Transcript From Events Planner to Strategic Partner WHPRMS Fall Conference Sept. 13, 2007

From Events Planner
to Strategic Partner
WHPRMS Fall Conference
Sept. 13, 2007
Kathleen L. Lewton, MHA, APR, Fellow PRSA
Principal, Lewton, Seekins & Trester
Today, it’s all about TACTICS
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Blogs
Podcasts
DTC ads
PR
Websites
VNRs
“Traditional” press
Webinars
Buzz marketing
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Social marketing
Brochures
Celeb spokesperson
Special events
Billboards
Mascots
Mobile vans
Refrigerator magnets!
But as Sun Tzu wisely said:
“Tactics without strategy is
the noise before defeat.”
Of course he also said:
“Strategy without tactics is the
slowest route to victory.”
We aren’t anti-tactic.
We’re just pro-strategy, as the foundation
for successful tactical execution.
Today we’re talking “pre-tactics”
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How to scan and span the healthcare
organization’s external environment
How to use a strategic approach to make
PR a critical function within the HCO
A.R.M. -- three key first steps for a strategic
communications plan
And how these three steps are the
foundation for a communications plan that
does include tactics
What’s out there?
Scanning the External Environment
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If the communications operation isn’t taking charge
of environmental scanning as part of taking a lead
role in organizational strategy planning…
WE SHOULD BE!
Doing the scanning. . . . .
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Having a structure in place to systematically
• Review what is happening in the healthcare
environment,
• Determine its implication for the organization
• Recommend initiatives and strategies in sync
with the organization’s business plan.
. . . . . And owning the role
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Means that communications becomes a major force
within the organization’s strategic business
planning.
And becomes a major contributor to the
organization and its bottom line.
With that in mind . . . .
It’s only appropriate that we begin with a quick
scan of “Healthcare 2007”
OR
Caught in the Campaign Crosshairs
Barak, Hil, Rudy and the rest agree:
Healthcare makes a GREAT target!
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And when the industry’s reputation is at an
all-time low, the target’s more tempting
• We used to take turns wearing black hat
• Now, we’re all in the same barrel
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Inefficient, life-threatening hospitals
Greedy doctors
Unethical pharma and device companies
Black-hearted insurers
It’s dog eat dog
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In an era of shrinking resources, competition is at
an all-time high
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Within the industry
Within the HC systems
Within communities
Within the company
Every sector of the industry is pitted against the
others so that instead of waging a united battle for
adequate financing for health care for all – we all
fight over the scraps
Greyer, fatter, sicker
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An aging population, yes
• But the new oldies – the boomers – refuse to age and
demand solutions from the HC system
• Stents, knees, hips – keep ‘em coming
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Obesity truly an epidemic
• Newest study – kids’ BMI already leading to increased LV
Mass
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Medical science means once fatal diseases aren’t
• Chronic disease burden terrifies employers
Account-ability
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It’s not just costs – it’s who should pay
• Payors shifting as fast as they can
• Workers/unions accept inevitable
• The uninsured flood the ERs and we all pay
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Payors – biz and government -- demand quality
and quality measures that can be understood
Development of tiered plans for reimbursement???
Talking Tech
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Technology seen as CRITICAL variable, but
there are issues
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Development funding
Technology affordability
Technology competitiveness
Capital demands for acquisition
Device development
Info Challenges
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Medical record keeping and transmittal
HIPPA challenges
Communications expectations increased all around
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Physicians, nurses other staff
Patients
Internal communications
Community support
May the (work)force be with us
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Staffing issues loom large
• Do we have enough of the right kind of
physicians and are they were the patients need
is greatest?
– And will all the good ones retire or become hedge fund
analysts?
• Not enough nurses – and way not enough nurse
educators
• Job stress exacerbates staff turnover in almost
all job categories
The watchdogs bare their teeth
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Regulatory environment is more challenging
• From FDA to JCAHO, regulators respond to
consumer demand and politicians’ rants
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Legislators on both sides of aisle, in DC and
state capitals, see Medicaid and Medicare
as ripe for budget cutting
Consumers in demand –
and demanding
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“Empowered?”
• Yes, no, maybe, sometimes, it depends
• Seek info . . . . . . to take to doc
• Paying more, trusting less
– “Now I don’t know if my drugs are safe!”
• Don’t understand  don’t comply
• Knowing more  behavior change
Physicians confused –
and confusing
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Frustrated, angry, fed up
• Less control, even less RESPECT
• More and more data, less and less time to grasp
it
– ALLHAT: “Doctors have little time to read medical
journals”
• Public M&M stats change behavior --for the
worse
• Tarred with same brush as Rx sales force
Control is key
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Who is in charge here?
Teaming in an unteamed world
And yet . . . . .
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There are many more issues and
challenges
What does it all mean?
And what do PR people DO about it?
Clearly HCOs need to change . . .
But there’s a slight problem:
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Frustrated employees see volume growth and
cost containment as more work/less pay
Fed up payers see adequate payments and
volume growth as eating into THEIR profits
Resentful doctors see volume growth as added
competition
Legislative reformers see a big target for the
coming elections
The key question: How do we manage
relationships to get what we need from these
stakeholders
• Hint: Can you say “public relations?
SO . . . . .
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How do we get a seat at the decisionmaking table to help solve the problems
and address the challenges?
The answer lies in strategy
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Stakeholder relationship change is a strategic issue
dependent on but not 100% driven by good PR
• The HCO has to change, too
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But PR can be a driver of management behavior
change and an advocate for effective stakeholder
relations IF we have that seat at the table
And to get there, we have to be seen as strategic in
how we work – and as contributing to
organizational strategy
So first, think like a strategist
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The key step is to focus on OBJECTIVES
• If we understand the desired outcome, we can
figure out the key audiences and how to move
them to action
• SO, why do we need this ad/brochure/campaign?
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Increase “awareness” – why?
Increase volume of procedures
Increase inquiries as first step to an appointment
Change perceptions of poor quality
Increase donations, employment applications, physicain
referrals, etc.
One we know the objective . . .
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We can create a plan with an outcome that
can be tracked, monitored and measured
And measurement is critical
• Not everything can be measured precisely, but
most things can be counted
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Calls, inquiries
Appointments
Changes in awareness, perceptions
Donations
Etc.
Ask the right questions
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Who do we need to reach?
What do we want them to DO?
What do we need to say?
How do we need to say it?
When?
How often?
How do we measure success?
ROI?
Also, PR strategy must map to
corporate strategy
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Which corporate goal does this initiative
(campaign, ad, brochure, etc.) support?
If the answer is “none” or “I don’t know” –
how do we justify spending time on it?
Selling your strategic
capabilities to management
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Everybody’s fighting for:
• Control and/or
• Resources
PR can be seen as an adversary for both
• Or as overhead that eats operational resources
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They may not like me, but how can I
make them NEED me?
Focus on THEIR concerns
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Align strategies to THEIR metrics
Give them fresh strategy, not more product
• Interactive Web
• Call centers
• Personal communications skills
Become a valued partner
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Treat peers as customers or clients – literally in
terms of operations, and attitudinally
Help them re-engage their employees and
physicians
Help research THEIR interests
Plan collaboratively and take them seriously
Solicit and act upon candid performance feedback
Defend them
Criticize honorably (behind closed doors)
And show them that PR operates
with a very structured approach…
The ARM Approach
Identify the right Audiences
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Use Research to understand, test
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Create Messages that deliver results
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Using ARM means beginning with O
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Once again, what’s our objective?
What audience do we want to do what?
• It isn’t grammatical, but it’s the key question
• Once we know that, we can ARM ourselves for
success!
Strategy starts at A – for Audience
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Solid strategies begin with a thorough and
deep understanding of who the
organization’s key audiences are
• It’s not enough to focus only on the target
customer audience for a specific product or
service – it has to begin with a 360 view of
every audience that’s out there, watching and
listening
• Because they all can have an impact, pro or con,
on the target audience
HCOs have a myriad of audiences:
Customers, Influencers, Stakeholders, Critics
ALL are important, ALL overlap & overhear
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Patients (when they’re
sick, consumers when
they’re not)
Families, “caregivers”
Physicians, surrogates
Legislators, regulators
Employees
Shareholders
Media
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Stakeholders
• Supporters
• Critics
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Influencers/Info Givers
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Advocates
Disease groups
Clergy et al
FRIENDS AND FAMILY
When creating marketing/PR
strategies, every audience counts
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The marketing questions:
• Q 1: Who makes the final decision?
• Q 2: Who impacts the decision?
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The reputation question:
• Q 3: How will other audiences react?
Q1: Who makes the final decision?
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The myth of the “empowered consumer”
Empowered? Yes, . . . and no
• Some are, many are not
• Even web searchers download the articles and
take them to “my doctor”
• Only 31% of heavy users (over 65) go online
• Hospital choice -- “where my doctor goes”
• Sophistication overrated -- witness the demise of
whole-body scan centers
Consumer role varies widely
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Decision maker – sometimes, when there
are no constraints
Active participant – the self-confident
Influencer – asks question, expresses self
Order taker – many still are, limited by:
• My doctor only prescribes, my doctor only
practices at . . . .
• My insurer only covers, my insurer only pays full
price for . . . .
Q2: Who influences decision?
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The doctor, of course
• But also the office nurse, the PT, other HCPs
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The insurer, both directly and indirectly
Advocacy groups (depending on Dx)
Unexpected sources – clergy, other trusted
sources
Still significant, still overlooked too often:
FRIENDS AND FAMILY
Slogging through the audience
ID process can be a struggle
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Too often service line managers and
product marketers want to default to
consumer promotion
Identifying who really makes and impacts
purchase decision can be like peeling an
onion -- takes a while and can be painful
BUT focusing on the wrong audience -- or
ignoring a key participant -- can lead to “less
than success”
In general:
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The more sophisticated the decision, the
less confidence the consumer has
• Choosing an ortho surgeon vs. demanding a
specific brand of hip implant
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It’s important to know what factors impact
YOUR consumer audience
• CEOs/administrators/marketers tend to
overestimate consumer “empowerment”
• Doctors tend to underestimate it
• To know for sure is to ask, via research
Q3:How will other audiences react?
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Never forget that any marketing or
organizational decision is observed by “nontargets”
Messages are overheard and can be
misunderstood unless the impact on these
audiences is considered
Research shapes strategy,
provides essential insights
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The 3 A’s of research: Don’t Assume, don’t
Adapt – ASK
• “Oh we KNOW how they feel”
• “They did this in Birmingham”
• “It worked for Coke”
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Research not only provides insight into
target audience, but also creates
benchmark against which to measure
The methodology mix:
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Consumer research -- the more qualitative,
the better
• Surveys -- hard #s, but no context, nuance
• Focus groups and personal interviews allow you
to probe, ask why and what if
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What you want to know:
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What they know and how they know it
How they receive and process information
What they care about, worry about
Who & what impacts healthcare decisions
Research:Critical tool to learn how
to impact audience behavior
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Physician research -- hard to come by, but
invaluable
• Key questions: how do you get info (channels),
who do you trust, what do you believe
• Check the “surroundsound” effect -- who also
plays a role in MD decisions
• Personal interviews help avoid the “mob effect”
in MD focus groups
The ideal methodology mix:
• Focus groups and personal interviews
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INSIGHTS
• Surveys (phone, online, intercept)
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DATA
• Focus groups and personal interview
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CLARITY
Research also critical for Message
development and testing
• The reason many marcomm campaigns fail
is simply because the message doesn’t
work, for one of four basic reasons:
– They don’t understand it (Comprehension)
– They don’t believe it (Credibility)
– They don’t care about it (Relevance)
– It doesn’t touch their emotions (Resonance)
• C2, R2
Comprehension – do they get it?
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HCOs are huge abusers of jargon
• Acronyms, science terms, insider info (Magnet)
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And we pile on the FACTS, FACTS, FACTS
Plus the “average” consumer audience
includes:
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Illiterates
Semi-literate
Anti-literate
Low vision skills
Credibility – do they believe it?
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Overpromising, directly or indirectly
Overendorsing
Overqualifying
Overhyping things that have no inherent
credibility to the average consumer
• Ratings, rankings
• Awards
• Credentials
Relevance – do they care about it?
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Do they care about:
• Service or product or procedure they figure
they’ll never ever need or use
• Reputation of product/service sponsor
• Hospital that’s two hours away
• We, us, our . . . . . . . all about YOUR assets
rather than their real-life needs and how they will
benefit
Resonance –
does message touch their feelings?
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For a message to move audience to action,
it has to touch heads and hearts
• Real people with real stories
• Showing rather than telling
• Same old phrases, same old pictures
Only one way to ensure
messages will work
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Test, test, test
• In your market(s)
• With your target audience
• With a talented moderator/interviewer who can
play word games
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Great free advice re doctors, from Joe
Smith at Guidant:
“If you’re going to provide information to
doctors, it has to be mainstream, familiar
and actionable”
Necessary elements of a
communications plan
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Customer origin analysis
Competitor analysis
Internal communications position
Marketshare/marketshare change
Corporate strategic growth targets
SWOT analyisis
Identifying/segmenting the ideal customers
Identifying ideal messages:
• What do we want them to know
• What do we want them to DO
Tactics
Timetable
Budget
Measurement
And NOW . . . .
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Let’s talk amongst ourselves!
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And later:
• [email protected]
• [email protected]
• [email protected]