Implementing the Market Plan

Marketing Implementation

Who? What? When?

Implementing this plan would require cooperation of multiple departments within Duke Raleigh Hospital. The marketing department should decide what information to put on the newsletter that meets all the market objectives previously discussed. This would require research and development to provide the most current research being done with in the hospital and explanation as to why it benefits the target market. Research would also help with the useful daily health information to include such as latest recommendations on how to lose weight, lower cholesterol, and decrease risk of diabetes ECT. As previously stated the help of a knowledgeable tech department is needed to ensure that things are easily accessible and to ensure that Duke is utilizing all electronic sources and social Medias in the most profitable way. To ensure that the information used is the most current there should be a weekly deadline. Assuming that the newsletter is sent out every other Monday, presenting a theme Monday afternoons for the upcoming newsletter would be ideal. Then setting a deadline for all information to be in hands of the marketing department by the end of the business day Wednesday would allow time Thursday for the marketing department to decide how the information should be marketed to the target market. Lastly, All information should be given to tech services by end of business day Thursday so that they are able to do all the graphic design work in preparation for Mondays delivery.

Marketing Strategies: Marketing Mix and Cause Related Marketing

Marketing Strategies

Marketing Mix

§  The product should be a unique collection of Duke specific information that is intended for the better health of the community. The product will be sent out via email to subscribers only.

§  The Newsletter should be at no cost to the patients since it is meant for promotional purposes and consumer expansion.

§  Places the newsletter should be accessible to the subscriber include: Website (only with login), and email. It should be distributed every other Monday at 9:00 am.

§  Once a month there should be a promotion deal that could range anywhere from coupons for local businesses to vouchers for free Duke Raleigh Hospital brand merchandise. Promotion could also be used as incentive to refer the newsletter to others in efforts to raise awareness and reach 1000 subscribers by September 2013.

Cause-Related Marketing

Cause-related marketing is a technique Duke could use to link services it provides to its patients and social causes they support. Including 1 interesting fact or statement in the E-newsletter regarding patient relatable charities followed by a lead to the story behind the statement could spark interest in readers to subscribe to the magazine or seek out other informational media sources that Duke provides. Addressing this in the E-newsletter will pull in the compassion and interest of patients. By showing that Duke is willing to give, further enables patients to put their trust in Duke for all their families’ medical needs.

Addressing Social Responsibility

Addressing Social Responsibility

It is important for Duke Raleigh Hospital to address and make known the current social obligations for which they are fulfilling. By letting Patients know in a Bi-Weekly E-newsletter the charitable work and stable providing they are maintaining for their patients Duke is shining light on not only what they can give to their patients but also building trust on the base of Duke’s willingness to provide for its patients. Building trust opens doors to patients to establish comfort and familiarity with the hospital, which also provides grounds for patient loyalty. Including any current and relatable services to the community in the E-newsletter would bring awareness to how well Duke upholds their social responsibility and how serious Duke considers that responsibility. It is essential that 2-3 articles of charitable stories or community achievements be included in the magazine. The E-newsletter being a somewhat, “hook,” to bring in more subscribers, it is important to include brief summaries of social fulfillments in at least every other newsletter in order to spark interest into further research in the magazine. Social Responsibility is a large marketing tool for Duke because patients look to a hospital to take care of them when they are unable to take care of themselves. This portion of marketing allows Duke to constantly remind patients how important taking care of them is and how Duke is maintaining that responsibility. In turn for patients having long term loyalty to Duke Raleigh Hospital the favor should be returned as social responsibility to show appreciation for their trust. These perks and extras should be briefly noted in the E-newsletter but only on a monthly time scale. 

Addressing Ethics

Addressing ethics

Business and marketing ethics are essential to the successful of a company’s marketing pitch. Duke could utilize this by addressing things such as participating in the green movement or acknowledging the use or non-use of certain marketing windows. Things of this nature would mean paying close attention to community event sponsorship and recognizing the causes that duke chooses to support and brand. By showing and pointing out consistency of community business relationships it shines light on the trust worthiness of Duke. By Presenting this consistency with other businesses and marketing it through the web with things such as the E-newsletter Duke is sending the message to other businesses and competitors that the company is willing to work and cooperate to better the community for its patients. 

Legal and Regulatory Forces

Prominent legal and regulatory forces concerning the social media marketing of duke would be the recognition of Consumer product legislation. Any current news of laws concerning health care should be included in the E-Newsletter. By doing this Duke will further acknowledge their willingness to protect and educate their patients so that they are ensured fairly priced and safe services. With current societal concerns about the laws controlling health care it is essential to include information about how Duke is working to keep up and adjust their services in coordination with the changing legal concerns in order to provide quality services at the fairest price. This will not only maintain the trust of loyal patients but also appeal to new patients as well. It is important that Duke provide the upmost stability for its patients. Information concerning the Consumer Product safety Commission and the FDA would be applicable for Duke’s E-newsletter. It is not necessary to include a surplus of information on the newsletter; however, one or two links to articles concerning legal topics should be published at least twice a month to keep patients up to date.

New Marketing Objectives

Marketing Objectives

§  Presenting the right information that creates a comfort level for patients so that Duke Raleigh Hospital is their first choice for medical concerns and knowledge

§  Provide Useful health information to patients via the most accessible, reliable, and convenient source possible.

§  To educate the community, not only as individuals but also as a whole, of any health information that may be useful to them.

§  Publish information that is appealing to all genders while still maintaining the market segment of “ heads of the households”

§  Using the E-Newsletter to Create brand awareness in hopes to make Duke a household name.

§  Maintain a consistency in the dates that the e-newsletter is sent which should be every other week. This provides the patient space so that they don’t feel they’re being pushed.

Current Marketing Objectives and SWOT Analysis

Current Marketing Objectives

Current Marketing objectives should include the following:

§  Provide heath information to patients as a service to the community

§  Give information that will build patient loyalty and trust

§  Put more emphasis on social media marketing for Duke

§  Increase the number of subscribers to the E-newsletter as an alternative to the quarterly printed magazine.

§  Increase the click through rate

§  Increase the open rate

§  Reach 1K E-newsletter subscribers by September 2013

Situation Analysis

Strengths

These current objectives are substantial. They include goals such as increasing customer awareness, aspirations of expansion, and intentions to shed light on all aspects of what Duke Raleigh can provide for its patients and their families.

Weaknesses

Although all the initial marketing bases are covered such as informational purposes of the newsletter and increases in numerical statistics; this list of objectives overlooks the specific areas that should be targeted to achieve these goals. Giving information isn’t enough to build consumer base.

Opportunities

Using the internet as a way of marketing will always provide an array of opportunities because it is fairly effective and very popular. The door to expansion is wide open when using an E-newsletter to present information or news. In comparison with Duke’s quarterly printed magazine Healthy Focus, sending an electronic newsletter from America to China via email  is easily done within a few seconds, however, sending a magazine via postal service could take a few days or weeks. Recruiting patients from out of state is made easier due to the accessibility of the newsletter. This could be a big opportunity for big departments within Duke Raleigh Hospital such as cancer and cardiac departments.

Threats

Certain threats that deserve attention may include increased competition from other hospitals. This can be controlled by continuing to pay close attention to the marketing choices of competitors. It is important to make sure that Duke’s E-newsletters are packed with unique information not offered by competitor’s social media sources. Also, when using electronic sources to disperse information it is essential to have a knowledgeable technological team to ensure that all aspects of producing the newsletter run smoothly. They should also ensure that accessing the newsletter such as opening the newsletter and accessing the articles is convenient and easy with minimal effort.

Current Target Markets

Current Target Markets

The most clear and prominent target market for Duke’s E-newsletter would be Mothers. In today’s society most women handle all health care and medical details of the household. Acknowledging mothers as a market segment would allow Duke to focus their newsletter on things that would be important to heads of the households. This would lead to the creation of market segmentation based on mostly demographic variables such as gender, age, and family size. Although a slight focus could be put on mothers it would not be advisable to focus so much on mothers that a micro market is created. The goal should be that the e-newsletter is appealing to everyone by not being overly gender specific. This can be achieved by including articles that apply to whoever the head of the household is minus the gender appeal.

Marketing Environment: Sociocultural Forces

Sociocultural Forces

The main concern with the effects of sociocultural forces on Duke’s social media advertising is to make sure that the E-newsletter is accessible and appealing to patients of all demographics without offending any specific group. Any graphics used on the E-newsletter should be appealing to all and include people of all races. This will allow to Duke avoid upsetting potential and loyal patients or possibly receiving legal consequences for being racially unfair. It would benefit Duke to acknowledge the retirement of the baby boomer generation and include information in the newsletter that is directed towards parents or grandparents. For example, including an article in the newsletter concerning services provided for senior citizens but directing the information towards their children, who are more internet savvy, is more likely to promote loyal family business.

Marketing Environment: Technological Forces

Technological Forces

Technological forces play a significant role in Duke’s E-news marketing. Although, in the medical field, technology grows, improves and changes every day, as far as marketing purposes it is more important to acknowledge the technology changes in which the consumers are using. It is clear that Duke Raleigh hospital has already acknowledged the large increase in reliance on technology for communication and information. This is why E-newsletters are bound to be a successful marketing tool in today’s society. Examining how patients view and use the information that Duke provides can open doors to improve marketing productivity. For example, If numerical values concerning a 12 month time span start to show evidence that the E-newsletter is reaching out to more clientele then it would be imperative marketing decision to remove focus from a weaker and less successful marketing tool and place more on promoting the E-newsletter. Removing marketing tools would not be the most effective however by paying attention to the current technological forces in the community Duke will be able to maintain a strong and stable marketing plan.

Marketing Environment: Legal and Regulatory Forces

Legal and Regulatory Forces

Prominent legal and regulatory forces concerning the social media marketing of duke would be the recognition of Consumer product legislation. Any current news of laws concerning health care should be included in the E-Newsletter. By doing this Duke will further acknowledge their willingness to protect and educate their patients so that they are ensured fairly priced and safe services. With current societal concerns about the laws controlling health care it is essential to include information about how Duke is working to keep up and adjust their services in coordination with the changing legal concerns in order to provide quality services at the fairest price. This will not only maintain the trust of loyal patients but also appeal to new patients as well. It is important that Duke provide the upmost stability for its patients. Information concerning the Consumer Product safety Commission and the FDA would be applicable for Duke’s E-newsletter. It is not necessary to include a surplus of information on the newsletter; however, one or two links to articles concerning legal topics should be published at least twice a month to keep patients up to date.

The Marketing Environment: Economic Forces

Economic Forces

Economic forces that are  to social media marketing and could affect the successful completion of Duke’s objectives concerning the E-newsletter are almost non exsistent. With internet being a normal necessity for most households and businesses, there are few situations where information dispersed via email would be unattainable. The internet plays such a large role in current society that recession and prosperity have little to no effect on willingness to spend on internet service. This is all due to the fact that the E-Newsletter cost nothing and is acknowledged at the patient’s own willingness. Although it is important to pay attention to the economy and how it affects the number of new clientele social media marketing brings in, little stress should be put on establishing short term marketing objectives for the success of the E-Newsletter.

The Marketing Environment: Competitive Forces

Competitive Forces

Considering the line of work that Duke provides, it is essential to compete against other hospitals marketing techniques in an ethical way. It would not be a successful marketing strategy to shun or directly compare Dukes brand name to other hospitals in advertisement due to the rebuttals and reputation damages that may result.  The Product and generic competitive forces that drive Duke Raleigh Hospital into the field of sharing information electronically are things such as Rex Hospital’s “Rex connects blog,” which can be accessed from their website, and Wake Meds Facebook page. Rex and Wake Med offer certain similar services with price differences which boost competition which forces a consumer to look at the quality of services provided by each competitor. In order to overcome the competition Duke Hospital’s E-newsletter must offer unique and quality information to its patients that would not receive from any other source. In addition to taking the extra step to reach out to patients with the E-newsletter instead of waiting for them to search information on their own Duke already has a significant head start. According to Wake Meds website, they only have electronic marketing on social media websites, where patients are more likely to stumble upon or scroll pass less than eye catching information. Sending a newsletter not only asks for the attention of the patient, but also allows for an opportunity to pull in the patient’s interest and trust. Unlike Wake Med and Rex, Duke uses their online resources such as the newsletter to further market their Magazine the Healthy Focus. Neither Rex nor Wake Med has any easily accessible advertisement of magazines or timely email subscriptions that allow the patient to stay connected with their hospitals current and future plans along with other interesting facts or personal anecdotes. By utilizing and providing what other competitors lack Duke Raleigh Hospital can present a strong competitive force against other candidates.

Marketing Executive Summary

The Marketing Executive Summary

Duke Raleigh Hospital is a place of medical research and home to many expert doctors. The goal of Duke Raleigh Hospital is to provide the uptmost passionate care to all its patients. In order to bring in and keep patients, the hospital has to use a particular set of marketing techniques in order to build patient loyalty. By using multimedia devices to expand the hospitals patient accessibility and involvement, Duke Raleigh Hospital is aiming to build a relationship with patients based on trust and compassion. Renovations of Duke’s Healthy focus e- newsletter could be the answer to reaching out, expanding, and stabilizing a new group of patients. Renovations including information on new research, insights into what can be found in the Healthy Focus magazine, along with personal anecdotes from current patients, and recognition of current supporters. It is important that all information presented by Duke’s social media marketing presents the positive outlook of Duke’s organizational culture. This includes Duke’s goals, rituals, norms, values, and beliefs. By marketing Dukes organizational culture it will be able to attract patients who share their common beliefs.