Economic Effects on Healthcare Practices

Features Your Website Should Have to Attract More Customers and Extend their Visit Time

2010-09-09T14:07:00.000-07:00

Features Your Website Should Have to Attract More Customers and Extend their Visit Time

To bring in new Customers, build your reputation and enhance your revenue, your business website should:

1. Be informative, with useful information on topics relating to your specialty: A new treatment or a health alert that’s making news, for example. Inform people and they’ll be grateful; they’ll want to buy from you.
2. Be frequently updated. New information gives visitors a reason to come back to your site, and makes your site come up higher in search results. In other words, content changes are good!
3. Be interactive. Give visitors something to do. An ophthalmologist’s site might ask: “Is LASIK right for you? Take this 30-second test to find out!” This subtly encourages visitors to commit to you and your practice, making them more likely to call and make an appointment.
4. Home Page Video. Some research suggests that the average time spent on a site during a typical search is 3-5 seconds. And since 30 billion videos are watched on-line each month (an avg of 27 min per day) consumers are more readily retained when a video is readily available for viewing. I suggest a 60 or 90 second custom video placed on your home page that touts your brand and your capabilities
5. Back links. Maintain active social sites such as Facebook™, Twitter™, LinkedIn™ that are readily accessed with icons on your home page. Linking these sites to your website can assist with optimization
6. Blogs. Crawlers recognize and rank Blogs as valuable because they still see them as educational. Host a Blog, update it on a monthly basis and link it into your website with a homepage “button” so customers can learn more about your capabilities
7. If you want to have an “offer” listed on your site avoid words such as “free”. These words look “salesy” [sic] and could cause a crawler to over-look your site.

Simply stick to the tips above and your website will begin to work more effectively 24/7 to help you attract more Customers, build an outstanding reputation, and enhance your bottom line.

Take advantage of nontraditional marketing media.

2010-08-16T09:46:00.000-07:00

Not long ago, traditional media such as Yellow Pages ads and print collateral were mainstays of the healthcare marketing mix. Not so today. Today, it's about having the right mix of traditional and e-media marketing strategies to achieve your objectives...

Identify the right strategies to reach your target audience

There may always be a need for printed materials such as practice capabilities brochures and patient information sheets. In some small, rural markets across America and in certain health specialties, there is still a place for Yellow Pages ads, too. There are still places in America where people don't own or use computers. But the greatest potential for new marketing opportunities today is on the Internet.

Over 110 million Americans routinely search the Internet for all kinds of health information, services and support. To reach your share of this enormous audience, you need an effective Internet presence. Your first basic necessity is a well developed and designed functional website that communicates your unique brand, benefits and services to healthcare consumers. Your website should be easy to navigate, easy to use, easy on the eyes and sufficiently interactive to engage visitors.

Your second basic necessity is Search Engine Optimization (SEO). Without good SEO, your website will languish in obscurity, unnoticed by the people you most want to reach. Invest in good SEO and your rewards will be worth every penny.

Beyond your basic online marketing necessities

Once you have an effective website and good SEO, you should consider tactics that will make your site "sticky" or hard to leave. Offer visitors some variety with an interactive e-brochure they can marvel at and download, an e-video (think YouTube) they can learn from or a blog they can add their own comments to. Add social networking links and more interactivity through FaceBook, YouTube and Twitter.

Put Your Website On Top of the List

2010-06-29T13:10:00.000-07:00

Your Website On Top of the List

If you are investing in a website, you owe it to yourself to get your ROI by optimizing your practice website for top positioning in the search engines. Search engine optimization (SEO) structures your web pages so that your site will appear high on the search engine results page (SERP) every time a prospective patient makes a query.

Search engines like Google®, Yahoo!®, Bing™ or MSN®, crawl and index billions of web pages every day to return relevant data to their search patrons. And your website could have "walls" and "bumps" that prevent search engines from finding your website at all.

Only 8% of search engine users review more than the first three pages prior to clicking on a result. Don't get buried deep or remain invisible on the web. Get professional help to have your Internet presence known.

Once your website is optimized for search engines, your practice will enjoy a level of web presence that will work to generate a steady stream of patients for you.

How Do You Do It?

Web Analysis

Get a grip on how your website is working
Are there any indexing barriers in your site architecture?
Keywords are critical. Are you using relevant keywords in the right places?
Though popularity may signify relevancy, high-traffic phrases do not always mean competitive results.

How is the competition doing for certain keywords? Sponsored links?
What is your search engine ranking in relation to competitors?
Is your site link-worthy?
Do you have valuable, original content?

On Page Optimization

Making your web page search engine-attractive
No repetitive keywords or high-density phrases but key placement of nicherelated, practice-relevant targeted keywords.
Title tags and meta descriptions unique for every page, for maximum page relevance and click-through rates. And keyword branding!
Best possible experience on user navigation – easy, intuitive and functional onsite links.
Keyword-appropriate, relevant and unique content – that quality websites will want to link to and users return for more – the key to long-term first-page ranking in search engines.
SEO coding up to par with web services validation standards, ensuring quality display and function.
Robot.txt optimization that protects confidential information in your system's database – such as your EMR – and keeps it out of reach of search engines.

Off Page Optimization

Getting your site web-wide attention
We manually submit your website directly to top search engines, high-PageRank directories and traditional marketing channels.
We launch a link popularity campaign with related industry/practice websites and reputable domains. Quality inbound links are votes for your PageRank score, increasing link reputation and authority as an information source – leading to high placement and traffic!
We leave no medium unfarmed, we syndicate content with social networking sites, online forums and blogs, we advertise with web classifieds, and we give online press releases.
Localization

Putting you in front of your prospects anywhere, anytime
Beat the neighborhood competition for Internet visibility. Make your practice virtually "physically" visible at the same time your target user is searching for your services.

Optimizing your site with local map directories can make your practice easily findable by your local community. Google's intuitive capabilities let you appear in the local search results with a visual guide to your practice location. Now you can target your ads to appear only to a specific location, region or town, allowing direct, fast marketing impact on your target market.

Performance Tracking
and Reporting
Track results
Consistent placement requires relentless analysis of performance indicators in your website. Success metrics help you make SEO adjustments and future marketing decisions.

Keywords, visitor profiles, appointments, sign-ups, page traffic and search engine and URL/domain referrals tracking helps you determine what are generating interest from users and capturing the attention of your target audience.

We track performance of your website from lead generation to patient conversion – helping you get the biggest bang for your marketing buck.

Practice Builders offers proven strategies developed through working with more than 15,000 clients.

How the Right EMR System Can Save Your Practice Money and Time

2010-02-15T12:50:00.000-08:00

Though EMR costs can vary greatly, most practitioners believe that reputable EMR systems will pay for themselves over time and lead to increased revenues. Still, many physicians worry about the time it will take to recoup their initial investments. Here are some things to look for when considering an EMR system for your practice:

EMR can improve your office’s efficiency

EMR makes charting faster and easier. A comprehensive EMR system’s functionality should include appointment setting, billing links, coding tools, chart evaluation, email and messaging, patient tracking, reporting, template management and more, all in one fully integrated system. Even though an EMR investment can be costly, over time this investment will result in greater savings for both clinicians and health insurance companies. Remember that EMR also saves physical space. Instead of big, thick paper files cluttering the walls and shelves of your office, all patient data is easily accessible by computer.

EMR can increase your profits

EMR should eliminate the high costs of medical transcription fees, saving you thousands of dollars. Good EMR software should improve your office productivity through easier access to patient information and improved workflow. EMR should enable you to support your billing and claims processing with complete, accurate documentation. A more efficient office enables you to see more patients, thanks to easy access to patients’ medical history and easier charting.

As with Healthcare Practice Marketing EMR should also deliver a real return on your investment

With the right combination of powerful and easy-to-use features, a good EMR system will make your practice more efficient at an affordable price. Under these conditions, most practices can see a positive return on their investment within months after their initial implementation.

EMR should be supportive, easy to use and flexible

The right EMR system should support today’s latest technologies. These include wireless networking, voice and handwriting recognition, remote access and running on commonly available computer platforms such as Windows®, Mac®, Linux® and other networks. The right EMR system should also mesh well with other EMR systems to facilitate the fast, accurate exchange of information between practices, hospitals, imaging centers and labs.

With the right computer system and EMR software, you can make your practice more efficient and see a continuous return on your investment.

The Ultimate Power of Branding and Marketing

2009-12-17T14:17:00.000-08:00

How does an inferior product succeed in the marketplace while a superior product falters or fails? Why are consumers willing to spend 50% more for a product that is essentially the same as its competitor or buy services that are inferior to others?

The answer lies in...

...the power of branding and marketing. Marketing and branding affect every industry, including healthcare and medicine. But the easiest way to understand the true power of branding and marketing is to look at another industry you are familiar with – consumer electronics.

Inferior product wins through superior marketing

In the 1980’s, there was a battle between VHS and Beta videotapes. Though most video experts claimed that Beta (Sony Corp.) was the superior format (with the added advantage of having more compact, space-saving tapes), VHS captured the lion’s share of sales and a sizable lead in market share. VHS won the battle for consumer dollars. Ultimately, Beta format, which held the advantage in the professional videography market, disappeared completely from the consumer market. Marketing helped VHS, an inferior product, win out over its superior rival.

The point is that less qualified healthcare practitioners can beat more qualified practitioners by doing a better job of marketing. Quality does not automatically guarantee results.

Higher-priced product knocks off low-priced rivals with marketing
Two more recent examples are Apple’s iPod and iPhone. Both products have numerous competitors. Both cost substantially more than most of their competition, yet both sell more, too.

iPods cost, on average, 50% more than other hand-held MP3 players. Yet, iPod is, far and away, the most dominant player in the hand-held MP3 sector, with a whopping 76% market share. The next closest competitor is Sony, with an 8% market share. So why are consumers willing to cough up 50% more for essentially the same product? Apple’s brilliantly hip marketing machine has created a perception of quality and lifestyle enhancement that’s hard for consumers to resist. In 2008, iPhone sales rose 245% worldwide, despite its much higher cost than competitor smart phones from Nokia (the world’s current #1 cell phone brand) and RIM Technologies (maker of #2 Blackberry).

The point is that marketing can make a huge difference in the success of any organization, regardless of pricing or quality. As a healthcare practitioner, you likely have many competitors within your specialty or subspecialty. What are you doing to grab market share (expressed in terms of new patients, referral sources and revenues) from them? If you do nothing, you will lose in the end. If, on the other hand, you market smartly and strategically, you can still grow your practice and enjoy long-term success regardless of pricing or similarities to competitors.

How to Avoid the Five Most Common Marketing Writing Mistakes

2009-11-19T08:50:00.000-08:00

Even if you have partnered with America’s leading healthcare marketing company, there may be times when you have to write a letter or a promotional piece without professional assistance. To help you get through that process, here are five things you can do to make your own communication more effective and more likely to be accepted by your target audience:

1. “YOU” is always better than “ME” – Instead of placing too much emphasis on your practice or yourself (ME, ME, ME), focus your message on your patient or referrer (YOU, YOU, YOU). Instead of starting your message with a phrase such as, “Here at XYZ Healthcare, we…”, focus on the recipient of your message with a phrase such as, “When you need faster pain relief, you’ll find it at…”. Readers need to know that you care more about them than yourself.

2. What’s in it for the reader? – The American consumer only cares about “What’s in it for me?” Your words, therefore, should include all the benefits to the reader. Benefits such as fewer appointments, less waiting, faster pain relief, friendlier service, greater convenience and more compassion are more important than features.

3. Clinical language vs. plain language – Clinicians tend to write most healthcare materials (including instructions to patients!) at a 12th grade level. Unfortunately, most American consumers read at a 5th or 6th-grade level. Avoid medical terminology and clinical language in favor of plain English to ensure that your message is received and understood. Medical terminology, jargon and statistics may be perfectly suitable – and desirable – when communicating with other health professionals. But, when communicating with patients, plain conversational language always works best.

4. Write for your target audience (Hint: That’s not you!) – Think about the patients you want in your practice. How old are they? Are they primarily white-collar professionals or blue-collar laborers? What do they want and need from your practice? Are they well-educated or not so much? It might help to jot down a list of their characteristics before crafting your marketing message. (Also, see #3 above.)

5. Always include a call to action – Perhaps the most common mistake in marketing writing, this is one area where you can be prescriptive. Tell your potential new patient what to do next. Visit your website. Call for a complimentary consultation. Ask about your free offer.

For more advice about communicating effectively with your patients, talk to one of the marketing communications experts at Practice Builders (800.679.1262). Better still, ask us to help you with your message, even if it’s on short notice.

2009-10-27T11:04:00.000-07:00

How to Emerge Successfully from the Recession

Is your practice in a position to flourish when the economy returns to health? Your answer will depend on your marketing efforts during the downturn and the strategies you’ve put in place to help you grow and prosper during the recovery. During difficult economic times, many practices are either forced to cut their marketing budgets, or do so by conscious choice. But this puts you in a difficult position because you may lose market share or have to make up the difference as the economy improves. The important question is whether your practice will be able to prosper when the economy begins to grow again – as it ALWAYS does after a downturn. Your success will depend on your marketing tactics and strategies – what you have done during the downturn and what you have put in place to win new patients and referrers during the recovery. Your success will depend on your timing, too. Now is the time to establish your marketing plan for recovery – brand your practice, formulate strategies and tactics, make media choices and justify your investment—so you are ready to enhance your strategic marketing plan when you have more marketing funds to invest.

Keep in mind that you will not likely be able to return to your old ways of marketing. Your patients and referral sources are much more likely to look online first for new services and providers. Today, the demand for marketing accountability and measurement is stronger than ever. The days of guessing how your marketing is doing are long gone. The wisest course of action – particularly if you are less than web savvy – is to partner with a marketing firm that, in addition to traditional marketing, understands Internet marketing and the value of newer trends such as social media (Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, etc.). They can help you choose the right mix of targeted online pro¬grams to complement your traditional marketing efforts, and they offer measurability, ROI information and evidence to support their marketing choices. Enable your healthcare practice to emerge from the downturn

12 of the Biggest Mistakes in Marketing & Advertising Your Practice

2009-07-20T14:41:00.000-07:00

For the professional beginning to promote his or her practice, mistakes are a way of life. For some, they’re a costly way. But no one can afford many mistakes in a tough economy, and now it needn’t be so; Practice Builders will share some of the biggest mistakes in practice marketing with you so you can avoid them.

Even though judgments of taste and creativity are often called for in promotion, there are some absolutes — especially absolute mistakes. So to assist you in your learning curve — and to save you time and money — here are the 12 biggest mistakes in marketing and advertising your practice. Now you’ll know how to spot them and how to avoid them.

1. Promoting at the wrong time.
On a limited budget, start your promotion just prior to your busy season and end it just prior to a seasonal fall-off. Don’t spend your money promoting during dead times unless you’ve spent sufficient money promoting during the up times. It’s always less productive and costs more money.

2. Choosing the wrong office location.
The right one is in an area with an advantageous professional to population (or company) ratio. The wrong one is selected solely on the basis of where you want to live.

2b. Choosing the wrong office location (part II).
A freestanding building almost always offers better outdoor signage opportunities than a professional building does. And signage is so crucial in attracting the public that, if done well, it can produce a third of your new patients or clients.

3. Not knowing how to handle objections.
If some professionals could hear their staff members handle an objection from a caller, they might well be distraught. Then they’d surely know they’re losing big dollars because their front desk often shoots answers from the hip. Instead: Script out sample answers for each common objection — no money, no time, no interest, no need and I’ll think it over. Results: optimal answers and many more appointments.

4. Not answering price queries correctly.
When people call to ask how much, don’t just mention the price. First, explain the unique benefits of receiving the service or product from you. Then quote the price. Without explanation, your services are just like everyone else’s, so price can be the only determinant. With it, you can charge even more.

5. Not preparing a marketing plan.
Without analyzing your competition, your objection, your budget and to whom you’re directing your promotion, you’re susceptible to two potential disasters. One — being swayed by salespeople into buying poorly designed and incorrectly targeted promotions. Two — failing to consider all important variables. Both lead you to big losses and dead ends. Instead: Construct a marketing plan first.

6. Sponsoring clubs or sports teams.
If it’s not mandatory that the players come in (or are brought in by parents) for a free service so you can meet them, then recognize your sponsorship as altruism, not practice building.

7. Promoting in school yearbooks or church bulletins.
These expenditures should come out of your charitable contributions account, not your promotional budget.

8. Putting your name in your ad’s headline.
Melvin Belli and Dr. DeBakey can put their names at the top of an ad to get it read. But rarely does a practitioner have enough public recognition to have his/her name entice a browser to read. Instead: Head the ad with strong benefits for coming to you, and keep your name and logo at the bottom.

9. Writing direct mail yourself.
Direct mail is the most difficult type of promotion to create. Why? Because it requires that specific techniques be built into a piece to stimulate immediate response. Practitioners rarely have the knowledge — or the talent. Unfortunately, most copywriters aren’t familiar with them. Instead: In direct mail, it almost always pays to hire direct mail specialists. Your response rates can jump 20 times.

10. Cutting prices first.
Prices should be the last element in your marketing formula to fiddle with. Before cutting prices, promote other aspects of your practice — experience, new services, selection, hours, convenience, etc. If all else is ineffective, then play the price game.

11. Not knowing your bottom line.
If it’s to attract new patients or clients or to retain old ones, that’s the goal. If it’s to please your colleagues (or competitors), that’s a different goal. And each one produces a different kind of promotion. If a promotion is well-done, your competitors will feel threatened, as they should. If they don’t, it’s probably not well-conceived. Knowing which goal is your true bottom line from the beginning saves you money and anguish.

12. Not coding and tracking your advertising.
Without effective tracking of which ads are producing how much in what media, you can’t stop the losers and pump up the winners. So to greatly improve ad results, insert keys into your ads — false phone extensions or individual telephone lines for each specific medium. That way, you know the source as soon as they call. Asking them where they heard about you yields 30% to 50% incorrect responses.

And a bonus tip:
13. Practice brochures that don’t sell you.
Most don’t because they contain extraneous or even negative selling points, like what to do in an emergency, a warning not to miss appointments, a requirement that you pay at once, etc. Instead: Put all the rules in an inexpensive brochure to be given to existing clients or patients. Put only convincing copy in your practice brochure.

Joel Ellis
President
Practice Builders

Practice Builders' June 2009 Economic Survey

2009-07-17T13:09:00.000-07:00

Results from Practice Builders’ June 2009 Economic Survey are now available, and you will find some revealing information on how you and your fellow practitioners are weathering the current economy. Plus, you’ll find comparisons to our March 2009 and December, August and April 2008 surveys that show how the landscape has changed.
Among the results you’ll find are:

1. Continued decrease in practitioners reporting “No change” in their practice during the recession
2. What your colleagues and competitors are doing to handle the recession
3. What percentage are increasing their marketing to compete
4. How many of your colleagues and competitors are closing their practices

And more…

http://www.practicebuilders.com/news/reports/esr200906.asp

If you have any questions regarding the survey data or would like to discuss best options for your practice, please call us at 800.679.1262.

Best regards,

Joel Ellis
President
Practice Builders

New Marketing Opportunities in Online Social Networking

2009-06-18T13:19:00.000-07:00

The meteoric rise of social networking sites such as Facebook, Twitter and YouTube has created new opportunities for web-savvy marketers. But seriously, what can any of these social networking sites do for you and your healthcare practice? In order to answer that question, we must first understand how social networking sites work for the end-user. You, for example…

Since Twitter has the greatest “buzz” right now, we’ll use it as an example. Unless you have been locked in a cave for the past several months, you have, no doubt, heard the terms Twitter, tweet, tweeting and tweeple bandied about everywhere. TV news, sports and entertainment programs, radio and print media have all been telling us not only who’s tweeting whom, but what they’re saying and why it’s important for us to know about it.

How can Twitter work for you?
Twitter is basically an online community that incorporated itself in March of 2007 in San Francisco, CA. It’s a virtual “place” where people can connect, gather, stay in touch and share their thoughts and ideas about virtually anything. Though it’s called a social network, it’s already being used rather effectively as a business/professional network. Think of it as a virtual water cooler where you have 24/7 access to 15 million (and growing rapidly) potential new patients and professional referral sources – around the corner or around the world. And best of all: so far, it’s free.

Twitter, paired with special electronic sensors (which are already in final development, btw) could be used to alert doctors when a patient’s blood sugar or heart rate climbs too high. Such real-time data streams could also aid medical researchers. Doctors are already using Twitter to ask for help and share information about the latest techniques and procedures.

Twitter makes it easy for people to connect with other people. The site asks one question, “What are you doing?” Answers must be 140 characters long or less and can be sent via mobile texting, instant messaging or on the web. To begin on Twitter, you open an account as you would on any other site. Set up your username and password and once your account is open, spend some time exploring the site to see what opportunities there are for you.

Twitter, like other networking sites, works most effectively as a marketing tool when you link it back to your practice web site. Think of your website as the hub of your online marketing wheel, and Twitter as one of the spokes leading to it. Your posts on Twitter, called “tweets”, can include your web URL (address), your latest new patient offers, health tips and new service offerings. You can even tweet about openings in your daily schedule, as one med-spa we know did recently. They filled their entire schedule within a few hours of tweeting. On a long-term basis, using Twitter consistently and effectively can help drive your website up the rankings on Google.

Besides a website, what can I do to build and grow a successful cash-only medical practice?

2009-06-16T10:31:00.000-07:00

Question: I am ready to grow a cash-only medical practice in New Jersey. Besides a website, what can I do to build and grow a successful practice?

--A.J., Internal Medicine

Answer: A web site is a good starting point, but it is only a beginning.
If your true goal is to grow a cash-only or concierge “VIP”-type medical practice, then a strong valued brand is essential.

Your brand, or what marketing professional call your "Unique Value Position" or the "Why you", is critically important. This is especially true in the U.S., where patients view healthcare as a right and quite often expect to pay very little for great medical care.

Your brand is actually where you needed to start, even before developing your website. A brand or value position that is easy and simple to understand by your target audience is what should be on your web site.

A brand should differentiate you from the competition and tell simply and uniquely why you are the best choice for medical care.

In a cash-only practice, you will need to do internal marketing and have branded communication material, including brochures, a marketing bio on yourself and material that describes any and all of the services you offer.

You will want to develop a patient recognition and reward system that rewards patients who refer to you, as this is one of the least costly methods of marketing.
When it comes to external marketing, there are numerous ways to promote your practice to the general public, one of those being your website.

Most importantly, your website needs to be optimized for the key terms patients are searching for and to make sure your site appears on the first page of any web search. You may even want to employ a "Pay per Click" strategy with paid listings.
After that, it really depends on your specific goals for the growth of the practice, both in desired volume of patients and their unique demographic. These specific goals will dictate what types of direct-to-public marketing could work best in achieving your overall marketing strategy and goals.

Health Care Practitioner Survey Reveals Referral-Building Tactics

2009-06-11T10:47:00.000-07:00

Survey Reveals Referral-Building Tactics from
Nearly 400 Healthcare Practitioners

How to best generate referrals without seeming unprofessional is a key concern for healthcare professionals, according to the survey conducted in May 2009 by Practice Builders.

According a recent Practice Builders survey, which includes responses from 388 healthcare professionals in a variety of specialties, more than 37% receive greater than 41% of their new patients via referrals from other professionals. Referrals from existing patients, on the other hand, are a much smaller percentage: The majority of respondents reported that they receive only 11-20% of their referrals from existing patients.

The survey also revealed such interesting points as:
• Nearly 35% are seeing more professional referrals now than a year ago
• More than 43% are receiving more patient referrals now than a year ago
• In excess of 75% of respondents don’t identify their professional referrers by level
• And much more

The survey also revealed the most popular tactics for both patient and professional referrals, how practice representatives are compensated and how often they visit other practices, and much more.

To see how your practice compares to others and view the complete survey results, visit www.practicebuilders.com

For help developing a professional, effective referral-building program for your practice, call Practice Builders today at 800.679.1262.

Best regards,

Joel Ellis

President

Practice Builders

2009-05-28T13:31:00.000-07:00

Referrals are a vital part of growing your practice—even more so during these challenging times. Patient referrals. Professional referrals. Where do you find them, how do you get them, how do you keep them and more!

I would like to offer you an information-packed white paper all about referrals. This Practice Builders’ white paper is a valuable resource designed to help you answer some of the most critical questions in health practice marketing today… because every healthcare practice needs more referrals. Depending upon your practice type, you may need more from patients, from other practitioners or both.

After 30 years’ experience with over 15,000 practices, Practice Builders knows how to generate and retain patient and professional referrals. We’ve even developed specific marketing tools to help you achieve these goals in your own practice.

To download your free copy of “What Every Healthcare Practice Must Know About Gaining and Retaining Referrals:

http://www.ahcpublications.com/files/PBO/whitepaper.pdf

Regards,

Joel Ellis
President
Practice Builders

Train Your Staff Increase Your Practice Revenue

2009-05-19T12:15:00.000-07:00

Looking for affordable ways to increase your practice revenues? One of the most effective and least costly ways is to train the people who answer your phones and the people who represent your practice to professional referrers to better represent your practice’s unique benefits.

Practice Builders is one of the very few healthcare marketing companies to offer comprehensive staff and practice representative training programs. Our training services are among the most robust and effective in the healthcare marketing industry. Staff training is also a critical source of revenue for your practice. It’s been estimated that the average healthcare practice loses $50,000 to $55,000 every year due to lost telephone tracking and appointment-setting opportunities. Staff training addresses:

• Phone Skills Training
• Tracking New Patient Calls
• Successful Internal Marketing
• External Marketing Strategies
• Onsite Customer Service Skills
• Increasing Patient Retention
• Optimizing Use of Marketing Materials
• Understanding the Basics of HIPAA

Practice representative training programs are specifically designed for healthcare practices seeking to increase their professional referrals and build long-term referral relationships. Practice rep training includes:

• Setting Up Your Key Referrer Program
• Tracking Return On Investment (ROI)
• Tactical Planning and Implementation
• Marketing Practice to Physicians and Businesses
• Current Follow-Up to Practice Rep Training

To learn more about our real-world revenue-generating training programs, call Practice Builders today at 800.679.1200. Learn how your office staff is handling incoming phone calls and how well they are tracking each call to see if one of our training programs can help.

Sincerely,

Joel Ellis
President
Practice Builders

How to Use Public Relations to Your Marketing Advantage

2009-05-15T10:19:00.000-07:00

As the name "public relations" implies, this marketing tool includes methods and means by which an organization or individual (your practice or you) seeks to promote a favorable relationship with the public (your target audience of potential new patients and/or referral sources). Public relations (PR) methods and means may include such tactics as:

• Press releases (newsworthy announcements)
• News & feature stories
• Radio interviews
• TV appearances
• Special events (e.g. health screenings or health seminars)

What are you doing that is newsworthy?
Healthcare is among the most popular and sought-after news topics in America. Hardly a nightly TV news segment passes without some bit of health-related news being presented to viewers. These stories often cover new treatments, new medical technologies and new ways of coping with various diseases. But they also present stories about doctors, dentists and physical therapists donating their time to worthy health causes in their communities or helping sick and needy people overseas (e.g., Doctors Without Borders, etc).

Many practitioners give to their communities. Many more do pro bono work here and abroad. And all too often, the public never hears about the terrific humanitarian work being done by these hard-working, dedicated individuals.

Public relations can be more cost-effective.
Anyone with money to spend and something to sell can run an ad. And that is often the tactic you resort to when you want new patients for a particular treatment or procedure. Of course, advertising has its place in your marketing mix but PR is often less expensive and more effective at building your credibility and gaining trust.

With PR, you don’t pay for space or airtime as you would with a print ad or TV spot. A typical TV news segment, for example, might be 3-4 minutes long. That’s 3-4 minutes of airtime you don’t have to pay for. Compare that to a typical 30-second TV commercial that may cost thousands of dollars or hundreds of thousands (depending on the size of your market).

A simple press release, properly written and presented, can often generate much better results at a fraction of the cost of a print ad. If your story is picked up, there’s a much better chance that it will be read and believed than any paid print ad.

To learn more about what public relations can do for your practice, call 800.679.1262 today. You have nothing to lose and many new patients to gain.

Practice Builders Economic Survey

2009-04-07T12:08:00.000-07:00

Dear Healthcare Provider,

Results from Practice Builders’ March 2009 Economic Survey are now available, and you will find some revealing information on how you and your fellow practitioners are weathering the current economy. Plus, you’ll find comparisons to our December, August and April 2008 surveys that show how the landscape has changed.
Among the results you’ll find are:

Fewer practices reporting “No change” in their practice during the recession

What your colleagues and competitors are doing to handle the recession

What percentage are increasing their marketing to compete

What could help you increase your revenue now

And more…

See the results of Practice Builders New Economic Survey now at www.practicebuilders.com

If you have any questions regarding the survey data or would like to discuss best options for your practice, please call us at 800.679.1262.

Best regards,
Joel Ellis
President
Practice Builders