The Partner
Dayton Eye Surgery Center (DESC), known for delivering high-quality, high-touch care for eye injuries and illnesses, had seen a decline in patient referrals over the years. While competitor practices aggressively marketed refractive procedures to capture patient volumes, DESC needed to increase its patient base without changing its service portfolio.
Opportunity
To address the decrease in patient volumes and the flow of surgical patients to competitor practices, DESC needed to increase its visibility and re-establish connections with referral sources. Our goal was to rebrand and conduct targeted outreach to reintroduce this exceptional practice to the region.
Approach
Our team conducted extensive interviews with DESC team members, patients and regional referral sources, including optometrists, ophthalmologists, urgent care centers and emergency departments. These interviews revealed that while awareness of DESC was limited, those familiar with the center viewed it as a competent and caring provider of efficient, comfortable and effective surgical experiences.
To reinvigorate DESC’s patient volumes, we started by refreshing its brand with a modern, clean logo, identity, positioning and web presence. The next step involved high-quality, high-touch outreach to referral sources within a 90-minute radius of DESC’s surgery center. This outreach included:
- Direct mail with personalized messages from practice leaders to targeted referral sources.
- Professional collateral reintroducing the practice, highlighting its extensive procedures and ideal patients and encouraging visits to both the website and physical location.
- Follow-up phone calls from office staff to reinforce the information and re-extend personal invitations to the center.
- Patient collateral and web content providing patient-friendly information about procedures, processes, expectations and outcomes.
- Strategic billboards at the interstate exit nearest the practice to drive awareness as patients arrived for appointments.
Impact
DESC’s rebrand and strategic outreach transformed it from a “best kept secret” to a well-known regional care asset. The awareness campaign successfully increased patient referrals, bringing a new generation of referring medical professionals and a grateful patient base to DESC. The heightened visibility and refreshed brand ensured that DESC could continue to deliver exceptional eye care to the southwest Ohio community.