contracted with health needs. one consortium of providers to take care of their employees
Contractual Vertical Marketing Systems This from of vertical marketing systems consists of either a cooperative or a franch ise. Cooperatives are agreements between members of the distribution channel who ex ist on the same level. For example, several retailers may band together in a retailer cooperative to act as a large purchasing group and to extract discounts or con- Independent Grocers Association is a retailer c cessions from suppliers The tive of small grocery stores that bulk purchase from manufacturers. care, a recent version of a cooperative marketing system is the National Cardiovascular Net work, formed in 1993. Forty-one top heart programs were invited to join a under ative venture to offer discounted, high-quality services at a contract to large employers forms of a vertical marketing system, is a Franchising, one of the fastest-growing distribution product or contract that links elements of the manufacturing and as are McDonald's 7 Automobile dealerships are franchise arrangements, restaurants and many Holiday Inn hotels. In these cases, independent businesses have signed agreements with the franchiser to deliver the product or service in defined fashion. The franchisee pays a fee for the opportunity to deliver this service, and there is often a yearly payment as a function of the revenue generated by the outlet. Simi larly, the franchiser often provides national advertising support, guidance for con ducting the business, and ongoing training and product development. A relaxation response program developed under the auspices of Harvard University Medical School at Deaconess Hospital of Boston is being franchised to other medical centers around the country for $80,000.
While franchising has been a fast-growing segment contracts that exist for many caped criticism. A major issue has been the terms of cite nonsatisfactory per franchisees. A growing number of lawsuits by franchisees formance by the franchiser overselling of the possibilities of the business. A com mon complaint voiced by franchisees is that the franchiser promises a level of sales that is found to be unachievable. Or, the franchiser promises to provide advertising or mar keting consulting support, but does not follow through with this promise .
Evolving Channels in Health Care
As has been mentioned, a growing channel in health care is retail clinics. In 2009, almost 1100 retail health care clinics were operating in the United States. A by the University of Michigan found that 10% children and over 11% of adults had used such a clinic at least once. Walmart and Walgreens have entered this form .