Earlier today I had the pleasure of describing some of the leading research techniques to the NACCDO/PAN marketing group, this year hosted by UNC Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center. Our discussion was focused on ways to elicit feedback from patients, families and referring physicians to guide understanding, delivery, and monitoring of the patient experience.
Below is a recap of key observations, followed by a copy of the presentation.
First, any objective feedback is better than none at all. Incorporating the Voice of the Customer is critical to ensure that scarce marketing and operational resources are put to greatest use. However, the use of marketing research tools is only intended to reduce decision risk, not eliminate it. Strategic prioritization includes a combination of both insights and instincts.
The most important elements of research include well-designed materials (prior experience and expertise in this area helps) and taking action on the results. To ensure action, I recommend engaging implementers as early in the process as possible, not only at the end presentation of results. Rather, they should guide the study materials development and engage in decisions throughout the process. One of the most important questions to ask executives is what they expect to see as an outcome of the process – their response may surprise you and might cause you to re-frame the entire study.
Experience Mapping is a valuable technique to understand patients’ functional AND emotional needs. Functional needs are commonly addressed as efficiency issues – parking, scheduling, discharge, etc… The emotional needs are often overlooked and harder to act upon (but not impossible) – hopefulness, safety, and empowerment are examples. The experience map also provides a framework for action by giving team members a common orientation to what happens before the hospital visit (a part of the process often managed by marketing and community physicians), “inside the walls,” and after discharge (an often neglected piece of the patient’s journey).
Quantitative research can link brand performance to experience management. In fact, marketing’s role to establish expectations as a basis for preference over competitors must be fulfilled or patients will become detractors rather than advocates. Gelb’s brand trust model is used by academic medical centers around the country to establish meaningful differentiators across market segments. Prioritizing these areas of importance and focusing communications and operations is key to building a strong brand.
Finally, accountability comes from measurement. Nevertheless, commonly used satisfaction or performance measurement tools are too late or, at worst, ad hoc. These tools should be viewed as additional “listening posts” for patients and referring physicians to provide feedback in the context of their journey, not an arbitrary date. This approach improves feedback quality and online tools provide a mechanism to for real-time service recovery.
