Isn’t it enough that you have to do pretty much everything in your practice? From making the right differential diagnosis, to scheduling, billing and marketing your practice, you do it all.
Having all this responsible can make it hard for even a seasoned practitioner to stay afloat.
Here are 5 "Must Have" plans for a successful practice. Pick and choose the ones that resonate with you.
#1. Use Internet Marketing For Acupuncturists
Internet marketing is cost-effective, and there are a few ways to get the most out of using the Internet for your practice.
A) Use the power of geo-targeting with Facebook. These days, Facebook can let you target prospects located in your zip code. You can also differentiate by age, gender and personal interests. This is a great way to get very specific with your audience.
B) Content is KING! Content on your acupuncture website/blog is the key to ranking higher in Google searches. Specific and unique content will lead to better rankings.
C) Write guest blog posts for other acupuncture and wellness websites/blogs. This will also help with your Google ranking. Plus you will get extra exposure to an audience you may not have been already be familiar with and you’ll look like more of an expert!
D) Make sure you use keywords on your website/blog in line with the search terms people may be searching for. For instance, let’s say you have a blog post about the latest acupuncture research for back pain. In your blog post you should reference “acupuncture,” and “back pain,” but also your city, and state. These will help you get higher rankings in search results for those keywords.
#2. Get Better At Staying In Your Patient’s Front-of-mind Awareness
Too many patients fall out of care too easily. It’s important to figure out a system to stay in front-of-mind awareness with your patients. Consistently providing patients with solid information and content about you, your clinic and how you and acupuncture can help them are ways to stay in touch.
Examples of front-of-mind awareness opportunities are print and digital newsletters, email marketing, blogging and social media updates.
Our monthly marketing system called AcuDownloads.com can give you the marketing tools to help you stay in touch with your patients more regularly.
Click here to learn more
#3. Networking
The potential behind networking with other businesses and professionals is huge.
There are many local groups and organizations that make this easy. A few places to look are:
A) BNI Chapters – These groups meet weekly and are composed of business professionals that work with, and refer to each other. BNI is much more effective than any Chamber of Commerce meeting, at least in populated areas.
B) Toastmasters International – Not only a great way for you to become comfortable and confident in speaking/presenting in public, but it’s also a great way to capture referrals. When I joined Toastmasters International I become more proficient and comfortable speaking in public, and I received patient referrals from within and outside of this group. I highly suggest getting in front of groups of people to better promote your practice through public speaking engagements. Join Toastmasters International to build your confidence.
#4. Get Specialized
Specializing is a great strategy! It sets you up as the expert in your community. I know we were trained to be general practitioners, but specializing will help you grow your practice in ways you may not have thought of.
When you specialize, you can hone your message, focus your marketing efforts and create a clear dialogue about what it is you do and how you can help people begin their journey to better health.
#5 Know Your Numbers
If you’re like most practitioners, you have no idea what your numbers are. When I talk about “numbers” I am referring to your Key Performance Indicators (KPI). When you know your KPI, you’ll be able to set goals and targets as to what you wish to achieve in the new year.
Key Performance Indicators you should be tracking in your practice are:
- New patient numbers
- Total visit numbers
- Patient visit average
- Average visit $ value
- Total patient revenue
- Outstanding debit and credit account balances
- Cancellations and no-show’s
- Number of patients who do not follow up appointments
- Marketing channel effectiveness (what worked and what didn’t)
- Cost to acquire a new patient overall and per marketing channel
- Patient visit average per channel
- Average visit value and total patient revenue per channel
If you need help planning your next steps to becoming a successful practice, I’d be more than happy to jump on a free consultation call with you. Let’s work together to figure out some of your goals for this year!
We’ll talk soon.
Jeffrey Grossman, EAMP
"A successful practice requires a plan to help get you there"