HCM 325 Module 7 Project Two Example

Project Two: First-Year Marketing Plan for the Cedar Ridge Women's Health Center

[Student Name]

Southern New Hampshire University

HCM 325: Healthcare Marketing

Project Two

[Instructor Name]

[Date]

The organization, setting and figures below are a composite written as a model document. No real employer, client, colleague or patient is described.

Project Two: First-Year Marketing Plan for the Cedar Ridge Women's Health Center

This plan guides marketing for the Cedar Ridge Women's Health Center in its first year. It draws on the term's market research, consumer behavior analysis, situation analysis, messaging evidence and digital strategy, and it translates them into objectives, actions, a budget and measures that the hospital's leadership can track.

Executive Summary

The center offers screening and diagnostic breast imaging, bone density testing and obstetric and gynecologic care close to home for about 30,000 women. Its main advantages are proximity, same-week screening and 24-hour results. The plan targets overdue rural women and referring physicians first, then first-time screeners and women seeking local obstetric care. With $95,000, it aims to perform 4,200 screening mammograms and enroll 180 new obstetric patients in year one.

Marketing Objectives

Objectives are specific and measurable. Perform 4,200 screening mammograms in year one, up from 2,900 at the hospital's old unit. Increase the share of local women screened at Cedar Ridge from 62% to 72%. Receive referrals from at least 20 of the county's 26 primary care clinicians by month six. Enroll 180 new obstetric patients. Maintain an average online rating of 4.2 or higher for the center.

Target Segments

The launch prioritizes overdue rural women aged 40 to 74, about 3,100 women, and the referring physicians whose habits steer many local women to the regional system. The second phase adds first-time screeners in their forties and women aged 18 to 39 seeking obstetric care close to home.

Positioning Statement

For women in the Cedar Ridge area who want screening and women's care without a long drive, the center offers same-week appointments, results within a day and personal service from local clinicians, unlike the regional system, which requires travel and longer waits. Every message, event and service standard in this plan should reinforce that position. When staff or partners ask what makes the center different, the answer should be the same: close, quick and personal.

Service

The service itself is the strongest marketing tool. Commitments include same-week screening appointments, results to patients and physicians within 24 hours, Saturday screening twice a month, a direct scheduling line answered by a person and a dedicated patient navigator for women needing follow-up imaging. Billing staff will offer cost estimates before appointments, addressing a frequent complaint in reviews.

Price

Most screening mammograms are covered without cost-sharing by insurance. For uninsured women, the center will post a self-pay price and connect eligible women to the state's breast and cervical cancer screening program, which covers screening for qualifying low-income women. Obstetric care will follow insurance contracts, with financial counseling for self-pay patients.

Place

The center's location with its own entrance and parking addresses the distance barrier for most of the county. For the northern townships, the hospital will coordinate volunteer drivers and schedule community screening days with its own mobile unit twice a year, reaching women who cannot travel even twenty minutes.

Promotion to Physicians

Victoor et al. (2012) showed in their review how heavily referrals weigh when patients pick a provider. The center's director and radiologist will visit every primary care practice in the county before opening, offering a one-page guide to ordering, a 24-hour results guarantee and an electronic referral link. Practices will receive monthly reports on their patients' screening completion.

Promotion to Women

Messages will emphasize convenience and speed, the barriers women described. Gallagher and Updegraff (2012) found no reliable advantage for gain or loss framing in promoting screening behavior, so the plan will use accurate, action-focused copy and test two versions in reminder letters. Channels include letters signed by primary care physicians, trusted local partners in the northern townships, local radio and targeted social media.

Digital and Social Media

Moorhead et al. (2013) found that social media can increase interaction, share tailored information and build peer support but raises concerns about information quality and privacy. The plan uses social media for awareness and trust, such as staff introductions and tours, while relying on search listings, a mobile-friendly website with online booking and portal reminders to convert interest into appointments.

People

Front-desk and scheduling staff will be trained in the center's service commitments and in answering common questions. The patient navigator and technologists will receive training in communicating with anxious patients. Staff are the center's most visible marketing, and their interactions will shape reviews.

Budget

The $95,000 budget favors physician outreach, community partners and digital channels that produce appointments.

Table 1. First-Year Marketing Budget

Note. Composite budget.

Launch Timeline

Three months before opening, the team will complete physician visits and fix scheduling and billing processes. One month before, listings, the website and partner events will go live. In the opening month, the open house, radio announcements and first reminder letters will run. Months two through six will focus on referrals, the message test and community screening days; months seven through twelve on obstetric marketing and review growth.

Metrics and Evaluation

Monthly reports will track screenings performed, the share of local women screened at Cedar Ridge, referrals by practice, new obstetric patients, bookings by source, cost per booked screening and online rating. Budget will shift toward channels with the lowest cost per completed screening. A six-month review will adjust targets and tactics.

Risks

Risks include physicians keeping their referral habits, staffing shortages that threaten the same-week promise and the regional system opening a nearby satellite. Mitigations include direct physician feedback, cross-training technologists and a message focus on local relationships that a satellite cannot easily copy.

Conclusion

This plan turns research into action: a service designed around women's barriers, outreach aimed at the physicians who shape choices, accurate messages tested for results, digital channels that make booking easy and metrics that count screenings rather than impressions.

References

Gallagher, K. M., & Updegraff, J. A. (2012). Health message framing effects on attitudes, intentions, and behavior: A meta-analytic review. Annals of Behavioral Medicine, 43(1), 101-116. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12160-011-9308-7

Moorhead, S. A., Hazlett, D. E., Harrison, L., Carroll, J. K., Irwin, A., & Hoving, C. (2013). A new dimension of health care: Systematic review of the uses, benefits, and limitations of social media for health communication. Journal of Medical Internet Research, 15(4), Article e85. https://doi.org/10.2196/jmir.1933

Victoor, A., Delnoij, D. M. J., Friele, R. D., & Rademakers, J. J. D. J. M. (2012). Determinants of patient choice of healthcare providers: A scoping review. BMC Health Services Research, 12, Article 272. https://doi.org/10.1186/1472-6963-12-272