"Imagine for a moment that you face this marketing scenario: you offer a needed service, but your potential customers hope to never have to use it, and you have no way of easily identifying or contacting those who do.
That's somewhat of the situation that Hospice of the Bluegrass faces. They provide home or inpatient care to terminally ill patients and provide bereavement services to the families, as well as a number of other allied services.
Obviously, there isn't any simple way to market their services, much less determine who their "target market" is. There isn't exactly a mailing list they can purchase, and mass media isn't particularly efficient against a relatively small segment of the population. So Hospice of the Bluegrass markets its services not directly to their "customer," but to those who can identify that individual or family and refer them to Hospice.
First of all, anyone at all can refer an individual to Hospice, which will then consult with the potential patient's physician to see if its assistance is appropriate. But its primary method of identifying those who would benefit from Hospice care is to work directly with hospitals and physicians. The organization's education department has the charge of teaching health professionals about Hospice, what it does, and how it can help both the patient and the family. This effort isn't just limited to practicing physicians either. Hospice also employs a program whereby medical, nursing and chaplain students can spend a day with its clinical staff to better understand what they do. In addition, Hospice staff also reaches out to local firms such as law and accounting firms, providing them with an educational presentation on the mission and services of Hospice. Also, presentations are offered to schools, community groups and churches at their request.
That doesn't mean that Hospice doesn't also do some more traditional marketing, including television, radio, direct mail and public relations. These can increase general awareness of what Hospice is and does, but aren't the primary sources of generating patients.
In 2005, Hospice of the Bluegrass cared for 3,805 patients and their families, with 1,327 just in the Lexington area. That means that they serve the majority of those with terminal illnesses in some way in 23 Kentucky counties.
It's unlikely that you face the same situation in your business. In most cases, your potential customer wants your product or service, rather than hoping that they never need it. Also, you probably have a way, based on demographics, psychographics or just geographic location, of knowing who your customer is likely to be. At the same time, however, you may be missing an important piece of the marketing equation - the "influencer." These are individuals who can influence the choice of a business but who are not direct decision makers. In the case of Hospice, that indeed is the role of a physician, for example. They can influence a family to consider Hospice, but cannot make that decision for them.
Somewhere in your business universe, there are influencers as well. They might not be as direct a link as a physician to a terminally ill individual, but they're there if you look hard enough. The first level is your current customer base. Through word of mouth, they can influence others' decisions to choose you - or not.
But look beyond that as well. Who also services in some way your potential customers, but isn't a competitor? For example, if you have an automotive brake service but don't provide transmission repair, partner with a nearby business that does. Referrals go both ways, so they help both businesses grow. If you own a rug dealership, perhaps you can tie in with a local rug cleaning company. If you're an accountant, perhaps you can tie in with a payroll service firm. The possibilities are endless.
Hospice needs to market through third parties. You probably have the advantage of being able to market directly, but also add the third party to your efforts as well. Find that third party, implement your program and be patient. It can go a long way in extending the life of your business. "