Creative Promotion and Marketing Ideas for Your Practice

I think we can all agree the way to get more new patients (or returning patients) is to promote.

The truth is, if you stay quite no one notices you. But if you systematically promote, you get noticed. I know this seems much too simple and obvious to be useful, but this is the difference between medical practitioners (and business owners) that are making it and those that aren’t.


I've heard many practice owners say that “business is slow” or the “economy was effecting the new patient flow.” While this may be the case for their practice, there were practice owners I spoke to that aren’t feeling the “slow” in business and that have plenty of new and returning patients coming in.


So, what is the difference between the practice that can't get new patients and the practice that can? Those that were doing well were using any possible means to systematically promote.

They were calling past patients and getting them back in, they were asking currently patients to refer their family and friends. They had ads where their “public” would see them; on the web, in the paper, etc. They had there names in different types of directories and handed out their cards to whoever they met, they had existing clients referring their family and friends, etc.


They were “making” the business. Driving it in on their practice.


Those that were not getting new patients or were getting less patients were not promoting (or at least not promoting enough).


In today’s economic scene you need to create new patients through promoting yourself  and your practice through any means possible.


Some of the best methods I've found for external marketing were:

• Handing out cards to people you and your practice employees meet. 
• Prospecting outside the practice for new patients.

•  Handing out cards to and information brochures to other professionals, creating a potential referral network.
  
•  Advertising in the local paper, direct mail, Groupon and internet advertising.
  
• Promoting your services through social media, such as Facebook, Linkedin and Twitter.
  
• Promotion through online social review sites, such as Yelp, Angie's List, etc.
  
• Putting on lectures and events for the community and other professionals that promote your practices services.
  
• Promoting specials.
  
• Posting a blog that provides useful information and directs people to come into the practice.

And some of the best methods I’ve found for internal marketing were: 

• Implementing referrals from existing patients. As part of this creating a monetary award to your patients (and staff) that get new patients referred to your practice.
  
• Thank you notes to patients that refer their family or friends into the practice.
  
• Calling past patients and reactivating them to come back into the practice.
  
• Writing to past clients (postal and e-mail letters) to reactivate and get them back into the practice for care.
  
• A good website that promotes your practice, stands out in searches and direct potential patients into the pracitce.
  
• A brochure and welcome letter to send to all new patients.
  
• A helpful and entertaining newsletter to send to all current and past clients.
  
• Putting on open houses and patient appreciation events.
  

Times have changed.


You have to create new patients and get past patients to return by getting your practice out there, promoting, making your practice and services known.

Market Your Practice to the Right People

One of the most important things to know in marketing is that you are trying to reach specific types of people with your marketing and not just a generalized group called “everyone.”

The area where you practice has many different, but very specific, groups of people, which makes up the population of your area. Each of these groups are different; they have their own ideas, they have their one sets of living standards, different activities and act very different one group to another. Each one of these separate groups is called a “public.” To define this further “a public is a section of the community having a particular interest or connection”.

Without understanding this you can get yourself caught up in marketing just for marketing sake. You can have all sorts of great ideas, flashy marketing pieces, spend a small fortune and not be noticed by anyone and end up starving! This is the fate of many practice (and business) owners that don't understand that there is a specific public in need of their service and that they have to locate this public and market to them.

To simplify this even further, a public is a type of audience. With this in mind you have to delineate the specific publics (audiences) you are intending to market to. For example your public may be parents of children, retirees or the health conscious business professionals.

There are a great deal of public types, but the trick is to locate and isolate the publics that will need your service and who in turn will be valuable to your practice. With that you can take your marketing efforts and focus them on specific groups, which will increase your marketing effectiveness and the the value of the dollar you invest in your marketing.

The key with your marketing plan is to always target specific types of public.

Let's Talk Promotion and Marketing for the Private Practice

Let's face it - marketing can be a pretty confusing subject!

Most people, when it comes to marketing one's business or practice, will happily turn over the marketing responsibilities to someone else in hopes that they won't have to worry about it or in hopes that the other person will do the job a heck of a lot better then they would.

Others go hog wild and do what ever comes into their heads, where it really just becomes a lot of noise and confusing messages to public. They hope that at least someone will get interested and come in to the business or practice and some money will be made as a result.

Neither has a guarantee of any success and more than likely will result in a waste of money.

The truth is - marketing is simple, once you understand some basics.

Marketing only seems confusing because some of the most basic aspects have never been defined. As a result most professionals are tossed around in the tornado of misconceptions and lack of know how.

But when you break it down it's actually quite simple. So, let's break it down:

Marketing is defined as the process used to determine what products or services may be of interest to customers and the packaging of these products and getting them into the hands of the intended customers. It is the strategy and actions to prepare the product and to get it placed in the market so it reaches the greatest amount of potential clients possible.

Promotion is publicization of a product, organization, or venture so as to increase public awareness and thus sales. It is campaigning to get a product or idea well thought of and accepted. Promotion is the activity of offering a product in such a way that it creates response and want by the intended customer base.

Dissemination is scattering widely, to spread abroad; promulgate. When we say disseminate we are talking about making widely known the value and availability of a product, activity or service. This includes many different ideas and methods such as the use of the internet, social media, letters, calls, word of mouth, news paper ads, etc.

Each word is different and have distinct meanings. They are different words that are related, but at the same time are not the same. Understanding each should give someone a greater understanding of what makes up promotion and marketing.

Marketing really covers the entire evolution of selecting and preparing what products or services you have to offer, what you will promote to your client base and how you will go about getting that done. It encompasses the color of your office walls, how your logo will look, the type of paper you use, etc. It also includes the managing of your marketing activities to see that it is resulting in increased sales and determining what you have to reinforce or get rid of.

Promotion is an aspect of your marketing. It covers the actions reaching out to your customer base and getting a response. As covered above, this could be done in the form of an ad in the paper, a flyer, a tweet, a post on your fan page. It is the act of your staff promoting your service to your clients or patients and creating response.

Dissemination is a more all encompassing term that includes the promotional actions of sending out flyers, posting tweets, having a good website and also includes the packaging of your services and products and any methods to reach your customers.

All three of these together marketing, promotion and dissemination create a complete package and create the flow of new patients, new clients or new customers that all business, medical practices or other group, depends on.

What Makes a Genius?

This is a re-print of this fantastic article for your use and enjoyment, because let's face it - we all want to be a genius!

 The worlds greatest geniuses have all had 24 personality characteristics in common and you can develop the same traits yourself.

“Most people have the mistaken idea that geniuses are born, not made”, declared clinical psychologist Dr. Alfred Barrious, founder and director of the Self-Programmed Control Center of Los Angeles and author of the book, Towards Greater Freedom and Happiness.

“But if you look at the lives of the world’s greatest geniuses like Edison, Socrates, DaVinci, Shakespeare, Einstein, you will discover they all had 24 personality characteristics in common.

“These are traits that anyone can develop. It makes no difference how old you are, how much education you have, or what you have accomplished to date. Adopting these personality characteristics enables you to operate on a genius level.”

Here are the Characteristics Dr. Barrios lists, which enable geniuses to come up with and develop new and fruitful ideas:

1. DRIVE. Geniuses have a strong desire to work hard and long. They’re willing to give all they’ve got to a project. Develop your drive by focusing on your future success, and keep going.

2. COURAGE. It takes courage to do things others consider impossible. Stop worrying about what people will think if you’re different.

3. DEVOTION TO GOALS. Geniuses know what they want and go after it. Get control of your life and schedule. Have something specific to accomplish each day.

4. KNOWLEDGE. Geniuses continually accumulate information. Never go to sleep at night without having learned at least one new thing each day. Read. And question people who know.

5. HONESTY. Geniuses are frank, forthright and honest. Take the responsibility for things that go wrong. Be willing to admit, ‘I goofed’, and learn from your mistakes.

6. OPTIMISM. Geniuses never doubt they will succeed. Deliberately focus your mind on something good coming up.

7. ABILITY TO JUDGE. Try to understand the facts of a situation before you judge. Evaluate things on an opened minded, unprejudiced basis and be willing to change your mind.

8. ENTHUSIASM. Geniuses are so excited about what they are doing, it encourages others to cooperate with them. Really believe that things will turn out well. Don’t hold back.

9. WILLINGNESS TO TAKE CHANCES. Overcome your fear of failure. You won’t be afraid to take chances once you realize you can learn from your mistakes.

10. DYNAMIC ENERGY. Don’t sit on your butt waiting for something good to happen. Be determined to make it happen.

11. ENTERPRISE. Geniuses are opportunity seekers. Be willing to take on jobs others won’t touch. Never be afraid to try the unknown.

12. PERSUASION. Geniuses know how to motivate people to help them get ahead. You’ll find it easy to be persuasive if you believe in what you’re doing.

13. OUTGOINGNESS. I’ve found geniuses able to make friends easily and be easy on their friends. Be a ‘booster’ not somebody who puts others down. That attitude will win you many valuable friends.

14. ABILITY TO COMMUNICATE. Geniuses are able to effectively get their ideas across to others. Take every opportunity to explain your ideas to others.

15. PATIENCE. Be patient with others most of the time, but always be impatient with your self. Expect far more of yourself than others.

16. PERCEPTION. Geniuses have their mental radar working full time. Think more of others’ needs and wants than you do of your own.

17. PERFECTIONISM. Geniuses cannot tolerate mediocrity, particularly in themselves. Never be easily satisfied with your self. Always strive to do better.

18. SENSE OF HUMOR. Be willing to laugh at your own expense. Don’t take offense when the joke is on you.

19. VERSATILITY. The more things you learn to accomplish, the more confidence you will develop. Don’t shy away from new endeavors.

20. ADAPTABILITY. Being flexible enables you to adapt to changing circumstances readily. Resist doing things the same old way. Be willing to consider new options.

21. CURIOSITY. An inquisitive, curious mind will help you seek out new information. Don’t be afraid to admit you don’t know it all. Always ask questions about things you don’t understand.

22. INDIVIDUALISM. Do things the way you think they should be done, without fearing somebody’s disapproval.

23. IDEALISM. Keep your feet on the ground – but have your head in the clouds. Strive to achieve great things, not just for yourself, but for the better of mankind.

24. IMAGINATION. Geniuses know how to think in new combinations, see things from a different perspective, than anyone else. Unclutter your mental environment to develop this type of imagination. Give yourself time each day to daydream, to fantasize, to drift into a dreamy inner life the way you did as a child.

1980 National Enquirer/Transworld Features

Get Out There and Get More Business

So you need to get your business noticed? Need to to make yourself known as the go-to guy in your field? The way to get that business is to promote!

Face it. Who remembers the quiet guy in the back of the room? I mean, you may remember he was there, but do you remember his name? Or what he did for a living? Nope. Not if you were in the front, smiling and shaking hands.

If you stay quiet no one notices you. If you promote by whatever possible way you can, you get noticed. I know this seems obvious and much too simple to be useful, but this is the difference between a business that is making it and one that isn't.

As a business consultant, I've dealt with many business owners that have said everything from “business is slow” to “their industry is dead.” At the same time, for other owners business is good, with sales increasing, etc. The difference: promotion.

Now there are many factors involved in business, but you can have the best of the best and no one would know unless you told them. First and foremost, tell everyone in any way you can about your business. And then tell them why it's the best and earn their trust that it is the best.

Take the businesses that had increasing sales: They were calling past clients and rekindling the relationship, they were calling current clients and asking for more work. They had ads on inexpensive (and expensive) trade and related websites and they had their names in different types of directories and handed out their cards to whoever they met. They had websites and could be found online. They used all possible means to promote and stand out.

They were making the business.

Any promotion is better than none at all. If you're like that quiet guy in the back of the room, at least start circulating. Your first concern is to simply start getting some kind of promotion going. From there you work out how you are going to increase the quantity and better reach your target audience. Soon enough, you'll be the life of the party.

Some simple, and often easy on the bank, promotion avenues:

• Business cards. Never get caught without one. Hand them out to everyone you meet and give them to current clients so they can refer you.
• A website. Too many small businesses lose consumers because they didn't come up in a search online.
• Cold calling. It still works.
• Blogging. Have a blog for your business and comment on others.
• Writing to past and current clients. Whether by post or e-mail, just get in touch.
• A simple, regularly sent newsletter.
• Ads in print and online.

Since you're reading this, you at least are familiar with the web and know what a blog is. You're ahead of many. Social media is all the rage, but don't all together neglect the traditional promotion tricks. Get it all going, but most importantly, just get promoting. 

You can never promote too much!

A Deeper Look at What Makes a Good Manager

In this post we’ll expand on each of these factors that make a good manager and give some examples to make it more clear how each come together.

a. Can think a job through step by step.


This is important as many managers do not take a moment to figure out each step in the sequence of a job that needs to be done. The result is a job that goes off target due to surprises and these surprises get staff in trouble. And your staff will only get burned for you so many times before they simply stop listening.

Another reason this is important is that it will give you a bird’s-eye-view of a job. This gives you time to predict and make adjustments.

Joe, a production manager, is building a house. He has a crew, the material and the finances. To get this job done successfully he looks it over and works out each step; laying the foundation, putting the frame in place, doing the plumbing, wiring, etc, doing the finish work on the outside and inside of the house, all the way to the doors opening. He would include which worker was assigned to each task and when each task had to be done in the correct sequence so the house got done in time.

b. The ability to communicate what it will take to get a job done.

Once you’ve worked out the sequence and targets of a job it’s important to let your staff know what’s coming.

Often staff is only given minimal information on targets related to each staff member. This works at times, but if you want to increase production more information is better. It gives your staff an overview of the team aspect and gets everyone of them on the same page.

It lets them know the overall plan, the sequence and the targets that they have to get done.

The key here is to be clear on the targets issued. Make it simple and easy to understand.

Taking the example above, Joe, the production manager, takes the sequence he worked out above and writes this up in tasks and assigns each task to the applicable workers. Once he has this worked out Joe hands this out so his crew knows what needs to be done.

c. Willingness to guide people.

The next point is that you have to be willing to direct and guide your staff. You have to know that your direction is correct (or is the best that you can give) and see that the targets you issue are actually followed.

As part of this you need to be interested in what your staff is doing and push them to get their targets met. Give them real time and date targets to meet. If they don’t meet the targets you need to find out why and help them come up with solutions (not solve their problems, but help them come up with the solution). Then get them to get it done.

So, now that Joe’s crew knows what needs to be done, he then works to see that each task is completed and helps to answer questions, pushes through any problems and sees that the task is actually met. Joe may find that he has to explain a task more clearly or make a crew member understand why it needs to be done by a certain time. In this way he is guiding the job through.

d. Persistence and enthusiasm on a given course.

As the manager you must instill life into each day of production. I don’t mean with pom-poms, but with a reason. You must provide the reason why they need to meet the targets you’ve set and it can’t just be “because you or management said so.” It has to be a real and valid reason, a purpose for getting the job done.

Sometimes you have to step back and look at what you’re doing and work this out. The purpose can be a production target that indicates a certain amount of growth or viability, or a specific target that will get all the staff a bonus, or get a specific aspect of production done so the next major step can be executed and what this will mean for the department, company or business.

Joe, the manager we talked about in the earlier examples, would use this on the job, stating the reason for a task, when it needs to be done and which other targets depend on it. He would say to the guy in charge of laying the foundation, “we need to get this foundation poured today so framing can start by tomorrow. This will keep us on target and we can get this house ready for the market and get us our on-time bonus.” This would keep his crew focused and working as a team.

e. Compassion and understanding for those who work for and with you.

This is a simple point, but often missed. Be caring and understanding with your staff. If they look distracted, upset or lost, take the time to find out what’s happening. It could be something simple that they need to get off their chest or something more dramatic that could affect every- thing they do.
Whatever it is, by getting them to communicate about it, they will feel better and will be less distracted.

But don’t get caught up in solving what is eating at them. Just show care, ask simple questions to get them talking and acknowledge what they say. “Ok, how can you solve it” and more than likely they’ll be able to figure it out.
For example, Sally is managing a real estate sales team and notices one of her salesman seems distracted and has had less production. She would pull him aside, for privacy, and ask him what is happening. She remains understanding and asks enough questions so her salesman feels he has said enough. Sally would let her salesman know that she understood what he said and then would ask how he thought he could deal with it. She would let him figure it out and when he was a bit more upbeat, she would get him back in the game.

f. High moral standing

As manager you have to set an example for your staff. This means being productive during work hours, not violating any of the office rules even though you can obeying laws and setting a good example in your personal conduct.

Your staff look up to you for what you expect from them. They will try to get away with whatever they see you get away with and if you set a good example they will learn from this and try to live a more ethical and productive life, which will improve their production at the office.

These are the basic steps of being a good manager. They can be learned and improved on until they are mastered and once they are mastered you will be able to do your job that much better and see the result in your department, office and/or company. And even before you master them you will see improvement around you and be encouraged about the future.

What Makes a Good Manager?

Okay, you’re the manager and you need to figure out what you’re doing as you’ve never done this before. A lot is riding on you and a lot of people are depending on how you manage.

Or maybe you’re the owner or an executive and you need to hire a manager, but can’t find the time and you are stuck with someone who doesn’t know what they’re doing. Maybe you have to get the current manager up to doing the job.

Well, the key question here is; what makes a good manager?

You already know the growth of a department, business or company is dependent upon and limited to the ability and skill of the manager, which makes answering this question that much more important.

Some could think its luck, personality, genetics, or the school one attended? There are many possibilities here and it makes your head spin. By isolating the important factors we make it possible for anyone to improve their abilities and learn how to become a good manager.

So, here are the key points that make a good manager:

a. Can think a job through step by step.
b. Has the ability to communicate what it will take to get a job done.
c. Has the willingness to guide people.
d. Has persistence and enthusiasm on a given course.
e. Possesses compassion and understanding for those who work for and with him/her..
f. Has a high moral standing.

This may not be every aspect of a good manager, but it is the basic factors. Each point is something that can be learned and drilled and once you have these down you can add to them and improve your management skills even more.

Lack of Management Skill Prevents Practice Growth

A practice is only as good as the management skills of those who are managing it.

One problem is "natural-born" managers are hard to come by.

Far too often when an owner/doctor hires someone to manage, with the "perfect" degree, that person has really only studied the theory of management, which more than likely was a study of business laws or case studies of past failed or successful practices with absolutely no practical experience included (or, if you’re lucky, minimal experience).

Or, a person decides to break out on his own and manage a his or her own practice and yet lacks the actual management skills to take it beyond the dream stage or only up to the struggling stage, he finds that he can't breakthrough some invisible barriers.

This can be seen in the management of many different fields of medicine, such as dental, general medicine, optometry, veterinarian, specialized fields of medicine, chiropractic, and many others areas. The problem is their schooling didn’t provide the training they would need to start and actually run, operate and expand a private practice. The problem here is they don't generally realize this until they are up to their eye balls in lack of viable revenue and threatened with failure.

This can only last for so long, before the owner/doctor decides to throw in the towel.

Actually, this is the reason small and medium sized practices fail and is the cause of a great deal of heartache, broken families and failed dreams.

It really doesn't matter how much you want it, how pure of heart you are, the amount of money you have to pour into it, etc, etc.

It all boils down to one thing: MANAGEMENT SKILL.

The good news is that one can learn management skills if one realizes that management is a science all to itself and one is willing to work hard to learn it and then works hard to establish a good management structure for ones practice.