The competition in the dental medical market is recently getting more and more hot. Due to buyers' change in their requests and expectations, high-quality medical service is being demanded; which then caused, along with the increased supply of medical...
The competition in the dental medical market is recently getting more and more hot. Due to buyers' change in their requests and expectations, high-quality medical service is being demanded; which then caused, along with the increased supply of medical service, the medical market to change from supplier's market into buyer’s market. According to such a change, a new paradigm of "emotional consumption' has appeared, so that the medical buyers depend on their emotion when they select hospital, as when they buy a product. Thus, the emphasis in the concept of medical service is actually changing from technology to buyers' mind.
In such a highly competitive environment, to give a good image to the minds of medical buyers which have been diversified and personalized, it is necessary for a hospital to maintain an emotional and unique image. This is accomplished through the hospital's systematic identity program, in whose center is the symbol mark. Therefore, the symbol mark is particularly emphasized.
With such a purpose, the present study attempted to analyze the effect of the symbol mark on medical service, through the correlation between the conviction (which is expressed in symbol mark based on the cognitive learning theory) and the cognition of hospital, the attitude toward hospital and the intention to select hospital, which are the components of the hierarchy of effect model.
First, the effect of the symbol mark's visual trait of dental hospitals on the medical buyer's cognition and on the visual effect, through the structure of the message, were investigated by means of a survey with inquires.
Second, the symbol marks of the dental hospitals were classified according to their shape, motive and color. Each type of the symbol mark were investigated with regard to the cognition of hospital (recognition, image), the attitude (favor, preference) and the selection (action), to find out the cause-effect relationship among them.
Third, for each emotional/rational type of symbol mark, buyers' responses according to their emotional intensity were investigated, along with there effects.
A statistical program SPSS 13.0 was used for the statistical analysis of variance of the differences in the cognition of hospital, in the attitude and in the intention to select, among the different types of symbol marks; and follow-up Duncan test was carried out with the group that showed difference.
Cross tabulation analysis was carried out as to the differences in the hospital selection according to the demographic characteristic, buyer's characteristic and emotional types of symbol marks. In addition, regression analysis was carried out to understand the effect of the cognition of hospital on the attitude toward the hospital, and also the effect of the attitude toward the hospital on the intention to select the hospital.
Results
(1) When the samples, with or without the symbol marks of the dental hospitals, were given with time intervals, The ratio of those who selected the hospital with symbol mark was as high as 88.5%; of which 58.5% were visual-type symbols, showing its highest effect on buyers memory and personal choice.
(2) Medical buyer's attitude was examined with regard to cognition, emotion, and action; the stepwise effects on each of them was analyzed by means of their own analytical items:
First step was to analyze the effect of the hospital's image remembered through the symbol mark on the attitude toward hospital; of the image factors of symbol mark, the activeness, creativeness, uniqueness and friendliness had positive(+) effect on the attitude toward hospital. Here an indirect effect of the hospitals's image produced by symbol mark was examined; thus we could see that the positive evaluation about the image lead to the positive attitude (favor, preference) toward the hospital. The second step was to analyze the effect of the attitude toward hospital on the intention to select the hospital; the attitude formed through symbol mark had positive(+) effect on the intention to select the hospital. Here the attitude had a direct effect on the intention to select the hospital, indicating that the more positive the attitude formed through symbol mark was, the higher was the intention to select the hospital (intention to use and recommend the hospital).
The third step was to examine the medical buyer's reponses to visual symbol mark according to their characters; the results showed that the buyer's emotional intensity was high among the group which selected visual symbol, while cognition desire was high among the group which selected the complex symbol with words, indicating that the buyers select different types of symbol according to their emotional intensity.
The fourth step was to analyze the subtypes of rational/emotional type of symbol mark; the result showed that the largest number of (49%) symbol mark had emotional and esthetic factors. The ratio of the symbols with functional factor and that of the symbols with valuable factor were similar. In addition, the medical buyers showed differences in there responses to the subtypes of symbol mark, according to their emotional intensity; those who had higher emotional intensity were more responsive to the indirect and esthetic factors. Considering the characteristic of dental hospital, the symbol mark with functional factor is not friendly, because it too much shows off the image of medical treatment. Thus, buyer's attitude to select hospital (favor, preference) was better with the indirect and emotionally appealing, esthetic symbol mark, indicating that the more the medical buyer's emotional intensity is, the more significant effect it has on the intention to select the hospital.
As a conclusion, symbol mark is not a crucial factor for the selection of hospital, because it has more emotional aspects than rational ones. Yet, as the Paivio, Erdelyi and Shepard's visual strategy of message structure pointed out, the pictorial symbol mark gives better impression to buyers and is better remembered. Thus, hospital's image expressed by a visual symbol mark has a positive effect on the attitude toward hospital, eventually making the buyers to have the intention to select. Therefore, symbol mark is considered to be a factor for the selection of hospital; and now is the time to recognize its importance for medical service too, as an essential ground for hospital on which to build its emotional and unique identity.