Crafting an Effective Marketing Strategy for Your Imaging Center
Your physician referrals are declining, new imaging centers are gradually popping up across your town, and your bottom line is taking a hit. You could try to help your practice pick up steam by making more frequent visits to your referring physicians, but such an approach ignores the growing needs of your market.
In fact, times like these present a perfect opportunity to review and revamp your current marketing strategy, rather than continue using the same old approach for short term gains. So to help you ensure long term success at your imaging center, we’ve listed a few ideas for crafting a highly effective and remunerative marketing strategy.
Know the market
The imaging centers with the highest volume of referrals rely on the most recent market data available to identify opportunities for growth. Information such as local demographics, lifestyle, local economic trends (job market, home values, etc.), and industry statistics can help you tailor your existing services to meet the needs of patients in your area.
For example, an aging population calls for a greater need for accessibility in your area, and as a result, the proximity of your practice to the homes of patients becomes ever more critical.
While you should always leave room in your marketing budget for obtaining research data, you can reduce your overhead by requesting this information from your imaging vendors. And if they don’t already, your vendors can also help you learn what type of equipment your competitors are using, and different services or exams that they’re providing.
Go the extra mile
A satisfied patient always equates to a highly satisfied physician, and in turn, the volume of referrals will always reflect the quality of care at your facility. In addition to quick turnaround times, reliability, and accessibility, referring physicians and their patients greatly value the small things, such as calling the primary for a lost Rx, or squeezing a patient in on a call wait list.
Though it’s the job of the primary and the specialist to review images, taking the extra step to review the exams and report your findings is an added courtesy that doctors always appreciate.
Whether or not you and your staff are going the extra mile has a substantial influence on your rapport with other professionals in your healthcare network. As a result, the quality of care at your facility speaks for itself.
Know your referral base
Your own reports and patient surveys can reveal a wealth of information on opportunities for growth and uniqueness in your market, especially when compared with local, national, and even global industry statistics. You’ll also want to regularly review where your referrals are coming from, including physician referrals, your staff, and patient word-of-mouth.
Furthermore, keeping track of rejected referrals, if any, can help you identify growing needs in your market for types of exams you may currently not offer. Compare this information with industry trends, and plan on investing in new equipment for the rising needs of patients in your area.
Additional Marketing Strategies
Experiencing the results of a new marketing strategy takes time and effort, but constantly reviewing your market data and regularly researching opportunities for new services is sure to provide lasting profitability for your imaging center. In the meantime, a new revenue stream could be found by working with a medical lien finance company.
Medical lien finance companies, such as OMNI Healthcare offer cash for your receivables, so that you don’t have to wait for personal injury cases to settle. Unfortunately, not all medical lien finance companies are the same, and few will go above and beyond receivable purchasing the way that OMNI Healthcare can.
In addition to offering top dollar for your receivables, OMNI Healthcare can connect you with their extensive nationwide network of healthcare providers, patients, and attorneys, helping you expand your referral base and considerably increase your cash flow. As an affiliate of Global Financial, one of the nation’s leading financiers for attorneys, OMNI Healthcare is well backed and has the resources to wait for a court case to settle.
If a case falls through in court, OMNI Healthcare will assume the loss with no repercussions on your end. In less than a week, you can receive the cash you need to purchase new equipment, finance your marketing budget, and substantially increase your referral base.