Heal(ing) the world, in India.

And how your brand can be a part of the inbound medical tourism boom.

India might have admittedly faltered in public healthcare, but that very weakness has led to the emergence of a comparatively robust and affordable private healthcare ecosystem. A system that can serve quality healthcare to international patients who might not have access to advanced facilities in their home countries or, in other cases, simply want to jump the queue. Here, we will take a quick look at the opportunity presented and then lay out an actionable strategy that can help reach and attract the right target audience for medical facilities aiming to do so.

The market

In terms of global value, medical tourism was estimated to be worth approximately $44.8 billion in 2019. There was a severe slide in this number due to the impact of COVID-19, but the numbers have been climbing back steadily since the ease of travel restrictions, and the sector is expected to see a growth of 32.31% (CAGR) between 2022 and 2030. Despite the COVID-19 downturn, the value of medical tourism in India was between 5 to 6 billion USD in 2020 and is expected to touch $13 billion in 2022. Most of the medical tourists in India originate from Oman, Nigeria, Kenya, Iraq, Afghanistan, Nepal, and Bangladesh, with a steady stream of tourists from western countries for high-end as well as wellness-related medical services.

The demand

The two primary aspects that lead to the influx of medical tourists to India are cost and availability. For the first aspect,, let’s look at a (nowadays) fairly common procedure called Angioplasty. In the United States the procedure would set an individual back by approximately $55,000. However, if we look at the cost of an Angioplasty in India, it would be in the whereabouts of $3,000. Even throwing in costs of travel, boarding and post-op care, the cost savings for such a procedure being carried out in India Vs. a western country would be substantial at the very least. The second aspect would be availability of required medical services. What we stand to benefit from is the lack of absolute or current availability. While a few countries might not have the procedures and services available entirely (Iraq, Afghanistan), others might have long waiting periods for them owing to the structure of their healthcare system (UK) or an imbalance in the demand-supply equation (US).

The opportunity

Medical education in India has benefitted from the high bar of entrance into the field (doctors & specialists), a trainable workforce (support staff), relatively lower overhead costs (setting up and running medical facilities) and our ability to speak the language of the world (English), and speak it fluently. To add to the already welcoming mix is the presence of a well entrenched auxiliary industries such as pharma, medical device manufacturing and holistic wellness tied with an established reputation in hospitality and tourism. The Indian government has rightly recognised the potential of this sector and has been not only running visibility campaigns through its missions abroad, but has also taken steps such as allowing medical procedures (barring organ transplants) for individuals possessing regular tourist visas.

The challenges

Trust: This is probably THE most critical factor that an end consumer would consider while taking a decision related to undergoing a medical intervention. The more invasive the procedure, the more this aspect matters. We might have a robust and trustworthy system in place, however unless we are able to convince a person sitting in another country thousands of miles away, this strength would be rendered useless. Accreditations like JCI and NABH are critical to establish trust in competency and fairness. However, with only 37 JCI and 513 NABH accredited hospitals in India, we could be doing a lot better.

Competition: From other countries with nearly the same advantages as us and eyeing the same niche in the market segment. These would be south-east Asian countries like Thailand, Malaysia and Philippines. While they might not have the competitiveness in terms of linguistic barriers, and scale, they can very well compete on cost and infrastructure.

Communication: While we must look at developed countries to expand our acquisition to, the current reality of most patients coming from non-english speaking nations holds true. Not only is it a challenge to help them communicate with staff and specialists, it also is challenging to help them navigate the ecosystem like lodging, travel and regulation needed to achieve the primary goal of accessing proper treatment.

How to enter and expand into the Medical Tourism niche

As a service provider the most obvious answer is to market yourself well. List out the services you offer, create marketing materials for such services (on and off-line) in multiple languages (English and your TG’s local language), publish such material in locally consumed media and capture leads to convert them. Marketing 101. If you’re smarter still (and have the resources) you’d want to have a hub-and-spoke marketing model where you could employ representatives in target cities / countries, extend outreach to travel agents specialising in medical tourism and have highly filtered leads for you to pursue. But what if you wanted to establish yourself in this industry, enjoying increasing returns on your investments with every passing day? In that case you’d want to use a specific formula that’s been proven to provide long lasting and superior RoI to any and every one who has been able to apply it well.

The formula for success:

EXPERIENCE X COMMUNITIES

Where experience & communities are affected by different values and are directly proportional to each other

EXPERIENCE = SEARCH + UI/UX + HOOKS

Search = Brand + Category + Query

UI/UX = Technology + Ease + Content

Hooks = Options + Commerce

COMMUNITIES = PURPOSE + CONTRIBUTION (BRAND + COMMUNITY) + CONTENT + SEEDING POLICY + COLLABORATIONS & INVESTMENTS

The Breakdown

The formula can seem a bit daunting at first, but here’s a little breakdown to help you decode it better. If you focus on making your user’s experience better, you will increase your user’s loyalty, which will enable them to become your brand’s advocates and contribute forthrightly to the community.

Experience here refers to the sum of every touchpoint, engagement, thought, or feeling that occurs or is exchanged between the customer and your brand; and it’s okay to say that from the beginning of searching a product to being a brand advocate, it’s all about the experience you deliver.

Experience includes:

1. Your brand remains prominent regardless of what level of search is being conducted: Brand/ Category/ Query.
2. Authenticity, ease of navigation, and a rich look and feel at every touch point ensure flawless, hassle-free interactions with consumers.
3. Consumers cannot return to you unless you offer them a reason to do so. Don’t lose touch with them, keep them updated about new offers, and upcoming sales, and provide hooks.

Brands that foster a sense of belonging and build authentic relationships via communities based on shared values will reap the long-term rewards.

Communities have certain aspects which keep their functionality intact in the long run:

1. A sense of belongingness, connecting with a brand.
2. A common purpose that drives the whole community in a positive direction.
3. Contributions that work both ways, what the brand offers the community and vis-à-vis.
4. Engaging content that directs the flow of information and interacts with the community effectively.
5. Seeding involves a carefully chosen group of seeds that are expected to maximise the diffusion of a message by being introduced to it.
6. Communities develop a co-create environment by involving your consumers at each step of the process — from research and development to promotion — so you can form a true partnership. This in turn enhances active collaboration and investments.

Application

The formula mentioned above as would be evident to a keen reader, does not offer itself to sequential deployment. Rather, it works by creating assets and traction at multiple touch-points with the customer and operational nodes within the brand. It works through capturing customer needs through specific keyword searches, creating brand trust through referral authority by means of accreditations & publications, communicating competence through highlighting use case scenarios, creating touch points for in-person access, resolving roadblocks in purchase decisions through solutions in auxiliary fields such as documentation and logistics, creating information banks for bolstering claims regarding successes, participation in, and creating of communities specific to larger niches of consumers.

How will it work for you?

As most formulas go, the answers depend on a fair number of variables.

1. Does your facility have the necessary accreditations?
2. Does it cater to a specific niche?
3. Are the services offered of wellness, cosmetic or critical procedures in nature?
4. Is the market nascent or developed?
5. etc.

Critically, are you even aware of the exact challenges that have kept you from becoming a successful service provider in this category? Answers to all these (and a lot more) questions will dictate the exact course of action required for you to become a part of this flourishing industry. If you’d want to concentrate on your expertise, and are looking for a partner to help you develop an ecosystem in this vein, we have more than 15 years of expertise in enhancing experience and building contributing communities, an algorithm-based approach towards marketing, CRO specialists, and flourishing relations in 11 countries for digital, ecomm and emerging marketing technology.

We’d be happy to converse about this with you!