Part 2: Selecting a Marketing Strategy for your Hospital

An integrated marketing communication approach provides various modes of communicating messages to the customer. Using only one method limits the organization’s reach. The life cycle of the product or service will also dictate changes in the communication approach. For example, in the fall of the year, a hospital may use the message “Be prepared” when advertising its walk-in flu shot clinic. The hospital may use billboards to reach those who live in the community and put-up posters at the hospital. As the season progresses, the hospital may find that the flu is especially harmful to young children. The hospital may provide flyers indicating hours of operation and insurance accepted and send these flyers to local schools and daycare centers to be sent home with children. It may also use TV advertisements to reach families. The message may change to indicate how quickly a child can succumb to the flu. As the season progresses and the life cycle begins to approach its end, the hospital may change its message indicating that it is not too late to be vaccinated and decrease the advertising frequency.

Review the marketing strategies you identified above. Compare the strategies and determine the best strategy to propose for use in hospital.

Select a possible marketing strategy your hospital will use to market the new program based on the product, service, or segment being offered.

Write a minimum of 175-word response to each of the following prompts. Be clear and concise, use complete sentences, and use your own words. Follow standard grammar rules and provide examples where appropriate to support your answers.

· Explain an advertising campaign you would propose for use in the hospital based on your selected marketing strategy.

· Identify possible types of communication that could be used when advertising to your market segmentation.

· Select specific communication tool(s) you would use to reach your target audience.

· Explain the communication tools you selected and how they will support the integrated advertising campaign you will develop to reach your target audience.