"Medical Practice Marketing News"
  Incendiary marketing at its best. 

  Oct. 2008  No. 101
www.MarketingAMedicalPractice.com

Your Medical Practice Marketing News

"What are your plans for overcoming the next level of medical fee
restrictions and further reduction of your practice income?"

"Once difficult, now easy."
www.marketingamedicalpractice.com
 
Oct. 2008 No. 101

Upcoming Article Titles:
1. So What.....why market my practice?
2. Advertising....a wart on the marketing finger.
3. I know.....you just don't have the time.
4. For the do-it-myself doctors.
5. Is the return on investment acceptable?
6. Marketing soup for the soul.
7. Are you at Level 3 yet?
8. Sacrifices that make you wealthy.
9. Satisfied with mediocre practice status?
10. Find the holy ground for medical practice

The more you keep reading this information and understand just how valuable it is to your practice and dreams, the more you think about implementing this important income producing process, and enjoying all the benefits it brings to every physician who recognizes this as a
wake-up call.

Marketing Strategies Mindset:

Marketing principles are applicable to any business.....even medical practice. Most physicians and you understand that and is exactly why you're reading this now. Usually doctors in practice are involved in one kind of promotion or another.

Intermittent attempts at building a medical practice when you have time just doesn't cut it. It has to be planned, persistent and ongoing for the duration of your practice years. Let me give you several marketing strategies that are matched to medical practice.

1. Direct Mail Marketing:

One of the oldest and yet still is a reliable and effective method of marketing. You simply send your patients mail to their home addresses through the regular mail. Whether you send them reminders of their upcoming appointments, dates of scheduled surgical procedures, annual appointment reminders, or lab test results, the reason for doing it must be in the form of necessary information or instruction. We all have done such things.

However, what is sent and how its content impacts on the patient is
where most medical practices miss one of the greatest opportunities
for marketing (building) their practices. You see, it's not just
pumping out the information you have to send them.

It's the perfect opportunity to build a relationship with your
patient that most doctors neglect. Of all the other doctors your
patient sees during the process of their healthcare, who do you
think he or she will remember first?

Is it the doctor who takes a few seconds to scratch a personal note in the mail to them, the one who sends them a birthday, thanksgiving, or Christmas card every year, or the one who never does such a thing?

What do you think your patient says to her friends in conversation
about you? "My doctor sends me a birthday and thanksgiving card
every year." Do you think her friends might be impressed at the
quality and kindness of such a doctor?

Do you think it may be something her friend's doctors never do? And when it comes to changing to a different doctor, who will they go to first?

Classic Rule of Marketing: Do what others are not doing!

Direct mail includes the use of postcards, announcements,
educational materials, and even asking your patients to refer other
patients to your practice. Whoa! Would you be revealing something
bad about your practice to ask patients for referrals--like you are
struggling to get by? Absolutely not.

You would be pleasantly surprised at how much marketing your
patients can do for your practice. First, it's an honor for a
patient to be able to help their doctor. They have very few
chances to do that.

It's a marketing tactic called the Law of Reciprocity. Kevin Hogan, a guru of persuasion, says in his book "The Science of Influence," reciprocity creates a debt in a very subtle way. Give away something of perceived value to someone, and others will feel compelled to
do likewise.

2. Media Marketing:

Radio interviews, filmed TV infomercials, podcasting, and press releases are a few of the methods used in increasing amounts today. Email marketing is particularly fitted to medical practice.

Doctors have the names and addresses (marketing lists) of all their patients. Of course, you are required by law to get their permission to send them an email......shouldn't be too hard to do.

What doctor's do you know have a dedicated phone line that patients
can call in and listen to a recording about medical or health
information? TV commercials by doctors is another profound method
to become known and respected.

The perception is that if you are that great to have been selected to be on TV, you must be an expert on the topic being discussed and probably much more.

Podcasting is an easy inexpensive way to communicate with patients.
Record your message, upload it to the Internet, and tell your
patients the link or address they can "click on" using their
computer to hear it whenever they choose.

3. Social Marketing:

Some doctors take time to give informative
lectures to local clubs, churches, businesses, societies, and
medical assistant groups. It's a pleasant way to gain respect,
confidence, trust, and popularity in your community. Not only are
you doing a great community service for free, but also your
prestige moves up 3 levels above doctors who can't find
time to do it.

Appearing at charity events as a sponsor or contributor places you
out in front. Participating in community events of any kind
exposes you to potential new patients. Showing your personal
caring and your human side, is incredibly powerful.

4. Information Marketing:

Any physician who writes a book is considered or perceived to be an expert---at least on that book topic. Writing articles for the local newspaper or other print media spreads your name and knowledge to those who are looking for top doctors.

If you don't feel you have the ability to write well,
go to http://www.elance.com/ and ask one of their members to
write them for you and with your name on it as well---like a 3 page
article for 10 to 20 dollars.

5. Wag The Dog Marketing: 

Grab the tail of any marketing ideas you believe might build your practice and increase your income and go for it. Any second a new idea
can pop up.

Some ideas might be:

--free informational handouts of some kind to patients each week.

--free pens with your name on them at the front checkout counter.

--hold a patient appreciation day, picnic, party---once a year.

--survey your patients to find out what their medical needs and
  wants are.

--advise your patients about what you learned at the medical
   meetings that's new.

--announce to patients changes in your practice functions and focus
   of your care.

--send a personal note to every patient you discharge from the
   hospital that week.

--ask busy doctors to send you their overflow of patients.

--send gift to the office staff of doctors who refer patients to
   you...for every patient.

--remember to thank any nurse in the hospital that refers patients
   to you.

--present a new congenial kind attitude towards everyone....
   be humble.

6. Yes, there are many more marketing strategies
and tactics.

Implementation Styles:

1. Barrage---use every marketing strategy at once.
2. Coupling---use two or more groups at a time.
3. Testing--use one strategy at a time and see how it works.
4. Intermittent--switching strategies off and on.

Assignment Choices:
1. Personal responsibility.
2. Office Manager responsibility.
3. Marketing Professional responsibility.
4. Mixed responsibilities.

Marketing Resources and Recommendations:

Books:

1. "No B.S. Direct Marketing" by Dan Kennedy---I believe is the
best book ever written about direct marketing. The chapter
concerning professional practices on page 89 will open your eyes to
the special problems professionals face while building their
practices and what to do about it.

2. "The 12 factors of Business Success" by Kevin Hogan, Dave
Lakhani, and Mollie Marti---reveals the factors which help take the
best to the pinnacle of their professions---guides you to discover
and develop your strengths, understand your weaknesses, leverage
your strengths, make the decisions that lead to business success
all of which are principles that are universal in the business
world.

3. "The New Psycho-Cybernetics" by Maxwell Maltz, M.D.,
F.I.C.S.---the original science of self-improvement and success.
The contents lead you through the dynamics of personality and
thought habits that hinder your power to improve and enable you to
restructure your focus into the "winning feeling" in life.

Marketing Tutorials for Professionals:

1. Dr. Roger Bailey provides a practical marketing program designed
for professionals which is affordable and can be done in your easy
chair while watching the computer screen.........Click here:

2. Ian Traynor, the white haired expert, offers a unique marketing
course for professionals starting from the ground floor up, is
reasonable cost to you, and since I know him well I have to
compliment his teaching talent and ability........Take a look here:

Advanced Marketing Strategies:

1. "How To Persuade People Who Don't Want To Be Persuaded" by Joel Bauer and Mark Levy---and if you have never run into this problem
with patients more than once in your medical practice, I'd be
very surprised.

2. "The Psychology of Persuasion" by Robert Cialdini, Ph.D.
---this classic book has never been equaled because the research
meant to study human behavior patterns resulted in the greatest
basis for marketing success ever published.

3. "Covert Persuasion" by Kevin Hogan and James Speakman---actually
expands on tactics you use around every single patient you see to
make them trust you and want to follow your advise.

Marketing Tips:

1. Do what no other doctors are doing to make your practice
stand out.

2. Marketing is the comprehensive process of designing and using a
series of proven tactics to influence people to buy something or
consider the need for something.

3. The language of marketing is composed of power words that
emotionally attract people's attention and call on them to
take action.

4. The marketing world, since the establishment of the Internet,
functions around the customer's wants and needs by supplying them
with what they are willing to buy--not on what you want them to buy.


Sidebars-Comments:

Under construction notice:

First: Please be aware that I am presently working on a "medical
practice marketing kit" for physicians. The focus will be
primarily for physicians in solo medical practice who have never
done any kind of intentional marketing of their practices.

Content......
will include a workbook, detailed instructions of how to get
started with each appropriate marketing strategy, implementation
ideas, references to supplement marketing tactics, and other
helpful choice information.

Second: "How To Market Your Medical Practice Yourself" is a book I
am writing which will be available in a couple months. I am almost
too compulsive in my writing process, trying to include about
everything I can think of, which means I take longer to whittle
down the useless jabber, get rid of sentences that say nothing
about the topic, and delete my extraneous biases.

I'm not sure..........
whether I will have it published in hard or soft cover or just
allow digital download of it from your computer. I expect it to be
300 pages or so in 10 or 12 pt. font with images and charts, as
well as my usual humor.

If you have a desire to contribute to my efforts----email me!
********

"The trick is to make sure you don't die waiting for prosperity to
come." Lee Iacocca

"Nobody cares how much you know, until they know how much
you care." Teddy Roosevelt

*********

Curtis Graham, M.D., FACOG, FACS
CEO-Owner: L - C Internet Enterprises, Inc.
2404 Mason Ave.
Las Vegas, NV 89102

Email = cgmdrx@gmail.com
Business Phone = 702-258-0415 (voice mail)
Fax = 702-258-0415

P.S. Please feel free to give me constructive feedback on my
newsletter. I'm particularly interested in what you really want or
need to know related to improving your medical practice income.

You certainly should subscribe to marketing newsletters with many
points of view. At present, I'm unaware of any other physician
publishing a marketing newsletter directed at physicians.

My expertise at marketing doesn't mean I know everything about
marketing, but I assure you I do know marketing strategies and
tactics that always make a difference to you (physicians) who need
an ally to boost your incomes consistently with a minor investment
of cost and time.

If you have already had experience with the NON-physician marketers
who don't understand the mindset of physicians, and charge
outrageous fees most doctors can't afford, then you will understand
there must be a better and easier way that I can show you.

If you know how to attract high quality patients, you won't have to
increase your patient load so much you never get home before 8:00
PM every day.

If you know how to avoid short-changing your patients with quickie
office visits, attending only one medical
problem on each visit so they come back multiple times to get the
rest taken care of, and know how to become the preferred doctor in
town and among your peers, then you'll see your income
increasing rapidly.

To see where my heart is, take a look at my websites and judge
for yourself.

http://www.MarketingAMedicalPractice.com
http://www.Healthcare-Toolbox.com
http://www.Hushed-UpWeightLossSecrets.com
http://www.HealthcareSecretsRevealed-Finally.com
http://www.Online-HomeBasedBusiness.com
 

Disclaimers-Policies / Links Page