You know who your competition is if you are working in a hospital. Whether you are in healthcare marketing or physician relations, you know about the competition. You have heard so much, you have a strong sense of where they are in the marketplace and where your organization falters. So forgive me for dwelling on some basic principles on doing a competitive analysis but for your colleagues working in a medical practice or a new clinic, this brief overview provides an important refresher.
Step One: Define your competition
Make sure you don’t leave anyone out when thinking about your competition. You may have competitors that surprise you – it is possible that the local drug store is opening a “minute clinic” or a new practice is opening a concierge service. Don’t rely on what you think you know, ask questions and do the research so you are not surprised. This overview will also provide you with the dynamics of the overall market.
Tip — One method for locating your competitors is to look around – physically (drive around your neighborhood) and virtually (use Google Maps, check out industry association directories and/or use a keyword search and see what other businesses are listed.
Step Two: Learn as much as possible about your competition
Start with their website to learn what they offer, how they position their services and how they deliver healthcare. There are several resources/methods, depending on the size of your competition, that may provide good market intelligence:
- Harris InfoSource, a division of Dun & Brandstrett — www.harrisinfo.com
- Hoovers (www.hoovers.com)
- Standard and Poors (www.standardandpoors.com)
- Hospital association(s)
- Hospital physician directories
- Generic search for articles
- FaceBook page information/posts
- Twitter feed
- Actually sample their service in some fashion
Step Three: Assess strengths and weaknesses
It isn’t enough to collect the market intelligence about your competitors, work to understand what makes them strong and where they are vulnerable. Analyzing your competitor’s market position allows you to position your organization more carefully in the market. Consider any un-served or under-served facets in the market. Healthcare marketing is often more about service and access than about quality because healthcare consumers struggle with identifying quality markers leaving much of the comparison resting squarely on service features.
Step Four: Determine your competitive advantage
Once you have gained valuable insight from your market awareness, you can use this analysis to help frame or update your marketing position. You want to emphasize your strengths as a healthcare organization. What makes your service the most attractive to potential patients? Do you have the most convenient schedule? Is your staff the friendliest? Does your physician offer a distinctive service – concierge, geriatrics, multi-specialty approach? Focus on what makes your service appealing to your target audience. How are you truly different from those competitors?
These four steps sound remarkably easy and they are but you would be surprise at how many organizations do not know the specifics about their competitors and rely on their gut versus true market data. Base your actions and even reactions on your knowledge about your competitors not on rumors!
