Value Based Marketing and the Mistake All Doctors Should Avoid

Buying Designer Jeans

My brother was shocked to find out that I spent $200 on a pair of jeans.

“How can you afford jeans that expensive?” he asked. “Don’t you know that you can buy a perfectly good pair at the mall for $50?”

He wasn’t wrong. $200 jeans was not in my budget, and I could have bought a nice pair somewhere else for a lot less. But my decision wasn’t completely irrational either…

Consumer’s Value Perception

While my purchase seemed absurd to my younger brother, that’s only true if you assume my value perception of a new pair of jeans is limited to blue denim that keep my legs warm.

You see, everybody has a unique value perception. The real motivation behind someone’s decision to buy is the difference between their perceived benefits – real or intangible – and the cost.

Value perception is the impetus behind GM’s plan to shut down 5 of their manufacturing plants this year to shift production focus on SUVs. People will spend $10,000 more on a vehicle with 4-wheel drive and traction control, even though they live and commute in the sunny suburbans of Arizona.

A cheaper sedan would get them from point A to point B just the same, but people perceive higher value in a SUV and are willing to pay for it. It may be irrational, but it’s what all consumers do. We are willing to pay for products or services that we perceive to have much higher value than their cost.

Don’t Sell Your Prices

Dentists and physicians make a huge mistake when they use price – instead of value – to sell their services.

Positioning yourself as the lowest bidder in town might win you some quick business, but it’s a poor long term strategy. Leading with price as your value statement reduces your ability to successfully offer higher level service in the future. Marketing your low prices conditions consumer expectations to receive even more for less.

As we just saw in the examples above, consumers are willing to pay for high value. Therefore, fees are not the reason why patients refuse your treatment.

The price of your fees are an excuse patients will often use to refuse a treatment plan only when they are not committed to pursuing your recommendation.

When this happens, don’t assume that you’re priced too high. Instead, recognize it as a sign that you didn’t do well enough listening to their needs and educating them on the value of your solution.  

If you focus on the value, the price becomes less and less important. But when you don’t focus on value, the only thing you can talk about is price.

Read More: Marketing That Works. Finding Your Edge With Seth Godin

Educate Your Patients On Value

We need to shift the focus from cost of services to future benefits. We need to remind patients that they’re not paying for the cost of the dentures. Rather, they’re buying a lifetime of self confidence that can come from a healthy, beautiful smile.

Questions to Ask Yourself: Are you marketing your services based on value? Do you have resources available for your procedures that educate your consumers on the value you offer them?

Marketing is a key component to building a successful practice. Everybody has a marketing strategy, but not everyone knows what it is.

If you’re not intentional about promoting the value of what you do, don’t be surprised when your patients choose to focus on price.