Medical marketing: the waiting room

The waiting room is an excellent marketing tool for the doctor, often under-exploited.

In fact, marketing is not just about attracting new customers, but also about retaining, retaining and maximizing the satisfaction of existing patients . And this loyalty marketing is usually much more effective and less expensive .

But to understand what marketing a doctor can do in the waiting room, one must first understand the patient's journey .

The patient journey and medical marketing

When the patient goes to the doctor, he makes a journey : for example, he drives to your office, parks, checks in, sits in the waiting room, does the medical examination, check-out, receives instructions for follow up, visit home, note the next visit, and so on

At each stage of this process, he receives information and forms opinions and feelings which, together with the actual medical examination, contribute to defining the opinion he has of your doctor's office.

There are 1000 reasons why a patient may decide to leave a doctor's office and often they do not have to do with the medical service itself: inconvenient reception hours, inability to pay by credit card, long waits, unfriendly staff ...

Good medical marketing starts from understanding the patient journey and the needs and sensations he feels in each phase, identifying any critical issues; and develops marketing tools aimed at optimizing each phase.

Medical and staff marketing in the waiting room

In the waiting room, we usually find one or more study assistants , often "multi-task": they take care of reception, acceptance, checkout, assistance to the doctor ...

They are the first image of your doctor's office and, with their behavior, they help define it; therefore their importance, also from a marketing point of view, is very high.

But what detects and impacts on the customer is not only their operational efficiency (speed, precision, clarity ...), but also 2 other aspects:

First, their interpersonal skills . In fact, the patient may be tense, or have doubts, or be irritated by a long wait… The ability of staff to understand these situations and to intervene in an appropriate and personalized way is vital. But, even in the absence of particular problems, the ability to make people feel relaxed and at ease contributes not a little to the overall satisfaction of the patient.

Furthermore, their promotional capacity is also important : in fact your patient is already "open" and available to the activity of your practice and therefore it is easier to communicate certain information: for example, the introduction of new treatments or promotions. But in an intelligent, personalized and not pressing way.

Clearly, all of this requires careful training and motivation .

 

Effective medical marketing also rests on the efficiency, relational and promotional capacity of the staff in the waiting room, who must therefore be trained and motivated.

Medical marketing and information in the waiting room

A long wait is detrimental, but a reasonable wait is an excellent marketing opportunity for the doctor: brochures, videos, posters… are occasions to convey relevant information.

 

However, it must not be intrusive, commercial and pressing advertising, because it would be ineffective, annoying and, perhaps, counterproductive. Therefore, you need to create valuable content for the patient . Explanations, clarifications, reassurances on the pathologies treated and on the ways to treat them are what patients look for most often (even on inappropriate channels). Creating quality and engaging content in this sense is rewarding and consistent with professional ethics. The more properly promotional message can arrive in the queue, discreetly. It will thus be more effective.

Good medical marketing uses the waiting room to convey valuable content for the patient, without excessive pressure or too "commercial" methods

Medical and environmental marketing in the waiting room

The waiting room (and, in general, the entire studio environment) communicates who you are! Therefore, it is important to set it up carefully .

It seems obvious, but it has often happened to me to see private medical practices (even expensive ones) with a decidedly… ASL face! A sadness that makes you want to run away and does not make the experience very pleasant. In certain areas of medicine, this adds to the normal apprehension that accompanies a medical examination.

 

Bright, carefully furnished, clean rooms, comfortable chairs and perhaps fresh flowers or background music, interesting and recent magazines… have a profound impact on patients and help to create a positive image of the practice.

Technology can also help in the waiting room (eg: free wi-fi, apps to book or search for information) and, in general, throughout the patient journey (eg: SMS to remind you of the appointment or post- visit), to the extent that they facilitate or make the journey more pleasant or effective, or solve problems.

Careful medical marketing also includes great attention to the environment, even in the waiting room which, together with the staff, is the first business card of the practice

 

Summing up…

It dedicates resources and energy to retain existing customers, starting from the analysis of the patient path and developing a marketing aimed at optimizing each phase, not only in the medical aspects.

From this point of view, what happens in the waiting room is very relevant; therefore, it pays a lot of attention to the training and motivation of room staff, to the creation of valuable information materials for the patient and to the provision of a welcoming environment.

 

The return on this investment will always be positive! .