Ravine Ridge Marketing Plan

2013

Kacie Higgins, Maly Kongsynonh, Justin Miller, and Michael RudyRavine Ridge12/9/2013

Higgins, Kongsynonh, Miller, Rudy

Executive Summary

Ravine Ridge is an inpatient/outpatient facility that will be opening up in Spring 2014. It is located in a serene, relaxing environment that will help promote healing. The overall target market is the teachers of school districts in Williamsport and nearby areas. Ravine Ridge’s main competitors will be other inpatient/outpatient physical therapy centers, hospitals, and in home therapy centers. To enhance our product, we will be offering evening hours, assistance with paperwork, and personalized treatment. Each patient will be able to choose which therapy techniques they want to do for their plan and during each treatment they will be offered refreshments so they feel comfortable. Our goal is to get the patients into our program as quickly as possible, and to get them back in the classroom as fast as possible.

To create these goals Ravine Ridge will use a wide variety of integrated marketing communications. They will attend school board meetings to hand out promotional material and answer questions. They will also heighten their online presence while also connecting on Facebook, and create positive public relations through a 5K. These techniques will help reach their target audience and show their patients that they are the rehabilitation center to choose.

Internal

Ravine Ridge will be a short tem inpatient and outpatient rehabilitation facility with many features that will help provide a quality physical therapy environment for patients. They are offering a seven day therapy program of intense rehab with state of the art equipment. The rooms at Ravine Ridge will have a spa like feel, so patients do not feel like they are in a hospital setting. If patients want to stay at the facility, they must complete at least three hours of therapy. Ravine Ridge is also very accommodating when it comes to the patient’s payment methods. They take insurance, Medicare, Medicaid, HMO, and Geisenger. Since post-acute care is such a huge element of the United States Health Care services, Ravine Ridge’s inpatient

RAVINE RIDGE MARKETING PLAN:SCHOOL TEACHERS


and outpatient rehabilitation facility will help people ease themselves back into the community and back to their previous level of functioning.

Customer

Ravine Ridge will have a broad range of customers, and focus on any age that needs rehabilitation. Patients in the physical therapy market who claim workers compensation are getting physical therapy costs cut because physical therapists are cutting down on patient time and conducting regular reviews on patient’s treatment. This means that it’s technically cheaper to go to a short term rehabilitation center than take the rising costs of outside physical therapy. The only down side of this may be that patients who claim workers compensation may be skeptical of physical therapy because some services take longer and their bills will accumulate. One strategic plan that the Critical Access Hospital thought of was to partner with a local school district to provide physical and occupational therapy to their student athletes. Ravine Ridge can use this tactic to their advantage because it will allow them access directly to a market. Partnering with the local colleges and schools will help provide younger clientele with athletic injuries. Ravine Ridge will also want to focus on other methods on being a success with their patients. One key to having a successful rate of customers is having a social connect ion between the therapist and the patient. They will also want to help patients grow with the six dimensions of wellness– physiological, intellectual, spiritual, emotional , vocational, and sociological, which will give the patients therapy a more upbeat and enjoyable experience.

External

Competition

Ravine Ridge’s competition includes other hospitals that have rehabilitation functions such as Geisinger Health Centers, Susquehanna Health, and ManorCare Health Services. Ravine Ridge also needs to be aware of in home care options, as well as physical therapy centers such as Lycoming Physical Therapy and Able Physical Therapy.

Economic

Some economic factors that play a part include the fact that Williamsport has been seeing an economical boost, but there is still an overwhelming amount of lower economic status citizens that should have the ability to receive care for injuries. Research has also shown that consolidation of healthcare organizations (through the American Care Act) leads to higher costs and pricing. This influences people to not want to get physical therapy, even when they might need it. CMS is also cutting $70 million in payments for Medicare part B outpatient physical therapy. The cut is known as “Multiple Procedure Payment Reductions” (MPPR) and it reduces the payments for billing on multiple codes. The American Occupational Therapy Association


(AOTA) says that this cut fails to recognize the importance of each type of therapy needed and limiting it will only hurt the patient.

Legal and Regulatory

Many of the patients in a study fell into the elderly age range that showed that many of the payments came from Medicare. This will be important for Ravine Ridge because they will need to be prepared to work with Medicare and know how the system works and all of the legal specifications that they must follow when working with Medicare and other forms of health care. There was also one issue that was brought up was patients being worried about distrust and difficulties when it came to insurance and health professionals. There was also that Medicare fraud scheme that reached $1.9 million that created fictitious physical and occupational therapy records. It is important to make sure patient’s payment plans will be accepted and that Ravine Ridge will have quality doctors that follow legal procedures for their patients.

Political

Research shows that post-acute care facilities may have trouble managing beneficiaries care from post-acute care provides outside of accountable care organizations (ACO) due to ObamaCare. This is because if a facility outside of an ACO plan organizes their company with different standards, they will not be able to force ACO standards and may not permit that person to stay there. This could potential cause issues for Ravine Ridge with certain health care providers. Also, with the American Care Act /Obamacare, if citizens/employers cannot afford to cover insurance, there will be monetary fines. This will cause issues for those who cannot afford Obama care because there will be less money for them to get these treatments.

Sociocultural Trends

Since physical therapy can be used for preventative purposes, educating the patient so they know what they need in reference to getting better and back to work is important so they can explain to their employers what went wrong and how to make sure they stay healthy. They found it was important for the patient’s recovery to encourage participation from the patient to do things by themselves and promoting self-efficacy. It is important to make sure that Ravine Ridge encourages their patients to be given the opportunity to do things by themselves. Since independence is an important and valued trait in today’s society, it is important that patients know they will be able to help care for themselves. One rehab center creates programs and activities for their patients to encourage their process and promote self-confidence. One thing that they do is an Annual Patient Fashion show where people who have been through terrible


injuries show how far they have come to their love ones. They also have other annual sport competition and shows for patients to demonstrate their progress. This could be a good technique for Ravine Ridge to promote their progress and give them something to work towards. Another thing that was deemed important to the patients was the staff and the center was the physical appearance. Employees and staff members were to wear clean, uniformed scrubs with name tags with certifications to project a professional, knowledgeable staff. The staff and environment of Ravine Ridge should be clean and professional to attract patients. It is also a fact that physical therapists are getting inpatient and outpatients through the process faster. They are trying to shorten their time in the hospital setting; therefore more people will look into rehabilitation and inpatient and outpatient services because they are faster and less expensive. There is also research to show that equine-assisted therapy is used to make it seem less like therapy and more like fun, which Ravine Ridge can benefit from doing.

Technological

New technology keeps popping up that physical therapists can benefit from. This includes when undergraduate students developed an inexpensive portable tracker for patients and their therapists to measure the rehabilitation process. This allows the therapist at the rehabilitation center to get detailed information on that patient and their movements. Another technological advancement is when MIT created physical therapy robots to help challenge patients movement and help them create exercises. The robots are used in place of the therapist and help the patient’s therapy go by quicker. There is also a new lab is being built with some extremely advanced technology in order to monitor and track patients progress. As well as a new lab is being built with some extremely advanced technology in order to monitor and track patient’s progress. It has 3D motion analysis capabilities, 25 cameras to review human movements to be used by physical therapists.


SWOT Analysis

Strengths Ravine ridge will be a short term

inpatient/outpatient Brand new facility Provide transportation Friendly employees Experience doing physical therapy

with elderly Take multiple insurance carriers Rehabilitation center 7 day high intensity therapy

rehabilitation program Tranquil environment Three hours of therapy required to

qualify to work there State of the art equipment for

therapy

Weaknesses Normally known for elderly care Don’t accept all insurances Little experience doing physical

therapy with other segments As of now, no customer loyalty

Opportunities Broad range of customers (all ages

need therapy) Schools need physical therapy Physical therapy is now being used

as a preventative measure Many elderly use Medicare, which

Ravine Ridge accepts Physical therapy is being used for

prevention People get hurt on the job because

they are unaware of hazards High costs of hospitals are driving

people towards inpatient and outpatient services because they are faster and less expensive

Constant technological development increase capabilities of industry

Patients want personalized treatment

Threats Patients unsure about physical

therapy Multiple bills Time consuming Geisinger, etc. Workers compensation therapy

takes too much time Consolidation of health care

organizations leads to higher cost and pricing

American Care Act, citizens/employers cannot cover insurance, resulting in fines


Goals and Objectives

Our goal will be to get the teachers back in the classroom as soon as possible. We want to target the people who could get hurt on the job by creating a diverse marketing plan that will increase awareness of injuries. One objective is to have the easiest program for teachers to work with. We will create a program that will work with teacher’s schedules so they do not miss class. We will have flexible hours with evening hours that will be for patients to come after work. Another feature that will be helpful for teachers to complete their physical therapy is that we will help them with the correct paperwork. We want to be able to get patients into therapy as quick as possible and be able to have them back to work quickly.

Competitive Advantage

Our competitive advantage will be to focus on customer intimacy. We will make each of the patients feel important by personalizing treatment and keeping in contact with them after they are discharged.

Strategic Focus

We will focus on having a diversified strategic focus due to the fact we have many internal strengths and externals threats because they do not have to resources to be aggressive yet.

Target Market

The primary target market for Ravine Ridge will be faculty and staff of the surrounding schools. We will focus on Williamsport Area School District, South Williamsport Area School District, Muncy School District, Montoursville Area School District, and Jersey Shore Area School District. We would promote that Ravine Ridge has a relaxed, non-hospital like feel that will entice people to choose this environment and that it will help the teachers get back in the classroom fast. Ravine Ridge should specialize in this demographic because it can base it’s physical therapy program off of preventing injuries on the job, while quickly rehabilitating the people who are there to get treatment.


Competitive Advantage


Product Strategy

Some key features that Ravine Ridge offer will include physical therapy, new technology, bariatric care, at home treatment training. A benefit to their physical therapy, is that they will offer inpatient and outpatient treatment. Some key advantages to their new technology are that they will be able to track patient’s progress and be able to send those reports to the patient’s employers letting them know how they are progressing. This will also help the employers by showing them that the patient is on track and they will not be taking more money from the company than is needed. Another benefit for the bariatric patients is that Ravine Ridge will have tracks around the rooms to help lift them out of their beds. Lastly, the company is also offering transportation to the facility, which helps patients who are severely physically injured and cannot get there themselves.

To create an excellent product, it will be crucial to have personalization options available. A personalization that will be available is for patients to pick their workouts. Patients will be given options and then they will be able to choose which one they would like to use for their treatment that day. This will allow for clients to feel as though they are in charge of their workouts. Ravine Ridge will also offer at home treatment training, which helps the patients exercise at home as well. The patients will be given equipment, i.e. exercise bands, and they can continue to work on the exercises when not at Ravine Ridge. Also one week after patients are discharged, Ravine Ridge will send them a post card or email checking up on them. This will show the personal experience Ravine Ridge has and reinforce how important each patient is to Ravine Ridge. After that, we will periodically send mailings to those customers so they know we are still thinking about them.

Ravine Ridge will also have supplemental products for the patients at the facility. There will also be a masseuse and a beautician and barber coming in every week for anyone who wants or needs the service. This also allows these patients to maintain a professional look when coming back to work, as well as helps them feel better about themselves. They will also offer a meditation class once a week, as well as a yoga class for any patient that wants to participate in them. Another product enhancement is having refreshments, like Gatorade and granola bars, during the patient’s physical therapy sessions. This will provide comfort to the patients and allow them to keep up with their workouts without having to stop and get a drink.


Pricing Strategies

Ravine Ridge will introduce its services with a prestige pricing strategy to promote an image of superior quality. This will show the consumer that Ravine Ridge will provide the best quality services and treatments in the area. A problem with using prestige pricing with the school worker segment, is that generally high school teachers and faculty have a limited income. However, with workers compensation and all of the product benefits, we will still attract many clients. We will also choose prestige pricing because first time users will not be able to judge what the appropriate price for these services is. We will also use prestige pricing objectives to give a high quality status to Ravine Ridge’s physical therapy.

We chose these strategies and objectives because we want to create an image of excellence, worth, and distinction. We did not want to have the cheapest services because that could convey an image of not having the highest quality services. To attract consumers to our services, we would emphasize this is the best service versus our competitors.

It is important to be aware of situations that can affect price to be more sensitive. One example would be that there are other options in the area with similar services, and with requesting information there would be ways to compare the costs of each facility. Factors that decrease price sensitivity include many perceived product benefits to our services at Ravine Ridge, and situational influences, such as injuries, that require physical therapy. The perceived benefits of Ravine Ridge are the serene environment of the location that will allow patients to feel as though they are at the spa or on vacation. Considering that the injury was generally unexpected and/or traumatic, it would be beneficial to provide the most relaxing experience. By incorporating additional products, like in school physical therapy sessions after discharge and take home treatment equipment, will make Ravine Ridge’s services more valuable.

We do not feel as though it is necessary to have specific pricing tactics for Ravine Ridge, due to the fact we want to keep a prestige reputation and appearance, and we could not find any that would fit for this service.

Distribution Strategy

Ravine Ridge’s distribution strategy will focus on exclusive distribution, so that way they can illustrate that they have a prestige image. We are targeting to a well-defined market segment of high school faculty and we want them to realize just how valuable Ravine Ridge’s services will be. It is also a good idea to have exclusive distribution because Ravine Ridge’s buyers will be willing to search for and travel to the facility just to purchase the service because they realize how valuable it is.


Integrated Marketing Communication

Our cohesive statement for our integrated marketing campaign will be focused around the slogan “Getting you back in the classroom before the bell rings” to emphasize our focus on teachers.

Advertising

Our advertising campaign will focus on handing out printed material to teachers, school boards, and superintendents. We will also be present at teacher expos, professional development seminars, and career fairs to hand out promotional material and do personal one on one selling about our services. Additionally, we will use billboards to promote our services. To further our personal selling beyond teacher expos, we will set up meetings with superintendents, teachers, and school board members to educate them on the importance of keeping teachers in the classroom and healthy.

Our advertising plan will incorporate billboards around Williamsport that show images that complement the slogan “Getting you back in the classroom before the bell rings” with Ravine Ridge’s brand logo to create brand recognition and let potential customers know what Ravine Ridge offers.

Sales Promotion

Our sales promotion techniques will feature free promotional products to those who attend our events and meetings. Those items will be things teachers need in the classroom, like mouse pads, pens, and other items. This will be used so the target market recognizes the name, Ravine Ridge, and will be inclined to use Ravine Ridge when hurt on the job and need treatment. We will meet with the school districts at their monthly school board meetings to create a relationship with the school board and build awareness. We will then host monthly free information sessions during the schools lunch hour that teachers can come to us and ask questions and see demonstrations about how daily job duties should be conducted. Our free merchandise will be available to those who come to these meetings.

Another technique will be to go to MedExpress to show the preventative measures and build a relationship so we can get referrals from them. In conjunction with that, we will also do cooperative advertising with MedExpress and medical supply stores. This will allow for MedExpress to be inclined to refer patients to us and in return they will be able to purchase materials from the medical supply stores and MedExpress can be used for check ups.

Public Relations

We will also communicate with our potential consumers through press releases when we open Ravine Ridge and when we have different events. One event we will sponsor is a 5K marathon to promote the opening of Ravine Ridge. We will use the marathon to benefit the James V.


Brown library, and in return, it will help the community by increasing literacy programs to benefit the community.

Social Media

Finally, we will have a Facebook page to keep in contact with patients. They will be able to give testimonials, and tell others about their experiences at Ravine Ridge. With their patient’s permission we can feature stories about their process. Another feature of the Facebook page is that it will be used for weekly tips that will demonstrate proper work etiquette for their potential patients. We will also feature a weekly exercise video that can be used for current patients, past patients, and other potential patients.


Implementation Strategy


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Documents

Ravine Ridge Marketing Plan