“How to Recruit Your Patients Into Marketing
Your Medical Practice For You Without Them Even Knowing”
By Curt Graham
You already do it without knowing it--every day in your
office. The way you interact with your
patients defines the extent to which your
patients will be willing to go for your
benefit. If you don’t like the car salesman,
it’s highly probable you won’t buy the car.
This doctor patient interaction I discussed in
my last newsletter with regards to maintaining
patient loyalty to your medical practice.
Certainly, implementing tactics you find that
keep patients returning to you for their
medical care is a foundation stone to what we
are diving into today.
Right now! Today! You're reborn into the marketing
mind-set. Why? Because you’ll soon realize
that what you will read below is, without a
doubt, the most powerful force in
marketing---called network marketing. It’s
applicable to what’s commonly called the
spread of information by word of mouth, the
community grapevine, gossiping, conversational
mix, and interactive chat, among others.
In order to understand how to entice your patients into
marketing (promoting you to others) your
practice for you, you have to dig a little
deeper into your patient’s emotional
triggers.
By implementing strategies which psychologists
have long written about, you will be in a
position to give life to your new,
unsuspecting, partners in the marketing
process. I have no intention here to give you
the idea that deliberately coercing patients
to do what you want, like using the hypnotic
process, is either desirable or ethical. It
isn’t.
What I am implying, is for you to use strategies of
natural persuasion that Dave Lakhani describes
in his book, “Persuasion: The Art Of
Getting What You Want.”
Following our own reactions to a natural
stimulus usually of a social nature--gesture,
comment, situation, suggestion, or implied
meaning—is an effective, highly productive,
means of creating a subconscious obligation to
respond in a favorable manner.
When a friend invites you over for dinner,
don’t you secretly sense a strong desire to
reciprocate? When you are presented with a
very nice gift on a special occasion, do you
think about how to repay them for their unique
generosity?
Marketing Strategies that work time
after time:
-
Gifting: The
unexpected gift.
-
Recognition:
Every human seeks this.
-
Reciprocity:
Desire to pay back a good deed.
-
Familiarity:
Close identity with a common interest.
-
Over-delivering:
Doing more than you need to in order
to create obligation.
-
Storytelling:
Connecting with people who have had a
similar experience.
-
Exclusivity:
No one else does what you do.
These are a few of
the ways you can quickly and easily create a
voluntary obligation in patients to jump right
in to assist you even when you haven’t
outright asked them to do so.
The other side of the coin is to outright ask
them for a favor. It works extraordinarily
well when the person has already had an
experience (other than good medical treatment
and care) around you, like the seven factors
listed above which moves them into a position
of
saying yes.
Mind you, either
directly asking your patients to spread the
word about what a great doctor you are, or
making that fact so obvious to the patient
because of experiencing those unique qualities
of yours, they spread the word without your
direct request.
The latter strategy is by far the most
profitable to you. That’s because when a
direct request for a favor is made, the
immediate impression is that your practice is
not doing so well. You can dispel that by
always giving a sensible and credible reason
for asking for the favor.
“Would you mind
referring your family or friends to my
practice, or mention my services to the people
in your office? I’m trying to increase my
practice in order to have the income to fund
my kid’s education.” It’s clear, quite
credible, and something one can easily relate
to themselves.
How do you make all
this happen in a practical sense?
1. Recognition:
Everyone responds to being recognized, be it
in big ways or small ways. I know that
marketers and business owners can increase
their incomes 200+% by obtaining their clients
birthday dates and sending every one of them a
nice birthday card, hand addressed and signed,
with a real stamp on it.
You have that data in the patient’s medical
records, so why not use it. You can bet that
there isn’t one physician in a thousand that
does this---you would be going one step more
for your patients than anyone
else does.
Do you believe your patient would be
surprised—and maybe even remember she’s due
for her annual checkup, or, at least, their
doctor is thinking about them. Think of a few
other ways you might be able to do this.
Collect their email addresses when they come
in, on the new patient form, or patient update
info form, and email them a digital birthday
card, or Thanksgiving, or Valentines, or
Easter, or Halloween cards.
Another very creative marketing tactic I ran
into recently beats them all. The business
owner, whenever he discovered that one of his
customers had done something worthwhile, or
participated in a sponsored event, or
volunteered with some organization or
charitable event, created a complimentary
short article about what his patient had
done. A photo of the customer (client) was
included
when possible.
Taking this idea into a physician’s office,
think of the effect it would have on your
patients ego and self esteem, not to mention
your other patients who read this in your
office handout, on your office bulletin board,
or in your newsletter you send out to
subscribers. Any good deed needs a pat on the
back……right?
2. Gifting:
Don was a much respected physician in my area
of practice. Once or twice a year he invited
all his patients (and their babies/children)
who conceived by In-Vitro fertilization since
he had begun his practice in town to a catered
party lasting all day---and all free.
Although he never would tell me what it cost
him to do this, it was quite clear his
practice was growing by leaps and bounds
continually. The word spread, he got all the
referrals.
Other methods of showing your thanks to your
patients could be something as simple as
having a bowl of free goodies at the checkout
counter in your office, or every once in a
while doing the same thing with a bowl of
key-rings, or pens, or whatever—of course they
all would have your name address and phone
number printed on
them…….right?
Those kinds of things send a message of thanks
to your patients even though they are cheap
and unessential. Holidays are a great time to
give out freebies pertinent to that holiday
tradition. How many doctors’ offices have you
been in where you noticed this being done?
OK, I know, pediatricians are way ahead of us
on that.
Another especially effective tactic using
direct mail (USPS) is to send your patients on
occasion---holiday, significant event, or any
other event you create for sending it---a
lumpy piece of mail. Lumpy mail
always gets opened because curiosity can’t be
beaten down when one needs to satisfy the urge
about what the heck is in that envelope.
By including something that is useful in that
mailing (inexpensive gift), in that envelope,
along with your special deal you might be
offering your patients, or segment of your
patient population (like..for men only) will
undoubtedly get responses.
You might include a coupon for a free office
visit or free medical procedure you perform,
if they refer one or more other patients to
your office. And follow up with a nice
personal thank you note for referring those
people. Keep brainstorming this idea.
3. Reciprocity:
Whenever does something special for you,
especially if it wasn’t expected, it generates
the desire to pay them back. It’s a human
social instinct which happens often without
thinking.
For example, as noted above, sending a
birthday card to a patient of yours when he
hasn’t been in for a checkup for a long while
shows your thoughtfulness and respect for them
when you have no medical reason to do so.
But, there is a reason you would do this.
It’s a very subtle way of saying, “You
remember me? I remember you and wish you the
best. And, while you are thinking about that,
remember you are due for your next
appointment---call for an appointment. You
see how respectful I treat you, so it’s time
you repay the favor.” It works!
4. Over-delivering:
The act of providing services that go well
beyond the ordinary and expected services is a
quite noticeable aspect of any business.
The fact that a person or business takes the
extra time to provide services, usually free,
beyond the verbal commitment agreed upon or
expected, and has a habit of doing so every
time you deal with that person or doctor, it
becomes a bond between the business (medical
office) and the customer (patient) that only
occurs when this
action happens.
Finding anyone today in any business who actually
over-delivers on their time, services, or
products is a rarity.
Have you ever personally called up your
patient 7 days after they left the hospital to
find out how they were doing?
If that happens, it commonly is delegated to
the office staff who are the least capable of
determining what constitutes a dangerous
symptom, problem, or complication as well as
being the least aware of what happened to the
patient in the hospital which could become a
problem when they get home.
I recently consulted on a medical malpractice
case involving the death of a post op
patient. A week after an uncomplicated
abdominal hysterectomy for myomas the patient
called the doctor’s office explaining her
difficulty breathing, was told to continue her
allergy meds, get rest, and call back the
office or go to the emergency room of the
hospital if it got worse.
It was assumed she was anxious and the symptom
was simply a part of her asthma type
symptoms. She expired of an acute pulmonary
embolus on the way to the hospital the next
day. If the doctor had been on the phone
the first time, do you think the doctor would
have picked up on the real danger?
Speaking directly with your patients a week after
hospitalizations is something most physicians
don’t do, unfortunately. If you do that as a
standard of your care, you are
over-delivering.
Publish a medical newsletter, handouts that
you wrote, reminders of appointments that are
due, helping patients with bus schedules or
transportation problems, walking disabled
patients out to their car to prevent muggings
and falls, calling to remind patients of their
appointment dates and times, answering the
phone on the second ring always, all are small
ways of over-delivering for your patients.
Each one adds up!
5. Familiarity
and Storytelling:
In the higher successful levels of marketing
circles personalizing your communications with
customers is one of the most dependable means
of developing trust among your clients
(patients). That’s easily done by treating
your patients like a long lost friend. Be
transparent. Tell patients what’s happened to
you in your life so they can relate to similar
happenings
in their own.
Patients understand doctors have lots of
stress and accept the fact that sometimes you
treat them gruffly. They are willing to
overlook the issue, but only if you tell them
a reason for it. Robert Cialdini, PhD., has
documented in his research and book,
“Influence: The psychology of Persuasion,”
how critical it is to persuasion tactics, to
present a “because……” reason.
When you share your life with your
patients, it creates a much more intimate
rapport and trust.
6. Exclusivity:
When patients learn that you provide services
in your practice that other doctors in the
community don’t, you elevate your reputation
not only among your peers but also among your
patients. Your expertise, knowledge, and
practice are perceived as top quality. You
can add another chevron to your sleeve.
Among patients of yours, bragging about how
great a doctor they have is common. Other
doctor’s patients hear what you do and how you
treat your patients, and will switch their
care to you whenever a disruption occurs in
the office of the doctor they are seeing
at the time.
Patients love to be a patient of the best
doctor in town.
With each of these
factors, among others, you create your own
publicity in a devious but effective way.
Everyone wins without costing you much money
or time in the process.
If you prefer to
directly ask your patients for help or
referrals, make very sure you follow it with
one of those, “because………..” explanations. In
addition, be sure you personally thank them
for each referral they send to you—preferably
in handwriting.
Always let all your
patients know when you have completed training
courses, educational seminars, or special
events. Tell them what new treatments or
procedures you can perform for them if needed
as a result of the new expertise you’ve
attained. They are elated to know you are
keeping on the cutting edge of your
profession.
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Word Count =
2182
Keywords =
marketing, marketing strategies, marketing
tactics, persuasion tactics, medical
newsletter, medical malpractice, medical
procedure, newsletters, network marketing,
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