Identify your patients, define your practice.

One of our staffers recently overheard a receptionist at a local physician's office place a caller on hold, turn to the nurse beside her and say rather exasperatedly, "It's Mrs. Jones. She still doesn't know if she's calling the right place. She's confused us with Dr. (X) again."

As a physician, branding your practice begins with the name -- but your own name may not be the best choice. "Smith Family Practice" or "Smith Ear, Nose, & Throat Clinic" are obvious selections. If your surname is similar or sounds similar to another physician (even if you're in non-competing specialities) using another defining word in your practice's name can make a huge difference. Plus, a practice without your name can make it easier to attract partners and easier to sell at the end of your career.

But before you dash off to have your sign painted or design your logo on a cocktail napkin, take time to clearly define your target audience. Even a little bit of strategic research can help set you on track for efficiency and profitability. Some basic questions to ask -- whether your practice is new or several years old, include:

1. What is your ideal patient's mean (not average) age?

2. Where do they live? (specific geographic area; identify by postal carrier route or zip code)

3. What is their mean household income?

4. Are they insured? Medicare? Medicaid? Self-pay?

5. Are any of their family members also patients?

6. Do they schedule their own appointments? If not, who does?

7. How did they come to be your patient? Friend or self referral? If self-referral, how did they learn of your practice?

8. Were they referred by another physician? If so, do you have a database of that referral group?

Once you (or a staffer) create the bar charts or pie charts that visualize these answers as percentages, you'll have access to data that helps in your practice management, not just your marketing. After assessing your patient base, step back and review. Is this the mix of patients you want? Or, have you identified a need to attract a different target audience?

Next, consider your competition. Who are they and where are they located? What advantages do you have over them? Board certifications? Other clinicians on staff? Take time to list the strengths and opportunities you may hold in comparison to competing practices. Identifying your weaknesses and threats are also valuable to moving forward with your own customized marketing plan.

Now, back to your brand: Your Slogan or Positioning Line. This is the key phrase of ideally 10 words or less, that -- when consistently placed underneath or above your practice name (ultimately, the logo) -- can serve to help attract specifically the patients you want. 

In order to write such a positioning line, you need to have a fairly good understanding of those patients:

~What are they saying?

~What do they want?

~What matters to them?

These may seem like overly simplified questions, but you may be surprised what kinds of responses they will illicit when posed to a few key patients. (Quiz your staff first; they may know more than they've readily volunteered.)

Even a little data collection to identify your target audience can go a long way toward more clearly defining your practice and fine-tuning a marketing plan that can keep you rocking and rolling along for quite a while. 

Next month: Social Media

The Central Line is a column written by the healthcare marketing professionals at Right Angle, a Branding, Marketing, Advertising & Public Relations firm in Lafayette, Louisiana. For nearly two decades, Right Angle has assisted hospitals and physician practices and has been recognized by national healthcare publications for effective and creative campaigns.

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