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Corporate
Wellness: Marketing Chiropractic Occupational Health Care To Industry In the last decade, technologic and demographic trends have emerged in the workplace that have affected the menu of services doctors of chiropractic market to employers. At one time, the most critical need was for chiropractors to provide employees with basic education about workplace ergonomics and training programs for employees who perform "heavy labor" jobs. Now, however, businesses need services that address psychological aspects of work and the increasing demand for employees achieving optimal well-being and physical condition. The services D.C.s offered five or ten years ago are just as important today, because workers are still exposed to significant safety and health risks. However, changes in how people do their work and who comprises the workforce have set the stage for D.C.s to focus on marketing comprehensive corporate wellness programs to employers. An educational evolution has occurred in the last ten years. Once, the term ergonomics was a buzzword for the corporate community and occupational health specialists. Today, the public knows about ergonomics as a consumer advertising attraction. If you walk through a Wal-Mart store today, you will see the word used on many product labels, from cooking utensils to chairs to power tools. Now, the basic concept of ergonomics is familiar to nearly every American. With a more knowledgeable population, experts indicate a quantum leap in the reduction of musculoskeletal injuries that often occur in the workplace. Workplace And Workforce Factors We are ever amazed at the speed of new technologies for work and home. Already, in the industrialized world, an estimated 60 percent of the working population uses some form of technology on the job. Work has become more automated. There is an ever increasing need by employers to have highly skilled, knowledgeable people who are willing to be learn new technology. Employers can do more business while employees increase their knowledge base and work experience, thereby becoming highly marketable to other employers. At the same time of booming technological advances at work, the working population is getting older, and more women continue to enter the workforce. Depending on the source, reports are that the average workweek is somewhere near 47 hours per week for an adult worker. One source indicates that two-thirds of married couples are dual-earners. Together, a couple had a work week on average of 71.8 hours in 1999, compared to 57.5 hours in 1969. [1] Many women working have "dual jobs," holding a job during the day and running a household in the evening. Employers have an aging population of workers, although small businesses tend to have younger employees. The aging population, which will encounter more physical problems, will increase dramatically in these next decades, and worker productivity will be a challenge to both employers and workers. The World Health Organization (WHO) indicates that there are 590 million seniors age 60 and above in the world; estimates for 2020 say that this group will exceed 1 billion in number. [2] People are living longer, and choosing to retire later, with some re-entering the workforce. New Trends In Healthcare Models With automation, workers can be removed physically from hazardous work areas to prevent injuries. Yet many people working in agricultural, mining, construction and other industries remain highly exposed to risky working conditions and habits that can be either disabling or even fatal. Much ground has been gained in reducing injuries on the job. At the same time, the health-care and workplace safety models are changing. <I>Longevity<I> has impacted health-care marketing trends. Consumers have ditched the antiquated crisis-oriented model for one based on prevention. A predictive health-care model is now challenging preventive health care. Employers still are the number one purchasers of health care. [3] It will be interesting to watch as employers change their workplace safety and health programs to encompass issues of longevity, aging workers and the prediction of predisposition to diseases. This is much like the current valuable pre-placement physical examinations employers utilize for new hires to determine their physical ability to perform a certain job. Learning more skills and changing jobs more often than workers of previous generations, American workers seemingly have more employment opportunities and choices of types of jobs available to them. While most Americans will report having opportunities to be more creative and flexible at work, a recent poll (performed by a private management group) indicates that "78 percent of Americans describe their jobs as stressful." [4] Being overworked or working irregular (split-shift, night-shift) hours, constant information overload or constant demand to produce information, juggling both work and home, working in less than well managed organizations, and a host of other factors all contribute to the stress load. Stress is something we all have as a regular part of our day but too much stress, or unmanaged stress, places people at risk to many physical health conditions, such as cardiovascular diseases, hypertension, sleep disorders, eating disorders and cancer. Although the relationship between stress and cancer is uncertain, it’s fairly well known that workplace stress adversely affects a person’s general health. The Numbers Tell The Story If anything justifies the need for corporate health and wellness programs, health statistics certainly do. Consider these findings: • Of all of the industrialized nations, the United States spends more on health care, yet we are not the healthiest; [5] • Dollars spent in the U.S. for health care exceed 14 percent of the gross domestic product;[5] • Eight out of nine leading categories of illnesses leading to death are preventable;[5] • In 1997, $348 billion were spent by employers and employees to buy insurance;[5] By the year 2008, women are expected to make up 48 percent of the workforce in the U.S.[6] Corporate wellness is an important issue, because well employees are happy, productive employees who help businesses succeed and thrive. Nearly 85 percent of American businesses have some form of a wellness program in place, most often composed of guidelines for smoking cessation, weight management, fitness and back care. Surprisingly, it seems that only a small percentage of employers who have wellness programs provide what could be referred to as comprehensive programs. What are employers’ goals for their wellness programs? They want to increase productivity by having healthy employees; attract and keep good employees; boost employee morale; reduce absenteeism; and provide employees a safe place for socializing with other employees. What are the cost benefits? From information on the Web site of the Wellness Councils of America,<V>7<V> let’s look at just a few well-recognized companies that have reaped the financial benefits of investing in such programs: • Healthy Babies, a prenatal program offered by CIGNA for expectant women that provides educational materials, "delivered an average savings of $5,000 per birth" with 80 percent of its participants having vaginal births with no complications; • The city of Mesa, Ariz., enjoyed a return of $3.60 for each dollar invested in a comprehensive health promotion program; and • Superior Coffee and Foods, in Illinois, found "long-term disability costs were down by 40 percent." WELCOA, a national nonprofit organization, provides a wealth of information and resources for wellness on its Web site (www.welcoa.org). Marketing wellness to employers doesn’t mean reaching out to only larger companies. In fact, the previously mentioned 85 percent that have programs in place represent many employers with as few as 50 employees. Just about every community has at least one employer with 50-plus people working there; or there is a nearby community that the D.C. can serve. And, just because a company currently has a corporate wellness program of some sort in place, doesn’t mean it cannot be expanded so that all employees are served – often through a menu of program options offered by different disciplines. A comprehensive workplace wellness program can include many components, such as audiometric testing, motivational or instructional seminars, drug/chemical screening, blood pressure readings, nutrition programs (in strong demand now), prenatal information, parent and child activities, pre-work stretching and work conditioning programs, smoking cessation and walking. Some program incentives offer prizes or recognition; some offer the chance to raise funds for charitable organizations (such as a walking program that raises money for miles walked). What services you market will likely depend on what you know a potential client may need. This leads us to the key questions: • How do you successfully market your services to employers? • How do you know that what you have is marketable? • What’s the secret to getting into industry? While there is no secret method to ensure marketing success, here are some sure-fire steps you can take: • Research key companies you want to approach; • Strategically plan a very specific marketing campaign; • Get the right message to the right person(s); and, • Be increasingly visible. Your marketing campaign can be to 500 companies or to 2-5 companies. It depends on your personal objectives, but specifically focusing your time, resources and energy on the top 2-5 companies you would like to work with will be your best investment. You can approach 500 companies with your chiropractic occupational health services, as long as you are reaching the decision-makers. Identifying companies for dedicated marketing requires research. The best information you might get will be from patients on your tables in your clinic. They will have the inside information about their companies. In smaller towns, where one or two companies employ the larger population, you can learn a tremendous amount about the internal corporate culture, where the buck stops, what programs are currently in place, etc. You can learn the demographics of the company employees, what is manufactured and how it is done, by whom and how much. Ask open-ended questions and let your patients fill in the blanks. Visit the company Web site. Call the company to request literature and brochures about their company. If feasible, take a tour of the facility. In the past few months, highly successful D.C. industrial consultants have informed me that employers, human resources directors and others interested in acquiring benefits for employees unanimously want two things: wellness programs that work and programs for stress management. Wellness programs "that work" are inclusive for the entire work population. Some people don’t like to walk; some don’t like to work out in a gym. But they might pay attention to a healthier diet, or embark on a smoking cessation program or participate in a stress-management program. We all have our own preferences for health choices. Seldom do we see a lot of people practicing total health programs. But every employee can choose some program to improve health or well-being. Corporate wellness programs that work identify the needs and desires of employees and provide programs that meet them. Marketing corporate wellness, or any other chiropractic occupational health services, can be done in an endless variety of ways, but there are three very important elements: profits, positioning and adding value. Profitable Relationship Building I am a firm believer in relationship marketing. Every intentional and non-intentional action initiated or word spoken means something to someone and, in turn, generates some sort of response, good or not-so-good. Hence, some form of a relationship – recognized or not recognized – is established. Hopefully, D.C.s can pay attention and execute behaviors and conversations that are conducive to keeping doors open for solid relationships. But being in business means more than just having nice relationships with others. It means selling services and goods to make a profit. Employers are not in business just to provide people with jobs, or to make consumers feel good because they buy their products; business owners want to make money so they can do more business. It’s a fact of life. Just as factual, employers aren’t buying corporate wellness programs just to make their people feel good. Employers know that they need people to show up at work to perform their jobs not to the best of their ability, but to perform them to meet the requirements of the employer. The basic requirement is to get the job done quickly and as efficiently as possible by effectively using available resources so that the company profits for each sale. This should be the same objective you use in marketing! This further defines your efforts as profitable relationship marketing. If you approach employers with a commitment of excellent service provisions that will give them a good return on their invested wellness dollars per capita, you’ll make the sale. It’s always the bottom line in business. Positioning In The Market The odds are pretty good that whatever company you want to reach, you will be competing with perhaps 100 other service providers. Corporate wellness is in big demand. Expect competition, recognize it and then position yourself well to become the leader. A short, concise business statement (used on promotional pieces or professional stationery) should position your services as the best there is to get. A statement that reads, "Our services reduce your workers’ compensation premiums, increase productivity and morale, and increase your bottom line," is a profitable statement to employers, as compared to one that reads something like, "We care about the health and safety needs of your employees." Both statements have good intentions, but one positions your business as the answer for employers in making more money, which is the goal. It makes the world turn. Actually, we are at the dawn of a new paradigm in marketing. If you’ve paid attention to recent ads on the Internet and television, you have seen messages embracing a sense of unity. This shift is a basic response to the recent attacks on the U.S. World Trade Center. Every life has been impacted, and the world has changed dramatically. Now, people want to belong to a community. Every workplace is a community of sorts; it seems that employers are going to have to offer corporate wellness programs that are all-inclusive, yet give people the choice to participate or not; that provide options and deliver safe havens for human interaction. Other factors that will help you define your market position are the quality and pricing of services and the distribution of services. Pricing should be competitive. Services should be accessible and conveniently, if not immediately, available. Packaging is as important as marketing. It is the presentation of your services, the appearance and overall design. However you design your own package, it should appeal to the consumer’s senses, give your products or services an image of being the best, and should neatly "contain," or embody, the goods or services. In this case, your packaging will be a well-planned corporate wellness program. If you want the business, package it well and spare no expense. Selling Value To Employers When we buy a service or product, we do so because it will add value to our life. Maybe it increases our investments, or restore our health. Regardless of basic function, if it doesn’t add value to our lives, we don’t buy it. The corporate wellness services you provide must add value to the employer or you don’t get the business. In fact, your marketing materials (or talks) should place "adding value" as the priority intention of providing services to an employer, or you won’t even be heard. In his excellent book, Selling to VITO – The Very Important Top Officer, Anthony Parinello states, "VITO pays attention to things that add value to VITO’s day … and not a heck of a lot else." The book offers tried-and-true methods for reaching the top decision-makers to get appointments. After all, isn’t this exactly what you want to get out of your marketing dollars? Just go to the top from the onset of your campaign. Establishing On-Site Services Being director of the nonprofit International Academy of Chiropractic Occupational Health Consultants (IACOHC) organization for many years has allowed me to watch trends in how industrial consulting services are provided by the profession. There are still many Lone Rangers, doctors of chiropractic who have very successfully acquired client companies, providing diverse menus of services. And there are groups or networks of D.C.s that do the same, operating out of many locations. One sure, but slower, trend is that of D.C.s marketing and selling chiropractic on-site to employers, establishing chiropractic facilities within the company’s walls. These doctors are actually trendsetters for this specialty field. They were able to see the financial value to employers for their employees being able to get immediate attention for workplace injuries on-site. Employees don’t necessarily have to miss work (hence becoming a reportable injury), don’t have to travel to a clinic somewhere at an appointed time and sit in a waiting room on the employer’s clock and dollar. The D.C. is the gatekeeper who can perform an analysis and provide care at once, or make a referral. With an on-site facility, the D.C. can assist in deciding whether the worker is returned to the job or will do a lighter-duty or modified-work job. Workstations can be immediately evaluated and adjusted to prevent re-injury. On-site practice is not for every D.C., but it is something worth thinking about for market positioning and for adding value to your marketing campaign or business proposal.
Marketing Resources You can also market your services through the design and distribution of a professional media kit. The nonprofit IACOHC has a service to help D.C.s develop a well-rounded media kit and helps identify the best sources for distribution. Media kits offer comprehensive information about a business, businessperson, product, or service to newspapers, magazines, radio, television, etc. Once distributed, the hope is to get a response via interview or in print in publications. The risk is that editors and programmers usually decide what is important and valuable to the general public, what gets attention and what does not. Design is important. While the dollar investment is in the design and distribution, it is generally inexpensive as compared to advertisements, and a media kit can produce far-reaching results.
References 1. "Hours of work: A Matter of Choice For Most Americans," Fact & Fallacy, Vol. 5, No. 8, Oct., 1999. 2.
World Health Organization, Occupational Health: Ethically Correct,
Economically Sound, Fact Sheet, No. 84, 3. Kuttner, R., "The American Health Care System – Employer-Sponsored Health Coverage," New England J of Medicine, 340(3), Jan., 1999. 4. Six Reasons For Worksite Wellness, Wellness Councils of America, www.welcoa.com 5. Fries, J., Koop, C.E., and Beadle, C.E., "Reducing Health Care Costs By Reducing the Need and Demand for Medical Services," New England J. of Medicine, 329:321-325, July, 1993. 6. U.S. Dept. of Labor, "20 Facts on Women Workers," Facts on Working Women, March, 2000. 7. http://www.welcoa.org/worksite_cost_benefit.html.
About the author: Elizabeth L. Auppl is the executive director of the International Academy of Chiropractic Occupational Health Consultants (IACOHC), a nonprofit chiropractic organization for the advancement of the profession in the specialty field of occupational health and applied ergonomics. She is the Managing Editor of the Journal on Occupational Chiropractic and Applied Ergonomics, and Editor of the Occupational Health Briefs of the ACA’s Council on Occupational Health. She also owns and operates a graphic design and communications business. For more resources and information, call the IACOHC at (507) 455-1025, or E-mail iacohc@Nexus.MNIC.net.
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