Twitter
LinkedIn
Facebook
Rss
Feed« Healthcare Recession Survey Results | Main | Jobless in America: Is Double-Digit Unemployment Here to Stay? »
Your Smartest Competitors Aren’t Napping Due to the Recession – Are You?
By Stewart Gandolf | October 13, 2009
Today I want to share two client anecdotes that hopefully will convince you to begin marketing (again) in earnest.
For confidentiality reasons I won’t reveal the identity of these two clients, but I can tell you that both are respected doctors who also run highly successful businesses. (The principles will apply to you whether you run a corporation, hospital or private practice.)
The first anecdote begins with a snippet from a recent email…
“Fortunately, we have done fairly well in this difficult time. Since we have the financial resources, this may be a unique opportunity to extend our advantage over those less financially secure.”
Now if you have been following my writing and speaking, you know I have continually advocated marketing during this recession in order to win market share and protect your bottom line. Of course not everyone believes me, but some people obviously do.
Our second client urged us to share the following with you…
“We have had a larger volume of new patients despite the recession. Patients are afraid they will lose their insurance or they already have lost them and are paying for Cobra. There is a huge demand for elective procedures covered by insurance… snoring, sleep apnea, sinus infections, congestion, sinus headaches, allergies, etc. “
This client went on to write that his colleagues’ out-of-pocket (cosmetic surgery) cases are down, but their reimbursable services are UP.
So what does this all mean?
First of all, if you have disappeared from the scene in a competitive marketplace, chances are your savviest competitors haven’t. What’s more, your competitors are thrilled that you have disappeared, and are hoping you (and everyone else) will remain on the sidelines indefinitely.
Second, this is a time to look harder for areas of opportunity.
Yes, I know that budgets are tight, times are scary and some of your offerings have fallen flat.
No one could have blamed our second doctor if he had simply complained about the economy like everyone else does. But, he and his colleagues instead focus on less sexy – but profitable – reimbursable services.
Of course, if your business is all cash, you could say that idea doesn’t apply to you. But I would remind you that there are an infinite number of ways to package prices and offers for people to buy. Have you tried them all?
Finally, there’s this whole business about whether the recession is easing or not. As my past post indicates, only 21% of the people we surveyed believe that, but in any event, who cares? The issue is not whether things will get better soon.
Instead, the question is, “What are you doing to improve your business, right now?”
So don’t get caught napping (or hiding).
As the fabled hare sadly discovered, it’s too hard to catch up later.
Topics: Uncategorized | No Comments »
Comments
You must be logged in to post a comment.