Proud to be a Healthcare Nerd

My name is Mike Milligan, I’m 44, and I’m a healthcare nerd.

Ok, I’ve publicly declared what my teenage girls have said since they could speak.

But, being comfortable with my high geek level, I took the day after Christmas to finish up my self-study course on Competitive Strategy from the American College of Healthcare Executives (ACHE).

And yes, I enjoyed it.

I appreciated the reminder about how differentiation and service are so critical in healthcare.  But not as always glaringly obvious to me throughout the year, is that consumers need to value that differentiation.  Do consumers view the attributes of a service as unique or different?  In other words, why should they care?

And this, my friends, is where marketing strategy comes in to play.  We as marketers need to help consumers not only understand what makes our sleep center unique; they need to fully understand and appreciate how this differentiation benefits them.  In other words, branding and awareness have their roles, but so does good ol’ fashioned persuasion.

Another takeaway for me is to not become complacent.  I’ll encourage our clients to make sure we have our differentiation defined for the various services before we advertise – and that we don’t rely on advertising to cover for poorly defined strategies.  We need to ask the tough questions, and use the answers to define and refine our products and services into market-ready profit centers.

Wishing you and your family a safe and Happy New Year,

Mike