The hand therapy profession and marketing: Therapists' attitudes, level of marketing knowledge, and marketing strategies, trends, and barriers.

摘要

The purpose of the study was to determine hand therapists' level of marketing knowledge, identify marketing trends and strategies, examine therapists' attitudes regarding marketing, and describe perceived barriers to marketing. A researcher-designed web-based survey was sent to 2,557 American Society of Hand Therapists members; 810 therapists responded, yielding a 32% response rate. The data was analyzed using descriptive statistics.;The majority of participants were female Occupational Therapists, Certified Hand Therapists, and worked as staff therapists. Sixty-seven percent of participants rated their overall marketing knowledge as fair to poor. Eighty-three percent of participants were interested in marketing educational opportunities. Twelve percent of facilities had marketing plans and 14% had yearly marketing budgets. The most common marketing strategies used by therapists included the use of business cards and brochures and meeting face-to-face with physicians. Hand therapists generally have positive attitudes towards marketing. The main marketing barriers were lack of time, financial support, and marketing knowledge.