Which Way is Mars?

Where is Mars? “Up there someplace” is a necessary first approximation. We already know, or at least assume, it is.

Why do people seek psychoanalysis? Why do people avoid or ridicule or castigate psychoanalysis? The “why” here does not refer to unconscious conflict. That level of inquiry is the business of the psychoanalytic process itself. We are interested in a change of behavior—from aversive to seeking, in regard to psychoanalytic treatment.

Mars, in this instance, is the goal of producing a behavioral change in enough of the population to make the effort and the cost worthwhile.

Learning how we do that is one way to characterize a marketing effort. The focus groups we conducted with our members in Chicago were a first step in a series of approximations to determine which way is up. The eight focus groups that our marketing consultants will carry out — two in each of four cities around the country — are the second step. Translating the results of this step into public information content, then enhancing our members' public information skills and encouraging them to make use of both content and skills, is step three. The ways we have, or can find, to measure the local results will help us be a little more precise about the way to Mars.

Why a Focus Group?

What is a focus group? What does it do? What is it intended to achieve? It is a method of qualitative research in which eight to ten people with a common interest meet, led by someone who already has made some approximations about a marketing problem. One set of preliminary approximations consists of categorizing or segmenting the interest group itself. In our case, the categories used in Chicago were based on training/experience levels (e.g., student, training analyst), leadership involvement, geographic locale, and special interests (e.g., child analysis).

A second set of approximations consists of the questions to be addressed to the interest group sample. In our case, the focusing questions are these: What do you believe people think about psychoanalysis? Who (categorically) are the people you have in mind? What opinions of psychoanalysis would be preferable for them to hold?

The language here becomes more technical. A strategic marketing plan, one portion of which is the focus group, has inspirational and technical aspects. The purpose of the technical aspects is to convert or reduce an almost impossible sampling problem to a possible one, leading to measurable results. The orienting focus groups of interested parties (those with something to sell) produce ways to approach target groups (potential customers). This second stage tests the range of what the experts (us) feel is important on a general population, also segmented geographically and according to age, special interests, and other variables. Now we are trying to find out what “real people” think about psychoanalysis as a form of treatment.

“Why do people seek psychoanalysis? Why do people avoid or ridicule or castigate psychoanalysis? The ”why“ here does not refer to unconscious conflict. That level of inquiry is the business of the psychoanalytic process itself. We are interested in a change of behavior — from aversive to seeking, in regard to psychoanalytic treatment.”

Marketing and public information professionals attempt to translate the results of the focus group sampling into what they call “messages” — things to say or do, and ways to say and do them, that will counter negative opinion and foster positive opinion about psychoanalysis, to a degree sufficient to produce behavior change.

Training our members and our leaders to use these template messages and methods has the direct goal of helping analysts to help more people find their way into analysts' offices — a member benefit if there ever was one.

The American's Marketing Plan

All this is only one small though crucial aspect of a strategic marketing plan. In a way, we began our marketing effort by standing on our heads. Under the leadership of the indefatigable Leon Hoffman and our extremely capable public information consultant, Dottie Jeffries, we developed an effective public presence even before we tried to define an optimal shape to that presence. Now we are defining the shape, and this is where the focus groups play a key role. Leon and Dottie have been joined by Glenn Good and Lee Zacharias, our marketing consultant. John Walvoord, another marketing professional, volunteers his expertise to their work. In the middle of making all this happen, as always, is Ellen Fertig.

You may be wondering, “Why is our treasurer writing this column?” There are always objections to new directions of endeavor, as there should be. One of the prime objections to this endeavor is that professional consultants cost a significant amount of money. Is it worth it? Does it work?

I believe that it does. Examples are not hard to come by. One example close to home has to do with the “pharmaceutical representative.” Studies published some years ago showed that the route of the drug rep in a given geographical area can readily be tracked on a map by the frequency of filled prescriptions of the drug he or she is informing physicians about. (Patients tend strongly to use pharmacies in or close to the physician's office building.) Other examples include every successful medium-sized to large corporation and nonprofit organization in the country, whether they sell toothpaste, automobiles, movie stars, or candidates for national office. Corporate use does not guarantee that marketing will work for us, but the promise is certainly there.

Current approximations indicate that the first staging area on the way to Mars is in New Orleans this May. Lee Zacharias and our marketing team will use the results of our recent member survey in training us to deal with the media and the public to convey the messages we think are crucial.