Medical Marketing Tips: Understanding Consumer Behavior
April 3, 2012 Leave a comment
Responding to consumer behavior is a central part of the overall healthcare marketing effort. It is also equally crucial to individual tools in the project such as healthcare telemarketing. Consumer behavior is complex and constantly changing. It is beyond the control of markets, yet understanding this element is necessary for success. Here are some basic considerations in trying to understand consumer behavior.
First of all, people have their own concept of fairness. This idea is most generally expressed in the old saying: “What your give is what you get.” In healthcare telemarketing, this translates to what our prospects are willing to give back based on what they receive from us. If we are offering more value in our campaigns, then they will most likely return the favor in the form of an inquiry, a request, or even a sale.
Next, we also have to consider how people respond to authority. Let’s face it; we are normally more inclined to listen to people whom we see as above us in a certain concern, such as healthcare services. If a medical call center agent adopts a more authoritative tone, then chances are more people will pay attention. The word here is “authoritative” not “authoritarian.”
The next thing we need to look at is the bandwagon phenomenon. We all have an almost natural fear of missing out on an opportunity. As a result, we tend to do what everybody else is doing. The implications of the bandwagon phenomenon in healthcare marketing are quite obvious. Prospects are generally more interested in your offers once given the hint that others are interested in it too.
The last aspect of consumer behavior we should be looking at is how consumers respond to change. People have some sort of resistance against change wired into them. We tend to continue doing what we are doing and sometimes avoid abrupt changes. But this does not mean people will never change. It only implies that people are hesitant to change. That is why healthcare telemarketing has to be a gradual process and avoid sudden drastic messages whenever possible.