Since World War II, healthcare has predominately been a B2B affair. Patients didn’t have much say in the matter. Yet here we are, on the heels of the 50-year anniversary of the end of World War II, and healthcare is changing – faster than you might think.
Consumers are becoming more sophisticated and increasingly involved when it comes to their healthcare. They’re no longer content simply following their provider’s advice. They’re much more engaged, and it’s occurring earlier in the process. For instance, they’re searching online. According to Google, 1 in 20 searches is about a health-related issue. And when it’s time to seek treatment, consumers want you to provide care on their terms, taking into consideration their busy lifestyles. It seems safe to say convenience to the consumer has never played a bigger role in healthcare than it does today. (Not including good old-fashioned house calls, of course.)
This revolution in the healthcare industry is known as “retailization.” It’s thought of as B2C versus B2B and it requires healthcare to have more of a retail mindset. An example is how, over the last decade, the banking industry has evolved to a retail model with great success.
As patients start to yield more influence when it comes to how your products and services are used, the way you serve consumers has to adapt to accommodate the demands of this quickly changing market. If you don’t, your competitors will. So, what can you do?Market directly to the consumer. In many respects, thanks to the Affordable Healthcare Act, gone are the days of the healthcare industry dealing mainly with businesses and employers. You have a lot of new potential customers and they want your attention
Have you started to evolve your organization to adapt to the retailization of healthcare? We’d love to hear how you’re doing. Need help? We’d be glad to guide you.