Strategic market research by hospitals: Clinics neglect monitoring the satisfaction of clinic visitors

05.12.2011 09:31

Patient and referrer satisfaction surveys are now basic market and opinion research tools in many hospitals. However, the analysis of visitor satisfaction is almost completely neglected - citing its low importance for hospital work. However, a look at the functions that visitors have in connection with hospitals illustrates the diverse opportunities for hospital marketing that are neglected.

Patient and referrer satisfaction surveys are now basic market and opinion research tools in many hospitals. However, the analysis of visitor satisfaction is almost completely neglected - citing its low importance for hospital work. However, a look at the functions that visitors have in connection with hospitals illustrates the diverse possibilities for hospital marketing that are neglected:

(1) Visitors are multipliers and recommenders: not only patients, but also their visitors act as opinion formers for a hospital. Your judgment results from your own observations and experiences as well as from the descriptions of those you visit. Their multiplication power is impressive: a patient has an average of three visitors, and each patient speaks to an average of five other people about their hospital visit. If you multiply this size by the number of fully inpatient cases in a hospital or department, you get a wide spread of image-forming mentions, including as a peripheral effect beyond the clinic's catchment area.

(2) Visitors are potential patients: Visitors not only make use of individual hotel services, but also gain insights into patient-related hospital activities, from the medical care of those they visit to the tone among the staff.

An analysis of satisfaction provides answers to the questions of how the clinic's offering is perceived by potential patients and how well it is aimed at attracting them.

(3) Visitors are opinion formers for the patients: they often pass on the impression that visitors gain to the people they visit, so that “external opinion formation” can also occur. It is even possible for patients' positive/negative opinions to be changed.

(4) Visitor satisfaction is an additional quality dimension: it complements the patient and referrer opinions with a third judgment dimension, knowledge of which is an important factor in strategic clinical market research due to its strong image-building character. It completes the quality management view into a 360-degree picture.

(5) Visitor satisfaction surveys are a marketing tool: Hospitals that use this form of analysis not only gain extensive insights, but also set an important tone to the public with regard to their customer orientation. In addition, the surveys and their results can be used in a variety of ways in public relations work.

The effort required to carry out a visitor satisfaction analysis is no greater than that of a patient survey and can easily be integrated into ongoing operations. Further insights can be gained from comparing the results with those of the patient surveys, but also from comparing self-image and that of others.