Share Your Open House Success Formula: Unique Healthcare Marketing Ideas Wanted

Do you have an idea for a successful open house? Please tell us about it.

All too often we bump into a medical practice or hospital doing an “open house” or something similar. So far, so good…a community and patient involvement special event can be a useful doctor marketing tool.

The problem is that simply “we’re-having-an-open-house” is not too interesting. And—all too often—the well-intended idea is a flop. More than a few crash and burn or are poorly attended. (Money and staff time is wasted, and office morale is deflated.)

Fortunately, some healthcare providers realize the danger of a lack-luster special event and they come up with some genuine head-turners. Or they  turn to us for fresh ideas and creative approaches. The result is that they bring a healthy “wow factor” to the party.

But before we reveal our list, we want to hear from our readers. What’s the best open house idea you've used or seen? We’ll compile a list of the best ideas for a future post.

This can be for a classic open house at a doctor’s office, it can be for a community involvement event by a hospital or medical group practice, or it can be for any unique platform or occasion that brings patients and prospective patients into the office or facility. Let us know what’s worked for you.

Here are a few idea-starters. What’s really interesting—attention-getting, motivating, engaging—to the people who attend:

• Is there a truly special reason for having an event?
• Is there an unforgettable experience that you can offer?
• Is there an important milestone or achievement to be recognized?
• Is there a theme that is distinctive or original?
• Is there a unique connection with something timely or newsworthy?
• Is there a compelling appeal factor or benefit for the target audience?

We’d like to discover what our readers come up with. Tell us about an open house or special event that you've done (or something you've seen done). Tell us what makes it unique and/or why it was successful.

You can comment on this page (below), or better yet…send an email note to our editor, [email protected].