People Need a Signal to Get Care
FEATURE
Miles Bodzin
Dane Donohue
It’s easy to get people to understand the importance of chiropractic care when they have obvious cues or problems, such as pain or other pressing symptomatic issues that could include headaches, radicular pain, joint pain, ear infections, asthmatic problems, etc.
However, it seems to be so much more difficult for chiropractors to get their patients to follow through with ongoing wellness care. Why? The lack of symptoms (“being painless”) does not seem to serve as an obvious cue for people. It turns out that people, from a psychological perspective, need a “clue” to respond.
We can leam a lot about this from the recent New York Times bestselling book, The Power of Habit: Why We Do What We Do in Life and Business. In the book, author Charles Duhigg writes that people need a signal or sign to know that they need to do something.
Duhigg gives the simple example of brushing your teeth. We all know that we don’t brush our teeth because they hurt. He brings up an interesting observation: How many people do you think brushed their teeth at the start of the twentieth century, the same time chiropractic came into existence? Fewer than 10% of the American people brushed their teeth in 1907, according to surveys and polls.
And ifyou’re wondering, this wasn’t due to lack oftoothpaste or toothbrushes. There were plenty of these simple and effective tools available at the time.
It wasn’t until a man named Claude Hopkins was hired by the company Pepsodent to create a marketing campaign to increase their sales. The result? A revolution in dental hygiene!
The marketing campaign was centered on a newly invented term that Hopkins made famous, one that we all now know— plaque. That’s right. The term “plaque” was made famous by a marketer, not by a dentist.
In Hopkins’s now famous rules of marketing, he states that people need a signal that they need your product. Plaque became the signal for dental products. Until that time, people had no signal letting them know they needed to brush their teeth. Once they learned the signal, their behavior changed. Awareness of the signal prompted the change.
It’s interesting to note that Hopkins did not try to convince people to start brushing their teeth by attempting to educate them on the devastating effects of tooth decay or by exclaiming the amazing benefits of healthy teeth. That was already being done at the time, and still fewer than 10% of the American people were brushing their teeth.
“The real revolution was the fact that Hopkins changed the marketing paradigm. Instead of trying to convince people to take action with educational efforts, he influenced behavior by tapping into the psyche. J Ï
The real revolution was the fact that Hopkins changed the marketing paradigm. Instead of trying to convince people to take action with educational efforts, he influenced behavior by tapping into the psyche. It is human behavior to respond to signals and clues. That’s revolutionary and why his marketing worked so well.
So what does this have to do with our beloved chiropractic? Let me ask you: What is the cue or signal people employ to use chiropractic? I think we can agree it’s some kind of symptom intruding on the person’s consciousness saying, “I need help!”
Hence, the challenge with ongoing wellness care is having no signal. It’s time we learn from the genius of Hopkins. It’s time we showed people the “signal” they need to pay attention to. Remember, painlessness is not a cue or signal because it doesn’t make people aware of anything.
Dr. Miles Bodzin has prepared The Wellness Score® Report for Adam Levine. Below is a list of what was measured to determine your Wellness Score and Grade.
If we were to accomplish this goal, we would finally see the growth of the chiropractic lifestyle. Once people were aware of a signal, they would no longer have to be motivated to take action. They just would.
In World War I, tooth decay was the biggest single health problem of its day and one of the major reasons for a soldier to not be accepted into the military. By World War II, more than 65% of Americans were brushing their teeth, and tooth decay and cavities became far less of a health issue.
In less than twenty-five years, we saw a huge spike in the
utilization and implementation of such a simple nonsymptomatic health routine. We now take it for granted to brush our teeth, shower every day, wash our hands, etc. Those have become habits that we don’t even think about because we have done them for so long. The fact remains, though, that we don’t brush and shower because of pain or bad body odors, right?
How do we make chiropractic tip from a mere 2 to 7% utilization rate to 65% in 25 years in America? Well, let’s leam a lesson from Claude Hopkins. If we use more nonsymptomatic signals or cues that people need chiropractic, such as subluxation, X-rays, posture, movement, energy level, body composition, blood pressure, lab values, etc., people will start to think about us for reasons beyond just pain.
We believe that the signal that will trigger more people to use chiropractic for wellness is The Wellness Score®. Let me further explain. Are people aware of cholesterol levels? Ask anyone who watches their cholesterol what their “number” is, and they can recite it to you. They know what it is and it serves as a signal or cue for them to seek care. The meaning of that “number” changes their behavior.
Dr. Miles Bodzin has prepared The Wellness Score® Report for Adam Levine. Below is a list of what was measured to determine your Wellness Score and Grade.
This is why we use The Wellness Score® on every patient. To give them a “number,” it will change their behavior to use chiropractic functionally rather than symptomatically. In our research, we found an even better way to motivate the patient. Each patient will get a Health or Wellness Grade along with a Wellness Score. We’ve heard asymptomatic patients who received a “C” Wellness Grade say things such as, “Doc, what do we have to do to get that grade to an A?”
We want patients to know how their level of function is
affecting their life, i.e., the life effect. What can they not do? How is their health affecting their ability to live an awesome life? Imagine if people walked around with a Health Grade on their foreheads that showed them and the world how they were functioning. More importantly, what if people knew they could improve that level of health and function in your office?
We have to make the public aware that we improve function, not treat symptoms. Let’s start to create and reward better reasons for people to seek our care and then stay under our care for a lifetime.
fDr. Dane Donohue is the CEO of the fastest growingwellness center in the United States. Awarded 2008 Chiropractor of the Year and author of Fat. Fatigued and Fed Up: How Metabolic Syndrome Is Destroying Your Life. Dr. Dane is also the founder of 8 Weeks to Wellness™ and a recognized leader in the Wellness Movement.
tDr Miles Bodzin, founder and CEO of Cash Practice® Systems, speaks internationally on the topic of client retention. His company offers web-bcised software for chiropractors to streamline their practices. The Cash Practice® Systems, which includes The Wellness Score®, Cash Plan Calculator®, Auto-Debit System®, and Drip-Education® Email Marketing System, have helped thousands of chiropractic offices collect more cash in their practices, skyrocket their patient retention, and reduce their dependence on insurance. Learn more at www.CashPractice.com or call 877-343-8950.
