients  Make   Appts.)   • Level  of  Engagement  with  Brand     Once  a  market  segmentation  has  been  defined,  analysis  of  the  composition  of  your  current   referrers  versus  the  composition  of  the  market  can  help  you  understand  what  segments  are   currently  attracted  to  your  brand  and  highlight  opportunities  for  growth.  
• 4.
  Physician  Marketing  &  Outreach     ©  2015  Endeavor  Management.  All  Rights  Reserved.       Page  4       Market  Sizing   The  ability  to  quantify  the  size  of  the  market  is  an  important  component  in  prioritizing  marketing   and  outreach  activities  as  well  as  for  goal  setting  and  measurement.    Market  sizing  is  a  means  to   approximate  the  current  and  potential  volume  for  a  service  line  or  service/procedure.    Depending   on  the  tools  and  data  you  have  available,  there  are  several  methods  to  approximate  market  size.     Using  third  party  data  sources,  typically  based  on  claims  data,  it  is  possible  to  determine  the   volume  of  procedures  that  a  physician,  practice,  or  hospital  is  performing.    Summing  up  the  total   procedures  for  providers  in  a  particular  market  can  provide  you  with  the  size  of  the  market,  or  total   “pie”.    Rolling  up  procedures  by  service  line  can  extend  the  analysis  to  provide  a  summary  of   market  size  by  service  line.         From  here,  additional  analysis  can  be  performed  to  assign  a  revenue  value  to  this  market  as  well  as   the  ability  to  calculate  an  organization’s  market  share  for  this  particular  service.    Understanding   share  of  market  for  a  service/procedure  is  important  in  identifying  “care  path”  leakage.    Do  you   have  a  high  market  share  for  diagnostics  versus  a  low  market  share  for  certain  treatment  options?     It  may  be  that  marketing  and  outreach  tactics  can  be  utilized  to  create  awareness  for  underutilized   services  through  targeting  and  messaging.         Understanding  market  share  and  referral  patterns  by  procedure  or  service  can  surface   opportunities  for  growth  and  highlight  areas  for  improvement.     Competitive  Landscape   A  final  component  of  market  insight  and  opportunities  is  assessing  the  competitive  landscape.     Here  is  where  things  can  get  complicated.    Hospitals  and  healthcare  systems  compete  for  referrals   with  each  other,  with  practices  and  even  with  physicians.    Competitors  may  vary  based  on  service   and  location.    Other  factors  that  impact  competition  include  affiliations  and  employment   agreements.     Many  organizations  look  to  tracking  and  analyzing  referral  chains  to  understand  competitors.    This   is  difficult  to  perform  without  resorting  to  black  box  algorithms.    While  tracking  and  analyzing   referral  chains  may  provide  some  competitive  insight,  we  have  found  that  there  is  often  more  value   in  knowing  why  a  physician  chooses  to  refer  a  patient  to  a  particular  provider  over  another.     Researching  what  we  call  Physician  Decision  Factors,  we  assess  the  competitive  landscape  in  a   market  in  terms  of  brand  (awareness,  reputation,  preference,  satisfaction  and  likelihood  to   recommend),  referral  experience  and  marketing/outreach  effectiveness.     Decision  Factors  research  can  identify  key  competitors  as  well  as  surface  how  a  physician  chooses   to  refer  to  a  particular  provider.    This  type  of  research  provides  prescriptive  insight  into  how  to   influence  the  decision-­‐making  process  through  positioning,  marketing  and  outreach.    
• 5.
  Physician  Marketing  &  Outreach     ©  2015  Endeavor  Management.  All  Rights  Reserved.       Page  5       Key  Takeaway  –  Market  Insight  and  Opportunities   Developing  innovative  strategies  to  engage  referring  physicians  and  grow  referral  volume  requires   deep  insight  into  your  addressable  and  available  market.    A  solid  foundation  for  strategic  planning   means  incorporating  segmentation,  market  sizing  and  competitive  assessment  techniques  to   develop  market  insight  and  to  identify  opportunities.     • Market  segmentation  helps  to  segment  prospects  and  customers  based  on  their  goals,   wants  and  unmet  needs,  providing  a  framework  for  crafting  and  delivering  relevant   messages  and  for  designing  1:1  marketing  and  outreach.         • Market  sizing  can  be  utilized  to  prioritize  program  activities  and  focus  on  opportunities  by   targeting  certain  physician  segments  to  gain  market  share,  building  awareness  of   underutilized  services,  and  identifying  leakage  in  the  path  to  care.       • Whether  it  is  reputation,  relationship,  experience  or  even  convenience,  knowing  how  a   physician  chooses  a  care  provider,  a  competitive  assessment  provides  a  basis  for  how  to   influence  referring  physicians  through  competitive  positioning,  marketing/outreach  and   message.       Strategic  Planning  &  Execution   Armed  with  deep  market  and  customer  insight,  our  next  area  of  focus  is  strategic  planning  and   execution.    When  developing  strategies  for  referring  physicians,  we  begin  with  business  goals  and   objectives.    These  typically  consist  of  objectives  like  growing  volume  for  certain  service  lines  or   programs,  improving  the  referral  experience,  etc.         We  have  found  that  there  are  three  key  areas  of  strategic  focus  to  achieve  these  goals  and   objectives:    attract  and  attain  new  physician  relationships,  engage  and  convert,  and  grow  customer   lifetime  value  and  advocacy.    Strategic  planning  that  incorporates  these  three  components  ensures   your  marketing  and  outreach  activities  are  targeted  toward  growing  relationships  across  the   customer  lifecycle.     Attract  &  Attain   Selecting  tactics  to  attract  and  attain  prospects  and  leads  begins  with  institutional  strategic  focus   and  market  sizing.  Once  certain  service  line/service  priorities  are  set,  the  next  step  is  to  explore   outbound  and  inbound  strategies  for  identifying  and  attracting  prospects  and  leads.     Outbound  strategies  may  include  tactics  like  purchasing  lists  of  physicians  in  your  market  who  are   not  current  referrers  based  on  set  criteria  (e.g.  service  line  priority).  This  list  can  be  utilized  for   targeted  marketing  and  outreach-­‐  such  as  email  marketing  and  field  visits.  
• 6.
  Physician  Marketing  &  Outreach     ©  2015  Endeavor  Management.  All  Rights  Reserved.       Page  6       Inbound  strategies  require  an  assessment  of  offline  and  online  content  available  and  in  use.    In  our   research  with  referring  physicians,  we  have  found  that  online  resources  rank  high  as  useful   materials  for  choosing  a  care  provider.  Reviewing  collateral  in  terms  of  vehicle,  content,  message   current  usage  will  be  important.     For  example,  if  pediatric  neurology  is  a  strategic  priority,  it  will  be  important  to  assess  the  materials   available  and  current  usage.  How  frequently  are  the  pediatric  neurology  related  website  pages   visited?    What  are  the  page  paths  to  conversion?  How  are  paid  search  campaigns  performing?  The   purpose  of  this  assessment  is  to  determine  if  current  content  is  easy  to  find  and  access  and  will   facilitate  the  path  to  referral.     Both  outbound  and  inbound  tactics  should  be  designed  to  support  strategic  priorities  as  well  as   tailored  to  market  segments.  As  an  example,  if  our  primary  target  is  in-­‐market  pediatricians  and  it   is  determined  that  this  segment’s  goal  is  easy,  convenient,  family-­‐centered  care,  then  we  will   assess  content  for  messages  that  align  with  this  goal-­‐  for  both  inbound  and  outbound  tactics.         Engage  &  Convert   Developing  strategies  for  engaging  and  converting  physicians  requires  a  slightly  different  approach   then  those  for  attracting  physicians.    Once  your  facility  is  within  the  consideration  set,  the  ability  to   convert  a  lead  to  a  referral  can  be  impacted  by  both  access  and  the  referral  process.     From  an  operational  perspective,  careful  analysis  of  the  referral  channels  to  assess  the  referral   experience  is  important.    Below  is  a  grid  that  Gelb  uses  to  track  marketing  channel  by  referral   channel  health:    
• 7.
  Physician  Marketing  &  Outreach     ©  2015  Endeavor  Management.  All  Rights  Reserved.       Page  7     Snapshot  of  satisfaction,  effectiveness  and  engagement  by  channel     For  institutions  that  have  centralized  access  for  referring  physicians,  it  is  helpful  to  populate  this   grid  for  each  market  segment.    For  institutions  that  have  decentralized  access  or  multiple  access   points,  this  grid  can  be  created  for  each  market  segment  and  service  line.     From  a  marketing  perspective,  messages  about  access  and  ease  of  access  at  key  touchpoints  for   strategically  important  services  can  be  helpful  in  moving  a  physician  through  the  funnel,  from  a   lead  to  referral.     Grow  CLV  &  Advocacy   Building  relationships  with  referring  physicians  begins  early  in  a  physician’s  career  and  lasts  long   into  retirement.    We  often  hear  physicians  describe  how  their  perceptions  of  hospitals  and   healthcare  systems  develop  over  time.    It  may  be  an  experience  in  medical  school  or  a  relationship   with  a  colleague.    Either  way,  referring  physicians  represent  a  unique  market  segment  with  the   potential  for  a  tremendous  customer  lifetime  value.     In  our  work,  we  often  work  with  leaders  in  physician  marketing  and  physician  relations  to  identify   ways  to  maximize  this  potential.    Interestingly,  preferences  really  vary  by  physician  market   segment.    Physicians  in  your  local  market  have  different  expectations  and  needs  than  those  who   may  be  in  your  extended  market.    Specialists  and  primary  care  physicians  are  also  different  in  how   they  prefer  to  engage  with  hospitals  and  healthcare  systems.     Despite  the  nuances  between  segments,  most  referring  physicians  expect  to  be  treated  with   respect  and  to  have  a  mutually  beneficial  relationship  with  care  providers.      It  is  imperative  to  ask   yourself  and  your  leaders-­‐  do  you  demonstrate  respect  for  referring  physicians,  for  their  business   and  for  their  patients?     Below  is  a  list  of  best  practices  to  incorporate  into  strategic  planning  for  demonstrating  respect  and   growing  customer  lifetime  value:    
• 8.
  Physician  Marketing  &  Outreach     ©  2015  Endeavor  Management.  All  Rights  Reserved.       Page  8     Category   Example   Communication   • Provide  patient  updates/communication  in  a  clear  and  concise  manner   (one-­‐page  summary)   • Provide  frequent  and  timely  updates  regarding  patient  treatment  and   status   • Identify,  track  and  utilize  the  physician’s  preferred  communication   channel  (e.g.  fax,  portal,  email)  for  patient  and  marketing   communications   Coordination   • Closely  monitor  and  track  the  referral  experience  by  channel  (call  center,   portal,  fax)   • Provide  accurate  and  transparent  information  about  access  and   acceptance  criteria   • Provide  a  smooth  transition  when  transferring  a  patient  back  to  referring   physician  for  continuation  of  care   Care   • Provide  an  exceptional  patient  experience   • Identify  opportunities  for  faculty  and  staff  to  make  personal  connections   with  referring  physicians  (e.g.  personal  phone  call  thanking  the  physician   for  a  referral  or  to  provide  a  patient  update)   • Provide  a  variety  of  opportunities,  both  in-­‐person  and  digital,  for   physicians  to  engage  in  meaningful  interactions  with  your  brand       Key  Takeaway  –  Strategic  Planning  and  Execution   Combining  market  insight  with  strategic  planning  and  execution  can  accelerate  the  growth  of  your   physician  marketing  and  physician  relations  work.    The  ability  to  target  and  segment  your  market  is   essential  to  your  ability  to  design  and  execute  marketing  and  outreach  tactics  that  really  connect   with  your  physician  audiences  to  attract  and  retain  relationships.     When  it  comes  to  execution,  a  solid  Physician  Relationship  Management  (PRM)  platform  is  key  to   supporting  your  program  in  terms  of  both  sales  and  marketing  activities.       Demonstrate  Program  Effectiveness   Most  physician  marketing  and  outreach  programs  rely  on  lagging  indicators,  such  as  referral   volume  as  a  means  to  measure  program  effectiveness.    While  business  metrics,  like  referral   volume,  are  very  important  metrics,  we  believe  that  a  balanced  approach  includes  other  measures,   as  well.         When  designing  a  measurement  strategy  for  physician  marketing  and  outreach  programs,  at  Gelb   we  recommend  a  top  down  approach.    This  means  starting  with  your  organization’s  business  goals   and  developing  program  objectives  to  support  each.    From  there,  drilling  down  to  measures  and  
• 9.
  Physician  Marketing  &  Outreach     ©  2015  Endeavor  Management.  All  Rights  Reserved.       Page  9     metrics  that  demonstrate  each  objective  is  the  next  step.    Finally,  setting  goals  and  targets  for  each   metric  completes  the  process.     Some  of  the  key  performance  indicators  we  incorporate  in  measuring  physician  marketing  and   outreach  programs  include  measurement  of  the  quality  of  the  relationship  (satisfaction,  Net   Promoter  Score,  referral  experience),  length  of  the  relationship  and  level  of  engagement  (emails   opened,  CME  courses  attended,  attendance  at  special  events).     Technology  also  plays  in  important  role  in  demonstrating  program  effectiveness.    The  ability  to   capture  and  integrate  data  from  a  variety  of  sources,  analyze  the  data  and  then  visualize  the   findings  can  really  simplify  reporting  while  providing  a  means  to  share  insights  with  your  program   as  well  as  other  stakeholders.    Choosing  the  right  reporting  and  dashboard  tool  can  reduce  the   amount  of  time  required  to  source,  integrate  and  analyze  the  large  volume  of  data  required  to   demonstrate  program  effectiveness.     Key  Takeaway  –  Demonstrate  Program  Effectiveness   The  inability  to  measure  and  demonstrate  program  effectiveness  can  become  a  barrier  to   execution  of  even  the  most  well-­‐thought  strategies.    Knowing  what  is  working  and  what  is  not  –  can   provide  decision  makers  with  the  insight  required  to  make  mid-­‐course  corrections  and  maximize   effectiveness  of  effort.     Access  to  reporting  and  dashboard  technology  can  accelerate  the  process,  from  collecting  data   collection  to  insight  development,  providing  real-­‐time  knowledge  for  decision-­‐makers.   Taking  Action     In  conclusion,  designing  innovative  strategies  to  target  referring  physicians  requires  three  areas  of   focus:    Market  Insight  &  Opportunities,  Strategic  Planning  &  Execution  and  Program  Effectiveness   Measurement.    An  integrated  approach  that  includes  these  three  areas  can  help  your  organization   identify  opportunities  and  market  segments  to  explore,  move  leads  and  prospects  through  the   funnel  and  build  strong  lasting  relationships  that  grow  customer  lifetime  value  and  advocacy.        
• 10.
  Physician  Marketing  &  Outreach     ©  2015  Endeavor  Management.  All  Rights  Reserved.       Page  10     About  Endeavor     Endeavor  Management,  is  an  international  management  consulting  firm  that  collaboratively  works   with  their  clients  to  achieve  greater  value  from  their  transformational  business  initiatives.  Endeavor   serves   as   a   catalyst   by   providing   pragmatic   methodologies   and   industry   expertise   in   Transformational   Strategies,   Operational   Excellence,   Organizational   Effectiveness,   and   Transformational  Leadership.   Our  clients  include  those  responsible  for:   • Business  Strategy   • Marketing  and  Brand  Strategy   • Operations   • Technology  Deployment   • Strategic  Human  Capital   • Corporate  Finance     The  firm’s  50  year  heritage  has  produced  a  substantial  portfolio  of  proven  methodologies,  deep   operational  insight  and  broad  industry  experience.    This  experience  enables  our  team  to  quickly   understand  the  dynamics  of  client  companies  and  markets.    Endeavor’s  clients  span  the  globe  and   are  typically  leaders  in  their  industry.     Gelb   Consulting   Group,   a   wholly   owned   subsidiary,   monitors   organizational   performance   and   designs  winning  marketing  strategies.    Gelb  helps  organizations  focus  their  marketing  initiatives  by   fully   understanding   customer   needs   through   proven   strategic   frameworks   to   guide   marketing   strategies,  build  trusted  brands,  deliver  exceptional  experiences  and  launch  new  products.    Gelb   can  help  you  to  develop  and  implement  the  right  strategies.    Using  advanced  research  techniques,   Gelb   can   help   you   to   understand   the   complexities   of   your   market,   to   develop   your   strategic   decision  frameworks  and  to  determine  the  best  deployment  of  your  resources  and  technology  to   monitor  your  successes.     For  over  50  years,  Gelb  has  worked  with  marketing  leaders  on:   •      Strategic  Marketing   •      Brand  Building   •      Customer  Experience  Management   •      Go  to  Market   •      Product  Innovation   •      Trademark/Trade  Dress  Protection       Our  websites:   www.endeavormgmt.com   www.gelbconsulting.com   www.gulfresearch.com