The fundamentals of healthcare marketing target the concept attached to service marketing. It differs a lot from product marketing. In Product Marketing, the time gap between production and the consumption of the same is considerably wide. But for service marketing, production and consumption takes place simultaneously. In the case of performing a surgery, the doctor should ensure hundred percent perfect delivery of service each time and all the time. Most of the service selling industries other than healthcare deal with comfort, intellect and daily life of the consumer. Apart from all other service selling industry, healthcare differs much in one aspect that the product deals with the consumer’s life.

In this context all the hospitals in this age should realise the importance of setting up a full-fledged professional marketing department. The Marketing Department should be the voice of the hospital where the brand is fabricated and radiated, internally as well as to the catchments at large. Since the investment in healthcare industry is huge, the selling of its services needs a proper, professional and well-planned system. This department should function as an interface between the management, doctors and the public. The targeted catchments of a hospital include the patient community, the general public, the opinion makers and the referring source. Liasoning and relationship management are the backbone of healthcare marketing. Liaison between in-house departments, organisational management, out-door agencies, medical management fraternity is the strength of the marketing department of a modern healthcare institution. Organisational excellence is very much important than the departmental excellence. The abnormal off shooting of a particular department will not enhance the comprehensive development of an organisation. The quality performance of the front end – leading department should be supplemented with a perfect back-up operations. Otherwise, at a certain stage, the pace of growth declines and a stage of stagnancy will be attained, which will ultimately lead to the decline of the organisation. Here comes the importance of branding. The most dominant mission of a marketing department of a professionally managed healthcare institution should be the brand building and quality standard enhancement of the service.

All the professionally managed healthcare institutions should evolve a systematic approach for marketing with specific strategies and action plan. In the future the corporate healthcare institutions would approach the marker more aggressively to survive the intense competition. The up-gradation of standard service delivery, up-to-date infrastructure and facility development and research based innovative technique incorporated performance will equip the present institutions to withstand the Tsunami of latest trends. In this multi crore business, the unforgettable manthra sustains: every satisfied consumer brings thousands of new consumers.