Ramping up Retail Marketing

• By David Kopf
• Sep 01, 2015

In the same way that providers must get clever in terms of targeting new retail sales niches, such as orthopedic products, they must also get clever about how they market their retail business.

The more that providers can reach their constituents with compelling marketing messages about their cash products, the more they will get patients and clients to come to their retail stores and visit their online storefronts in order to purchase DME on a cash sales basis.

This means that providers need to leverage every “hook” they can find to grab customers’ attention. Let’s take a look at several examples:

• Leverage special events. Providers should take advantage of special dates and events that pertain to homecare and home medical equipment. For instance, January also marks National Bath Safety Month. That means providers have all of December and January to get clients to make their bathrooms and those of their loved ones safer.
• Special pricing. In addition to special occasions, special prices will compel clients to buy products. For example, a provider could offer a weekly coupon discounting particular items each week of the month, or offer percentage discount coupons. The point is to incentivize customers.
• Marketing communications. Provider mailers and emails should regularly reference the upcoming event and start publicizing any special offers an HME business might be offering, but don’t stop there. Offer customers value; have each communications you distribute offer information that your constituents could use. It could be a bath safety checklist, or an outline on key places for installing grab bars. The key is that the information helps them.
• Advertise. In the same way a provider customizes its marketing communications, it must ensure that its advertising campaigns support its special campaigns and events.
• Offer seminars. The value of direct public outreach cannot be denied. In the same way a provider offers referral partners in-services, it should host special seminars on bath safety at various locations through the month. A road show could hit local senior living centers, libraries or hotel meeting rooms. The key is for the provider to get out there and share its expertise.
• Attend public events. If your local community is hosting any fairs or special events, see if you can set up a booth to provide information on bath safety, as well as the rest of your company’s DME offerings.
• Social media. Providers must make sure to use Facebook and Twitter presences to help organize and publicize these efforts. The value of these tools for helping get the word out can’t be denied.

This article originally appeared in the September 2015 issue of HME Business.