Marketing Nursing

and Setting Nursing

Services
 Nursing Services: An Imperative to Health Care Marketing
The Meaning of Marketing:
 The American Marketing Association(AMA) defines marketing as “the process of planning and
executing the conception, pricing, promotion and distribution of ideas, goods and services to create
exchanges that satisfy individual and organizational objectives”.
 The AMA definition of marketing is applicable to the health sector as well as to other commercial sectors.
 Marketing is the management process that identifies, anticipates and satisfies customer requirements
profitably (The Chartered Institute of Marketing)

 Marketing is the science of market analysis, market’s need coverage and provision of
superior customer value. It includes the coordination of 7 elements called the 7 P's of
marketing
 7 P’s of Marketing
For marketing as an activity it must satisfy the definition by controlling four variables
known as the “7 P’s of marketing.”

1. PRICE
– The United States has some of the highest global healthcare rates. Considering
this, finances often weigh heavily on the minds of potential patients. Find ways to
make treatment less expensive. Effective and inexpensive treatment options will
attract the most patients.  Accepting a wide array of insurance plans and having
reduced prices for simple tests and appointments are great ways to get patients in
the door.

– On the opposite end, concierge medicine and wellness services have allowed
physicians to increase service quality and improve the patient experience, for
patients willing to pay more. Consider offering more wellness services for a
balanced practice.
 7 P’s of Marketing
2. PLACE
 No matter how good the service, if it is in an inopportune location, business will be limited. It is imperative to health marketing that
its office is conveniently located. Having multiple easy to access locations, as well as reasonable and variable hours increases
chances of getting new patients.

3. PRODUCT
 Even if prices are reasonable and location is good, patients will be put off if y service is not up to par. Patients will be more likely
to make that crucial first appointment with a healthcare provider who has good reviews and they are more likely to return if they
have a positive first appointment. In the healthcare field, the appointment and treatment are the product. Offer individualized
suggestions for each patient. Conduct thorough assessments, and consider the best course of action for every case .

4. PROMOTION
 Even if you have the best care and facility, it is impossible to be successful if no one knows about you. This is where the fourth P,
promotion comes in. Promotion is imperative in getting practice business. Prescription PR can help your practice in marketing.

 Berkowitz notes that “to respond to customers, an organization must develop a product, determine the price customers are willing to
pay, identify what place is most convenient for customers to purchase the product or access the service, and finally, promote the
product to customers to let them know it is available.”
 7P’s of Marketing
5. People
 Service organizations are judged based on the performance of the people who provide the service.
People who create and deliver the service are critical for the success of the service organization.
That is why service organizations have a special focus on the people who provide the service. This
is related to the concept of internal marketing. 
 Internal marketing refers to how an organization must care for and treat their employees, since the employees
are the key to providing the best service to its customers. Organizations must treat their employees like valued
customers. Internal marketing includes properly selecting, training, and motivating all employees. Employees
must function well as a team to provide service quality, excellent customer experiences, and customer
satisfaction.
 Internal market refers to the employees of the organization. Successful marketing strategies start with the
satisfaction of employees before reaching out to the customers.
 7P’s of Marketing
6. Physical Evidence
 The physical environment in which the service provider and customer interact plays an important role. It has an impact on the customer's
perception of the service. 
 The physical evidence of the service includes all the tangibles surrounding the service: the buildings, landscaping, vehicles, furnishings, signage,
brochures, social media, websites, and equipment. 
 Service providers pay a lot of attention to how they manage physical evidence, in order to leave a good impression of the service on the
customer. This is related to the concept of impression management, or evidence management. 
7. Process
 In the case of services, how the service is created should be well defined. Process is the definition of how the
service is provided in a step-by-step manner. Process refers to the actual procedures, mechanisms, and flow of
activities by which the service is created and delivered.
 Most service organizations create a customer contact audit to identify the steps taken when providing the service.
The customer contact audit is the flow chart of the points of interaction between the customer and service
provider. It provides guidelines for both employees and customers. It also helps to improve the quality of the
service by ensuring that the necessary steps are taken for a smooth delivery of the service.   
  Four Ethical Principles of Healthcare Marketing
1. Put Patient's Welfare
 First Patients must come before profits. Patients have the right to expect care of the highest standard of
quality consistent with technological and physical limitations. We accept the principle that a patient will
receive all necessary care regardless of their ability to pay
2. Avoid unnecessary services
 Marketing should not induce a patient to accept excessive, unneeded, or nomadically indicated healthcare
services, regardless of cost, risk, or source of payment. It is unethical to build demand for unneeded services.

3. Maintain High Standards of Honesty

 Healthcare marketers must do more than merely avoid false or misleading advertising. While marketing
legitimately seeks to influence behavior, marketers have an obligation to provide fair and accurate
information when they promote their services.
4. Be accountable to the Public
 Marketers should develop marketing plans believing that these plans will likely be revealed to the public in
the future. Marketing professionals should avoid activities that they would not want their families to read
about in the newspaper.
 Nurses as Marketers

 In Past, nurses are not inclined to promote or market the nursing

profession to the general public or to other professions.
Nursing and Internal
Marketing
But Now, an understanding and engagement on basic marketing activities
can help nurses to tactic for promoting the care delivered, managing
stakeholders’ expectations at a practice and community level and creating
a positive image for nurses in their field.
 Nurses as Marketers

Nursing and
Marketing

• Nurses at all levels within an organization have a responsibility

in marketing the nursing programs and services: from frontline
nurses to nurse executives.
• Marketing must be integrated into job performance criteria at all
levels of practice to promote marketing and branding success.
 Nurses as Marketers

• Nurses could contribute to the marketing of primary healthcare services

by communicating with the community (promotion), ensuring effective
Nursing and service (product) delivery at the right price and place
Marketing Elements
• Nurses play a definitive role in marketing by communicating to the
patient and their family accurate information about services and products.
• Nurses are also strategic to the effective delivery of the services and
products at the correct time and place.
• Nurses can play an important role in changing the patient’s or other health
professionals perceptions about healthcare services and products and may
lead to behavioral changes.
 Nurses as Marketers
• Must be costumer-friendly.
• Align nursing services with the organizational mission and goals.
• Ensure that both customers’ needs are met.
• Maximize the use of technology.
• Nurses engage in marketing by requesting physicians to approve a particular
Nurses Administrators medication, test or therapy.
and Marketing • Are vital to maintaining a positive image and reaching it out to other
customers.
• Nurses market certain services or products to patients who in turn influence the
physicians’ decision to provide that particular service.
• Nurses deliver patient care by assessing the needs and wants of the patient,
putting the recommended patient plans into action and interpreting patient
outcomes.
• Nurses coordinate delivery of care with other services including the clinical
laboratory, pharmacy, dietary services, housekeeping etc
• Nurses advocate for improved care and influence the services provided.
 Nurses as Marketers

• NF must design integrated marketing approaches

that effectively promote nursing programs that
Nurses Faculties
contribute to organizational viability and
and Marketing sustainability.
• Marketing must be integrated into nursing
curricula.
 Nurses as Marketers

• Nursing students represent the profession of

nursing, nursing programs and respective
Nursing
Students and faculties.
Marketing
• All nursing students and nurses reflect an image of
nursing and market nursing profession at all times.
Constraints to using nurses as Marketers

Lack Of
Negative NursesCo Lack of
Marginaliz
Nursing mpetency technologi Burn Out
ation
Image “De es
Marketing
 Constraints to using nurses as Marketers
• Frequently mentioned as reasons for the “burn out” is lack of support from administration,
frustration with other service providers, perceived lack of the power to make decisions, failure on
the part of the institution to recognize the loyalty of the nurses to that institution, insufficient pay,
mandatory overtime and increasingly high nurse-to-patient ratios in some facilities . When these
problems present, nurses may not be in the position to deliver the expected quality of care nor, at
times, even the most basic patient care. These conditions also serve as marketing constraints or
barriers for the employers of nurses. A nurse’s inability to provide a service as basic as emotional
support to patients will diminish the reputation of the organization and derail any marketing efforts
to increase market share. Also, in this era of technology advancement the physician’s expectations
of the nurse is that patients should be treated as hospitably and humanely as possible and not just in
the technicalities of the care . If this does not happen, it may hamper administration’s desire to
expand the business of the hospital/clinic. This can lead to “de-marketing” the health care
organization. Again, it should be noted that all of these conditions are directly related to nursing
activities but can also be considered unintended negative consequences impacting marketing efforts.
Constraints to using nurses as Marketers

• Both physicians and patients hold nurses accountable for an up-to-date and caring
physical environment that is experienced by patients. If such an environment is
lacking, this can lead to further frustration and decreased morale among nurses,
eventually resulting in an overall negative nursing image. The fact that many of the
reasons for the poor physical environment of the hospital and possible ‘burn out’ are
beyond the control of the nurses may not be taken into account. Reasons for a poor
physical environment may include overcrowding, lack of safety measures, limited
resources and failure to control the patient population at times, all measures well
beyond the control of nurses.
 Promotion of Nurses in Marketing and the
Achievement education and nurse leaders
Strategies Include:
1.Understand their role & the nature of their services
 This understanding can empower the nurse to reposition (adjust) the particular product or service. Such action is termed the positioning strategy by marketing
professionals. The theory suggests that modification of perception of the product/service is in a patient’s mind and not in the product or service itself. With this
understanding, a nurse may influence patient care and can generate very positive reviews of a hospital or clinic.
2. Promote and upgrade themselves
 Job skill training courses ,Educational conferences and seminars ,Scientific thesis ,Research paper and full book uploading. ,Academic research grants /
scholarship, Faculty’s Journal clubs and symposiums, National and International nursing conferences, Faculty projects.
3. Work in teams
 Intra-disciplinary team work (nursing team work).
 Inter-disciplinary team work (i.e. team STEEP, etc)
 Promotion of Nurses in Marketing and the
Achievement education and nurse leaders
4. Getting known via social media
 Mentioning their professional profile and their worked organization like: @ #

5. Enhancing their professional attitude and public relations:

 Personal interaction with the public
 Dress code
 Connecting with the Mass Media
 Promotion of Nurses in Marketing and the
Achievement education and nurse leaders
Education :
1.There must be additional curricular emphasis on marketing and quality care.
 Familiarity with fundamentals of marketing may aid nurses to identify patients’ needs so as
to satisfy them by providing required services. Nurse educational programs may not
sufficiently cover areas like critical appraisal, psychology, management and social science.
2.The education providers and licensing authorities should ensure that student nurses
receive exposure to commercialism and are able to practice unbiased prescribing
behavior when appropriate.
 The usual program of study in nursing education is limited in concepts of marketing and as a result graduates may
lack critical thinking skills in that area. Thus, they would tend to accept any promotional material about drugs in an
uncritical manner. They may fail to understand the strategies of marketing and lack good decision-making capabilities
related to it, especially technologically related strategies. In addition, they would tend to have limited knowledge of
the pharmacodynamics and pharmacokinetics of drug products . Thus there may be a need for additional education
for all nurses
 Promotion of Nurses in Marketing and the
Achievement education and nurse leaders
Nurse leaders:
 Nurse leaders, as executives and directors of other services must be part of the strategy decisions. Since
many board members may not have a clinical background, input from the nursing services is important,
especially when information relates to successful clinical episodes. Providing advice from the episodes for
various issues such as their impact on allotment of resources is important for marketing. A marketing team
can take information and ideas from inputs of the nurse leaders and thus strategize a marketing plan .

 Another significant responsibility of nurse leaders is that of educating patients. Their special knowledge can
be shared to inform not only the patient but the general public and other health workers about current health
issues. These may include, for example, acquired immune deficiency syndrome, osteoporosis, diabetes and
various cancers. From time to time these are also issues of special interest to the media. Nurses are
knowledgeable of related causes and impacts and must be aware of and foster accuracy in the electronic
transmission of such information. Nurses can become even more visible advocates of health promotion for
the general public.