Week Four: Business to Represent

The business I have chosen to represent for the duration of this course will be LoBue Laser & Eye Medical Centers, Inc. In addition to being a patient of this practice, my sister has worked there for the past 5 years. 

Dr. LoBue has been in the Temecula Valley for 21 years and in addition to providing your regular "E FP TOZ" eye exams (can you tell I've been through that one a couple of times?), they also provide the area's leading specialists in cataract lens implant surgery, all laser LASIK, glaucoma, dry eye, cornea/external diseases, retina and oculoplastics services.

Target Market

Some fun facts about the eyeballs in the United States:

• 20.6 million adults age 18 and older reported experiencing vision loss of some degree
• of these 20.6 million adults, 12.4 million are women and 8.2 million are men

Because Dr. LoBue operates his practice out of the Temecula Valley area, we will consider the demographics of the that region. 

The Temecula Valley region is located in the southwest portion of Riverside County and includes the following cities:

• Canyon Lake
• Hemet
• Lake Elsinore 
• Menifee
• Murrieta
• Temecula
• Wildomar
• and outlying unincorporated areas. 

Some other facts and figures about our neighbors to the North:

• Combined population above the above listed cities/areas: 465,187
• Median home price: $244,780
• Median income: $55,526
• mostly a commuter region, with many residents traveling to San Diego County, Camp Pendleton, and Orange County for work. 
• Median age = 34.4 years

Other than old age and yearly eye exams, it is hard to predict whether people are going to need the types of vision surgery or correction Dr. LoBue offers. However, using the demographic information, we can segment the potential market into 5 categories to help address the needs that may arise. 

Discriminating Health Investors

• They want the best, and they will pay for it. They value high quality products, advanced technology, and seek to develop trusted relationships with providers. Attracting and retaining these patients can be challenging, as they often rely on word-of-mouth recommendations.  By making the visit personal and providing excellent customer service, this will work to retain these level of clients. 

Skilled Shoppers

• They seek to minimize what they spend, but want quality at a good deal. These customers seek out competitive pricing and may go elsewhere to find it. By providing education on frame and lenses and additional in office incentives for purchases, this may help to secure this customer base. 

Effort Minimizers

• The largest of the five segments, these patients are more concerned about saving time vs. saving money. These buyers make impulse, spur of the moment decisions and do not put a lot of advance thought into their vision needs. Review ways to make visits easy and provide means for external patient conveniences (ordering or scheduling online).

Constrained Budgeters

• Like the Skilled Shoppers, they want access to the best care and quality, but will most likely forgo in office conveniences in favor of saving money. These patients often rely on stretching time between lens replacement cycles and comprehensive exams due to budgetary constrains. Discount programs and specials and bundling services/materials will help attract these customers on a more regular level. 

Cost Minimizers

• These customers are focused on one thing: price. There are no differences perceived in value other than it needed to get done. Building a high volume practice helps to offset the promotions and discount programs needed to lure in the customers in this and the Constrained Budgeter segment. 

I am looking forward to applying my Marketing background to this side of social media! Let's get started!