Question
What are the most effective and important issues to address when marketing to physicians?
Answer
I think the two most important requirements are enthusiasm and commitment. Physicians are busy and get inundated with new things they need to relate to all the time. They are under heavy pressure by HMOs and are not looking for more functions to add to the office load. You therefore need some persistence in order to get through to them. However, they also increasingly accept their role within preventative medicine and understand the benefit of non-physician providers as resources in coping with that job. I think it is important for an audiologist to position him/herself as an auxiliary resource that can actually assist the PCP in doing a good job and not as someone who wants to sell something. Most physicians have never received much education about treatment and consequences of hearing loss, and a good place to start is by calling their attention to the general health benefits of amplification e.g. from the NCOA study. Another good way to start is by referring to ''common patients''. I believe in sending ''dear doctor letters'' routinely to all PCP and this could be another entry point asking the doctors how they prefer to receive the information, do they only want the short summary text, do they want the audiogram, etc. In the end it all boils down to establishing the personal relationships, doctors refers to people they know and trust. The information sent to them should be timely and consistent, they really appreciate that - often the patient comes back to them before they have had any information back from specialists or other provider.
BIO:
As Vice President of Marketing for Oticon, Inc., Peter Mark, M.D., has been instrumental in the development of the company's Human Link philosophy and in the global launch of DigiFocus and Digilife. Dr. Mark is the author of numerous articles and has lectured extensively on communications and marketing for health care professionals, especially on subjects pertaining to end user empowerment. Prior to joining Oticon, Dr. Mark was a practicing physician and also worked with several global pharmaceutical companies.
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