Determine the key characteristics of users of the products and/or services of your selected health care provider. Some of the main features of Blue Cross and Blue Shield are term commitments; provide support, learning and development in the healthcare organization. The key services used by the majority of Blue Cross and Blue Shield customers are: prescription assistance, hospitalization, emergency medical evacuation, medical repatriation and medical monitoring. These are all key services that demonstrate how Blue Cross and Blue Shield support their customers. The features of Blue Cross and Blue Shield health insurance coverage vary depending on the type of health care coverage you have. Coverage for HMO plans is different from PPO plans. Therefore, some things that are covered in one may not be covered in the next. “Some of the personal characteristics of users are age, gender/sex, race, income and socioeconomic status, education, availability of care, culture, and patient beliefs.” (Kotler, Shalowitz, Stevens) HMO plans generally have lower upfront costs. on most premiums, than on any other type of premium. HMO plans typically have lower deductibles or no deductibles. A deductible is the amount you pay out of pocket before your plan pays for your doctor visits or other medical services. People also have deductibles to pay on their medications and other services provided by health care providers. People with HMO plans also pay low co-pays for medical services. Most people have copays that are due at the time of service. These are fixed amounts that you pay for the service that the insurance did not pay for. An example of a copay... middle of paper ... work and word of mouth are important to insurance companies. With Blue Cross and Blue Shield, they send their agents for training where they can learn how to target their customers and where their profitable niche markets are. Not only do Blue Cross and Blue Shield train based on the interests of their customers; but they train to learn what each policy consists of. This helps the customer trust the insurance company more. Blue Cross and Blue Shield offer their customers good prices on policies and good quality. This is why they are among the best insurance companies that offer their services in different states; but offers the same quality and great prices. REFERENCEhttps://bcbsal.org/web/Health Benefits Plan; BlueCross BlueShield of Alabama; revised 2012. Strategic Marketing for Healthcare Organizations: 2008, Kotler, Shalowitz, Stevens