Message Differentiation:
A Recruiting Imperative
By Ann Maloley, MBA
Recruitment success largely depends on your ability to differentiate your offer from competing offerings. The true test is how effectively you match the needs of the candidates with the benefits of your organization. In other words, it’s about providing information that’s relevant to them.
Now, more than ever, finding ways to communicate the unique aspects of your offer is critically important. Studies by the Advisory Board show that in 2006 more than half of the country’s residents received between 50-100 practice solicitations while in residency (up from 16% in 1999).
So, how is what you’re saying making more of an impact than what your competitor is saying? If your response is, you’re not sure that it is, let’s look at some ways to help make that happen.
Know the demographic nuances of your audience to help drive the content of your message. Consider such factors as lifestyle expectations, geographic desires, and age and gender implications. For example, studies show that for residents, geographic location is the #1 factor in choosing a position. And for practicing physicians aged 41 and over, the #1 factor is compensation. Make sure your message reflects these and other priorities.
And did you know that two-thirds of young physicians would trade money for a more balanced lifestyle? In a national physician recruitment study with hospital executives conducted by Barlow/McCarthy, the majority of these leaders noted that in the future, criteria flexibility is going to have to be one of the key ways of attracting candidates, especially as younger generations enter the workforce with a different set of priorities and needs.
Uncovering facts like these will help you craft a more meaningful message for your audience.
Effectively matching relevant organizational information with your prospects’ specialty will prove to them that you understand their business. Consider the level of importance of these clinical and operational factors for the specialty you’re recruiting to help you determine the kind of information to share.
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Patient mix
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Procedure types
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Level of the clinical support staff
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Access to and availability of clinical technology
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Clinical expertise of medical staff specialists
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Ancillary services – availability, ease of scheduling, turnaround timeliness
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Network of referral sources
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Reputation for clinical excellence
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Reputation of patient care and quality
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Focus on the benefits. In communicating with physicians, many of us tend to focus on many facts and features, when in fact they’re more interested in the specific benefits that these features provide to address their needs. So, next time you’re framing up a message about your practice opportunity answer this question – what value do the features of the service offer this physician?
And don’t forget about the packaging. Physicians are a savvy, discerning audience, with little time and patience to sort through promotional clutter. Capturing their attention immediately is the first step in message delivery success. Physicians typically will scan recruitment literature, so getting the message to “pop” is essential. In a print ad, the headline is the first opportunity to succinctly share a key competitive differentiator. In an e-mail message, of course, the subject line serves as the first opportunity to make an impression.
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In choosing a position, geographic location is the #1 factor for residents. For practicing physicians age 41 and over, the #1 factor is compensation. Source: |
Because physicians will not spend much time reading the detail, the copy in printed materials should be bulleted, using short, relevant, fact-based phrases. Physicians recognize and ignore “fluff,” so being straight-forward is best.
Back to the question about the impact of your message – let me close by offering some suggestions for assessing this. Clearly, if you’re signing physicians, you’re doing something right. When you have them on-board, ask them what the most attractive piece of the offer was to them. And for the physicians you lose, circle back to them to respectfully ask for feedback on your practice opportunity and offer. Use this information to fine tune your messages. Also, keep in mind that residency directors and members of your medical staff can be great focus groups for testing message impact.
A strategic priority for healthcare organizations today, physician recruitment requires smart, focused and meaningful positioning and messaging. Remember that the messages with most impact are written from the prospects’ perspective, based on the decision-making criteria most important to them.
