Step Outside Your Comfort Zone and Grow Your Practice
MARKETING
David A. Bohn
DC
The most frequent question and constant concern of most doctors I talk to every day is: How can I get more new patients?
Everyone knows a practice won’t be around long without a steady stream of new patients. This becomes an even greater concern if while making payments on a decompression table or high-end class IV laser.
After 31 years of practice, I’ve known the struggle, but I discovered long ago why my practice was not attracting new patients. I changed my approach to marketing and never looked back.
The biggest mistake clinics make in their marketing is trying to be everything for everybody, and, as a result, they don’t meet anyone’s needs and just blend into the scenery. To use marketing terms, their chiropractic practice is just a commodity. Just a place to get an adjustment, and just like the office down the street or across town. Their potential patients are usually shoppers looking for the best price or location that fits their needs. If you are ready to stand out, be unique, and go beyond the expected, then get ready for a consistent practice with all the growth you can handle.
If you’re serious about practice growth, take a hard look at your practice through your patient’s eyes. Everything really matters. Smell, color, how you and your staff dress and act, what’s hanging on the walls, and even your background office music. If you were the patient, why would you choose your practice over any other chiropractor?
Decompression, class IV laser, radial pressure pulse therapy, same-day new-patient appointments, friendly staff, easy parking, and modern decor in a convenient location are all good, but the key is your marketing message and what you deliver to your patients. It’s not enough to advertise “effective, state-of-the-art treatment from a caring staff.” That’s expected, so you must go beyond.
The biggest mistake clinics make in their marketing is trying to be everything for everybody
A decompression table or laser will not attract patients if they do not know how it can help. In fact, potential patients have little to no interest in your ads about how you have a decompression table or a new laser. They really only care about how you can help them or solve their problem. People who you might be able to help with your decompression table most likely have disc-related spinal pain. Decide on three or four problems that you want to attract to your practice. These should be things you enjoy treating that are profitable and, most importantly, enjoyable for you to see. It’s obvious when a doctor does not like treating something, and it will be reflected in the results. One doctor told me how he couldn’t get plantar fasciitis clients for his new pressure pulse therapy machine right after telling me he hated touching feet!
You must get written testimonials with pictures or videos from patients who’ve had successful outcomes. There is no excuse—you just have to start asking. It is rare for a person who has found relief from pain to decline a testimonial request, and equally rare for someone to volunteer a testimonial without being asked.
A great testimonial is priceless. Post it on all your social media accounts, and if you don’t have social media accounts, you are at least 10 years late so set them up today. Put them on your webpage and at the bottom of your email responses; post them on the walls of your exam and treatment rooms; and use them on your landing pages. If these terms are not familiar, ask someone in their twenties or thirties to help you out but get started. You do not have to spend thousands of dollars to get out there on social media. It’s time or money to become known, and if you don’t have the money, you should have the time.
Make posts about what you want to treat. Post daily about disc herniation and nonsurgical relief; post stretches and exercises. Don’t try to sell—just give away daily information and lots of it. You’ll want to make landing pages that only talk about the problem you’re addressing so prospective patients do not lose interest on a confusing practice webpage.
Video is the best approach. If you have a smartphone, you can make and post videos on YouTube. Keep it under three minutes and just talk to the camera as if you were talking to a patient. Make your headline searchable and post the script in the description. Consider boosting your more popular posts on Facebook or doing some local Google ads if you have $200 or more a month to invest. You’ll quickly start seeing more patients.
Stay in touch with your patients with text messaging. People get too many email messages, and most of your messages won’t get through their spam filters. Look at investing in a service such as Zingit or Demandforce to send appointment reminders and other messages to your patient list.
Adding decompression, class IV lasers, radial pressure pulse therapy, or other services to your practice only provides growth if you promote the solution they provide for problems people in your area are experiencing. Start focusing your marketing on how and why you help, and people will discover you are far more than a place to get an adjustment. You’ll become the local solution to their problem, not just a commodity that can be purchased elsewhere.
Dr. David A. Bohn, DC, graduated from National University of Health Sciences in 1988 and has since been in continuous practice. Since 2004, Dr. Bohn has pursued development of both documentation and x-ray analysis software. He has extensive experience with developing, marketing, and maintaining a successful practice. Dr. Bohn is a frequent guest speaker for KDT Decompression Seminars and can be reached through his office at 301-777-3710 or through Kdt.
