Frequently Asked Marketing Questions
- What is OBGYN.net?
- Why OBGYN.net?
- Why the Internet?
- Is the Internet a fad?
- Do Ob/Gyn's really use the Internet?
- Are the Ob/Gyn's using OBGYN.net?
- Why is OBGYN.net an overnight success?
- How can I and my company get involved?
- Why should I be an OBGYN.net Sponsor?
- What is the difference between Sponsorship and Advertising?
- Why should my company be moving to OBGYN.net now?
- Should I be comparing Internet advertising with print media?
- What about hit counts, demographics and cost per thousand?
- Is OBGYN.net a good investment of my company's advertising dollars?
- What if my company is planning or has already built our own Web Site?
- What if my company doesn't have a web site?
- Can OBGYN.net help me with my Internet target marketing strategy?
- How much is this going to cost?
- What criteria should I use to make the decision on who should build our web presence?
- Does OBGYN.net develop web sites for companies that are not involved in the Obstetric and Gynecologic community?
- OK, I'm convinced I need to find out more about how my company can benefit from Strategic Internet Marketing . What should I do now?
(A) The worlds largest Internet based network of U.S. and International Obstetricians and Gynecologists, related medical practitioners and women's health consumers.
OBGYN.net was designed by Obstetricians and Gynecologists to meet their specific information needs and provide accurate information to their patients.
(A) #1 REASON...THE DOCTORS AND WOMEN ARE ALREADY HERE!
The Internet is too vast and overwhelming for the average (or even above average) person to navigate. When an Ob/Gyn or woman logs on and tries to find information it's like putting your lips to a fire hydrant when all you want is a sip of water! The most common complaint people have is, "There's too much out there. I can't find anything I want when I want it, and I don't want to go looking for product information at hundreds of different locations. If only there was one place we could go to get everything I need!" Now there is - OBGYN.net. And the Doctors and their patients love it, because they helped design and create it.
OBGYN.net harvests the Internet for information of interest to the physicians and catalogs it for easy access. Harvested content is then reviewed by physicians for appropriateness and quality. Currently OBGYN.net connects the Ob/Gyn's to over 4,000 external links relevant to their specific interests.
The doctors use OBGYN.net forums to discuss products and procedures on an international level exchanging over 1.5 MILLION email messages monthly.
Publishing articles is popular and the doctors really love customizing their Free Personal Web Pages - their own place in Cyberspace.
OBGYN.net's free access to Knowledgefinder, an interface to the National Library of Medicine database Medline, has received rave reviews for its ease of use.
In addition to our vast library of information, OBGYN.net brings cutting edge interactive technology to the doctors' fingertips. Interactive components are different than static text and pictures that make up most web pages. Interactive components allow the visitors to interact with their peers, their patients, you their suppliers, and us their Internet enablers. Our interactive features make OBGYN.net a living breathing web site that changes hourly. There's always something new to see and a reason to return daily.
For women the same ease of use and access to up to the minute information holds true. Plus women can tap into the incredible resource of OBGYN.net's Women's Health Forum. This is where women can ask questions and get answers within hours directly from Ob/Gyn's around the world. AMAZING!
(A) Because it offers advertising advantages unavailable anywhere else. In this new medium you can interact directly with your market in ways never before possible.
The Internet is superior to traditional print journal advertising for several reasons:
- TIME - A printed journal is only current for one month - then it is thrown away. The Internet allows information to be stored and archived for future retrieval. The physicians can access information on their own terms, in their own time frame.
- SPACE - In traditional print media you are limited in the amount of information you can get on one or two expensive pages. The Internet allows you to supply any amount of comprehensive information, and at a fraction of the cost.
- REACH - Most printed journals are limited in their geographic distribution. The Internet allows for global marketing.
- USE - You can place an ad in a magazine, but you never know if anyone even opened it. The Internet tracks how many individuals have actually opened the pages and viewed your message.
- INTERACTIVE COMMUNICATION - Perhaps most innovative is the fact that physicians and consumers can interact with you. They can request additional information and samples, ask specific questions, and discuss procedures.
(A) No.
The Internet has been around in scientific circles for over twenty years. The sudden awareness and phenomenal growth of the last two years is due to the proliferation of powerful computers in homes and offices and the user friendly graphical interface of the World Wide Web. Computers and the Internet have just gotten better, cheaper, faster, and easier to use. And this has moved the Internet into the hands of the mainstream consumer.
The Internet will mature and evolve but it isn't going away. Does your company need to be thinking about the Internet? Well, you can be sure your competitors are. You need to be finding ways to effectively incorporate this new tool into your existing marketing mix. Your company should focus on results and avoid all the theoretical and social controversy. Some forward thinking companies embraced the FAX and personal computers early while others waited to see if they were just a fad. Have you used any carbon paper lately?
(Q) Do Ob/Gyn's really use the Internet?
(A) Yes! Market studies prove Ob/Gyn's are traditionally early adopters of technology.
With the advancements in laparoscopy, endoscopy, and ultrasound (just to name a few), Obstetricians and Gynecologists have always been adapting to new technological trends. Make no mistake, the O&G community is flocking to the Internet--including a surprising number of physicians who have been in practice for over 25 years. And of course the students and residents are all connected at their medical departments.
(Q) Are the Ob/Gyn's using OBGYN.net?
(A) Absolutely. We have over 217,000 visitors to OBGYN.net each month as of January 1999 We average over 8,000 visitors a day.
The doctors view OBGYN.net as a valuable resource. It's their oasis in the often overwhelming world of the Internet. The letters of support and the physicians' willingness to donate their time to help make OBGYN.net successful demonstrate their strong loyalty and high interest.
And women? Make no mistake about it the women want to be where the doctors are, and that's OBGYN.net.
(Q) Why is OBGYN.net an overnight success?
(A) Because overnight took many years.
As anyone familiar with product development knows, there's no such thing as an overnight success. The MediSpecialty.com staff has been working on complex technology solutions for over fifteen years.
Dr. Geffrey Klein, our Advisory Board Chairman, started the OB-GYN-L electronic forum in 1993 while in residency at Baylor Medical Center, Houston. His early development of this international forum was the seminal work behind OBGYN.net.
The more than 80 physicians world wide who are directly involved in developing OBGYN.net for their peers are opinion shapers, the world's pioneers in applying Internet technology to the practice of Ob/Gyn. Their combined experiences and subsequent commitment to the project have been pivotal to OBGYN.net's success in dominating this global market.
(Q)How can I and my company get involved?
(A) OBGYN.net offers many opportunities.
The OBGYN.net physician's goal is to be able to interact both with their suppliers and the public.
OB-GYN-L, OBGYN.net's discussion for medical conditions by medical professionals is an all day every day hot spot for physician interaction.
The Women's Health Forum is a unique place on the Internet where women can ask health questions and get answers the same day from Board Certified OB/GYN's.
We have also set up an Industry Advisory Board at OBGYN.net to set standards for quality advertising. We are encouraging corporate leaders in the O&G community to participate on the board.
You and your company can show your interest in the Ob/Gyn community through forum and industry board participation, by submitting press releases to OBGYN.net at: articles@obgyn.net, and by sponsorship or advertising. These are a few of the many ways at OBGYN.net to show your interest in the needs of the physicians and the women they serve. Product information is one of the most requested items at OBGYN.net.
(Q) Why should I be an OBGYN.net Sponsor?
(A) Because it's good for your business.
OBGYN.net understands your marketing goals. You want reliable targeting of US and International Obstetric and Gynecologic physicians and women with specific interest in your products. You want to communicate a genuine commitment to meeting their needs through your products, services and actions. Effective targeting results in higher sales, reduced marketing costs, increased brand loyalty and customer satisfaction. At OBGYN.net we have a PROVEN track record for delivering these things. We provide an ROI that is measurable and measures up well.
This goal of improving your bottom line will be accomplished by:
- Enhancing brand recognition by displaying your company logo and message.
- Establishing an interactive relationship with the physicians who influence sales.
- Providing a high level of detail about your company 's products available 24 hours a day and year-round, on demand.
- Encouraging brand loyalty by showing corporate support of the doctors' and women's Internet information and education goals.
- Reducing costs of printed advertising and mailing associated with traditional marketing.
- Leveraging market exposure by participation in the worlds largest O&G Internet presence.
- Increasing traffic to your existing Internet Web Site.
- Eliminating or reducing the high development and maintenance costs associated with an Internet Web Site.
- Most important, OBGYN.net is like a family. The women and medical professionals that participate in OBGYN.net feel very strong loyalties to OBGYN.net. When your company sponsors a special section of OBGYN.net you become a part of that family. This translates directly to increased sales and strong brand loyalty.
(Q) What is the difference between Sponsorship and Advertising?
(A) Advertising is about getting your name in front of the doctors and women. Sponsorship is about getting your name in front of the doctors and women and also building an alliance with them for improving the quality of women's health care. At OBGYN.net it could be said, "We appreciate our advertisers and we love our sponsors."
Advertising on OBGYN.net is an excellent relatively low cost way to get information about your products in front of the doctors. Ads are placed on rotating banners throughout OBGYN.net and link to a two page web presence for your company.
Sponsors build special custom designed educational sections of the network. This provides a much greater degree of exposure and demonstrate a much higher level of commitment to the O&G community. Sponsorship is all about relationships. Some of the benefits you will receive as an OBGYN.net Sponsor are:
- Your company name will be prominently displayed on all pages of the section you sponsor.
- Sponsors receive a custom designed web presence equivalent to a full color, six page magazine spread.
- Your company will also appear on a rotating advertising banner throughout OBGYN.net
- Your company will be announced to the physicians and women as a sponsor on all OBGYN.net forums.
- Ten percent of all sponsorship funds will be deposited in the Physician Discretionary Fund. The Fund is controlled by the OBGYN.net Advisory Board for use in education and advancement of Internet use in Obstetrics and Gynecology. Your company will receive credit as a contributor to this fund.
- Your company will be displayed as a sponsor at all Ob/Gyn conferences OBGYN.net attends in the US and abroad.
- Your Company will have the right to use the OBGYN.net name and logo in its marketing material.
- We will develop, under your supervision, an expanded web presence for your company as part of your Sponsorship that we will maintain and host at no additional cost on the OBGYN.net server.
- Your company will have first right of refusal on sponsorship renewal.
- Your company will be notified in advance of upcoming features and opportunities at OBGYN.net.
(Q) Why should my company be moving to OBGYN.net now?
(A) Because it is the best way to ensure a fantastic ROI for your 1999-2000 Internet marketing and advertising budget.
Now is the time to position your product line by selecting a specific area of OBGYN.net to support. Joining now locks in the lowest possible rates while demonstrating to the women and physicians that your company is an industry leader in responding to their Internet information needs.
(Q) Should I be comparing Internet advertising with print media?
(A) No, it is an entirely new and different thing.
The truth is it's better. Print is a one way broadcast. There is really no way for the recipient of your message to provide feedback. You can not interact with each other to discuss applications and benefits. But you can on OBGYN.net.
The Internet is going to change the way companies and their clients interact. Companies that master this new marketing tool are going to have a distinct advantage over their competitors who lag behind. Your market is out there now. You just have to reach out and touch them.
(Q) What about number of monthly visitors, demographics and cost per thousand?
(A) OBGYN.net has excellent visitor counts (over 217,000 visitors a month) and demographics but that's not all that you should be thinking about.
When companies try too hard to impress you with high figures be wary. Ask yourself, "who are these people?" The reason you attend an Ob/Gyn Conference is because you want to get your message delivered to a specific group of purchase influencers, not just in front of the most people. Otherwise you'd be setting up your booth in Grand Central Station! One of the biggest challenges in DTC advertising is finding successful ways to market to consumers without antagonizing doctors. At OBGYN.net that problem is effectively avoided. You are able to leverage off the physician relationship and completely avoid that pitfall. This is extremely important, especially to equipment and device manufacturers.
Remember, most medical sites on the Internet are taking a very broad approach. They are attempting to grab market share by trying to be all things to all doctors and individuals and spreading themselves much too thin. You have every right to want to make sure that your company is not paying to get your Ob/Gyn products exposed to a group of physicians or men and women that have little or no interest in them.
Our surveys on OBGYN.net reveal:
- 39% of visitors are Medical Professionals the rest are mostly women with specific health care problems or conditions.
- Of the 39% of women's health care professionals, 2% have been in practice over 25 years
- 77% are based in the US
- 97% found OBGYN.net Useful or Very Useful
- 55% specifically requested product information be made available
- 99.9% said they would return!
Our years of experience with Internet development has proven that password protection actually works against your goals in many cases. The women and doctors don't like trying to remember lots of different passwords and going through the lengthy registration process often just drives them away. Would you make them go to the post office and sign for a journal or magazine you advertised in just to make sure they really intended to read it thoroughly? Of course not. You understand that this would only defeat your marketing goals.
OBGYN.net is targeted by design. The information presented on OBGYN.net is exclusively designed by Ob/Gyn's for Ob/Gyn's and women. It meets precisely the information needs of professionals practicing in this highly specialized field and the women they interact with daily. This makes it easy to use and extremely comprehensive, it also means your message is reaching your target market.
(Q) Is OBGYN.net a good investment of my company's advertising dollars?
(A) Yes, we guarantee it!
We have years of experience in developing successful Web Sites. We will assist you every step of the way in implementing a successful campaign by working closely with your Product Manager, advertising agency and Information Services Department to ensure your company's goals are met. You will retain control of the project and have sign off authority every step of the way. You will receive monthly performance updates and performance logs. We will continually work with you to refine and enhance the performance of your OBGYN.net web presence. If for any reason you are dissatisfied you will immediately be released from your contract and only be billed for work already approved. Remember--we base our reputation on meeting the needs of the O&G community. How many other Internet companies can make that claim?
(Q) What if my company is planning or has already built our own Web Site?
(A) Excellent! OBGYN.net can help you make it a success.
Like printing a brochure, building a web site is just one step in the process of reaching your market. The real challenge is getting those brochures into the hands of the decision makers. If you don't reach the market, your investment is wasted.
When trying to get in front of your market it comes down to three things - location, location, location. That's why you attend association conferences and advertise in Ob/Gyn and women's targeted periodicals. Physicians and women will not go looking for your Web site in the vast obscurity of cyberspace. You need to be located were the physicians and women hang out, and that place on the Internet is OBGYN.net.
(Q) What if my company doesn't have a web site?
(A) No problem! We're experts on Internet development for medical markets.
But maybe you don't need one. There is a difference between managing your own web site and having a web presence. The former could be compared to publishing a non-biased medical journal just so you can have a one page ad in it. First, it's not necessary, and second, it's too expensive.
Managing your own web site is a major undertaking. It involves purchasing, configuring, and maintaining highly technical and costly equipment and software. It requires highly skilled, difficult to find, well paid staff. And then there is the issue of developing content and graphic design, establishing Internet connectivity, securing domain names and keeping your content current and fresh. In other words it's a big expensive job, and at this point you still haven't begun to deal with marketing it to the doctors and women. Not to mention getting them to come back over and over again. You need to decide if this would be the most cost effective way to meet your company's Internet marketing goals. It may not be.
A web presence can be accomplished for a fraction of the cost of maintaining your own site by outsourcing to a company that builds and manages web sites professionally. OBGYN.net's parent company, MediSpecialty.com, is such a company.
It's important to understand strategic positioning of your Internet presence. Just as you have different messages in other media, you can have different messages on the Internet. A small collection of Web pages, strategically positioned, is more cost effective than a monolithic one-size-fits-all web site. These concise collections of material are easier to navigate, ensuring the proper message is reaching your intended audience. Your Internet copy can also be replaced periodically with a fresh look and different message at minimal cost.
(Q) Can OBGYN.net help me with my Internet target marketing strategy?
(A) Yes: we can even expand your reach by including exposure on Sister Sites.
OBGYN.net is connected to a vast network of Internet sites specializing in niche areas of O&G including subspecialties like Infertility and Ultrasound. We can include in your advertising strategy clickable banner ads on relevant sites that will increase exposure to your OBGYN.net Web Presence.
(Q) How much is this going to cost?
(A) That all depends on how much you have to gain.
By discussing your marketing goals we will develop a package that is customized to meet your individual needs. Is it your goal to solely promote brand recognition? Is your company better served by establishing an interactive relationship with the physicians, women, both? What is your budget? After carefully assessing your goals we will make a recommendation that is custom designed to optimize your results. Remember--the marketing dollars you spend that don't bring results are never a bargain.
(Q) What criteria should I use to make the decision on who should build our web presence?
(A) Here is a list of questions you should ask potential candidates:
What is your experience in constructing web sites for the Ob/Gyn and medical market?
MediSpecialty.com has a great deal of experience in this area.
How will you market the company's web presence to the Ob/Gyn community beyond registering it with the major search engines?
OBGYN.net will bring your web presence to the attention of the physicians immediately. We will announce it to thousands of doctors in our forums and register it with all relevant medical sites.
How much will it cost?
Be careful if they have a quick answer, or the price is extremely low. This usually means that you are going to get a canned, template driven, out-of-the-box solution that's unworthy of your corporate image.
If our web presence is not getting a lot of traffic what will you do?
They should be prepared to take responsibility and work with your company on implementing a solution for little or no cost.
Do you have other successful projects and satisfied clients I can review?
They should if they are adequately experienced to do your project.
What will maintenance or "hidden" costs be?
You should also assess this cost in internal staff time and money. Will you be able to pick up a phone and talk with someone to have changes implemented immediately or will you have to fill out a form and wait? Will you have to submit changes in HTML? Will there be additional costs?
(Q) Does OBGYN.net develop web sites for companies that are not involved in the Obstetric and Gynecologic community?
(A) Yes, MediSpecialty.com (OBGYN.net's parent company) has experience in all areas of Internet design, but our #1 specialty is the Women's Health arena.
We are currently working on several large sponsorship projects for national and international women's health companies. We work closely with our clients to develop award winning, interactive, user-friendly web sites.
(Q) OK, I'm convinced I need to find out more about how my company can benefit from Strategic Internet Marketing . What should I do now?
(A) We would be happy to discuss your ideas and are looking forward to hearing more about how we can help you achieve your marketing goals.
Please contact Roberta Speyer, Publisher of OBGYN.net. She's looking forward to hearing from you.
OBGYN.net
5707 Lakemoore, Suite 100
Austin, TX USA 78731
US Toll Free: (888) 451-2842
Phone: +1-512-418-2922
FAX: +1-512-795-0527Email her at:
roberta.speyer@obgyn.netYou can visit OBGYN.net at: http://www.obgyn.net
You can visit MediSpecialty.com at: http://www.medispecialty.com