Every medical practice should have a formal, written marketing plan. For most practices, your medical marketing plan should be evaluated and updated on an annual basis.

Components of a medical marketing plan include:

• Discussion of your target market
• Analysis of competitors
• A discussion of your brand including development of a logo and how your staff will communicate a consistent image
• Internal marketing to existing patients
• Development of a website
• Search engine optimization plan (so search engines will find your website)
• Print brochures
• Referral Strategy for both patients and professionals
• Advertising, including yellowpages, online options, and other local media as appropriate
• Direct mail options
• Promotional materials
• Public Relations
• Community relations
• Grassroot marketing opportunities
• Corporate sales
• Strategy for measuring results and maximizing your return on investment

Depending on your specialty and other aspects of your practice, your plan will address these elements to different degrees.

Established practices will often spend 3-5% of revenues on marketing, while new practices may spend 10-20% for the first few years.

When developing and implimenting your plan, the American Medical Association statement on Advertising should help guide your approach:

“A physician may publicize him or herself as a physician through any commercial publicity or other form of public communication… provided that the communication shall not be misleading because of the omission of necessary material information, shall not contain any false or misleading statement, or shall not otherwise operate to deceive.”

How is your practice’s Marketing Plan? If it needs to be developed, or needs a boost, we can help. WFD has experience with practices in all stages, from pre-Grand Opening through seasoned practices in need of new ideas.