Let’s talk about the concept that you truly are marketing ALL THE TIME as a small business owner. This is especially true in a field like acupuncture where you’re selling yourself and your expertise. We touched on this briefly in the last post when I mentioned that your interaction with a patient at every stage contributes to their decision to leave a positive review.  It’s not only about your treatment and whether their pain went away.  (Although that’s important, of course.)  They could feel great, but if your office staff is rude, your office is messy or loud, or the patient feels that you didn’t have enough time for them, etc., all of these things contribute to the overall feeling they get from working with you.

That feeling is what they’re going to use to judge your business.  Who cares if it’s logical, who cares if it’s fair, but that’s the bottom line.  And so everything you do becomes part of your marketing, because that feeling is what makes them want to spend their money, or recommend to their friends that they should spend their money.

(I know, I know, what are we, new age hippies?  For today, we are.  We’re going to talk a lot about feeeeeeeeeelings, and feel free to use a sing-song voice whenever you read the word in your head.)

Let’s start with two scary examples of why this discussion is important:

1) A chiropractor friend of mine (let’s call him chiro #1) is an associate in another doctor’s office. He’s noticed that the receptionist is not always polite to patients as they are leaving, and can be pushy regarding collecting money.  Enter chiropractor #2, a mutual friend of ours.  Chiro #2 recently mentioned that he just got a new patient who said she used to go to chiro #1’s office, but the front desk staff was not pleasant and she simply didn’t enjoy going there. So she left and chose a new chiropractor.

2) Another friend (let’s call her Abby) went to see a chiropractor who was very nice and helped her pain, but the chiropractor’s business partner was very pushy and kept insisting that Abby “looked tense” and “really should get a chair massage.”  Abby didn’t want to pay $15, and explained she had to leave to pick up her kids.  But this business partner kept insisting Abby should get the massage, and Abby felt like they just wanted her money.  She was very put off and never went back. And obviously, she told other people about it, and now I wouldn’t want to go there either.

Now, these decisions had nothing to do with the quality of care each patient was receiving.  It didn’t matter if each chiropractors’ bedside manner and adjusting technique were impeccable, or if each patient felt divine after being treated. The overall feeling each patient got from these experiences outweighed all of that and forced them to look elsewhere.

Eek, right?!  These examples are preventable, but you have to realize they are possible and keep an eye out for them first.  Looking at the whole process of your business through a marketing lens will help you identify and eliminate or prevent these issues.

What if you don’t have office staff?  This concept is not limited to other people in your office.  Every step of the process, from your initial interaction with someone to the moment they leave your parking lot, has an impact on how they feel.

Here’s a list of things to consider that all impact – yep, you guessed it – that feeling.  These are focused on two goals: 1) Eliminating obstacles to get people to come see you (because people like when things are easy – it makes them feel good), and 2) Giving them the warm fuzzies when they think about you, acupuncture, and your office.

1)      Upon meeting someone and discussing your practice, do you have your “elevator speech” ready?  I.e., are you speaking plain English, without TCM jargon, and explaining what you do with confidence?

2)      Are you easy to find on the interwebs?  This is really important.  If you can’t be found on the internet, it’s like you don’t exist in real life.  You have to make it as easy as possible for people to get in to see you.  That means eliminating as many obstacles as possible.  Finding your office online shouldn’t be one of them.

3)      Is it easy to make and reschedule an appointment?  If you have an online schedule, is it easy to use?  Is it running properly?  If they have to call to make an appointment, do you call them back right away?  If you have to play phone tag, you risk losing them to another acupuncturist who will answer their phone.

4)      If you’re not the answering the phone, is the person who is answering speaking politely?  Is the person answering questions in a positive way?  You’d be surprised how many people don’t know how to talk about needles and “whether it hurts” in an upbeat way.  Negativity or bad vocab choices matter!  If you’re not answering the phone yourself, I highly recommend that you give your receptionist a script and a list of common questions with the exact answers you want them to give.

5)      Is your office clean, quiet, organized, well-lit, and generally a pleasant place to relax after a long day?  Are the chairs easy for people with knee or hip pain to get in/out of?  Is there handicap access?

6)      Is your office easy to find?  Is there easy parking?

7)      Is someone there to greet the patient when they walk in, especially first-time patients who don’t know what to expect?  If this isn’t possible, is there a little sign (again, especially for the benefit of new patients) so they know to make themselves comfortable and let them know that you’ll be right out?

8)      Is the bathroom easy to find, clean, and has enough supplies?  Running out of soap can make people surprisingly upset.  Take this as the voice of experience.

9)      Is there anything to drink?  Water?  Anything to eat?  People love snacks, amigos.  It makes your office homey, which is a good feeeeeling.  I’m telling you.

10)   And then, the easy part for most practitioners: Are you providing a quality treatment in a safe, comfortable atmosphere?  This is a silly question.  I know you are.

11)   Is it easy to pay?  Can you make exact change?  Do you take credit cards?  Can you easily print a receipt or super bill?  Can you tell the patient what their copay is?

12)   Were all coupons or special offers stated clearly?  No discrepancies or confusion at the checkout counter?  I used to know a massage therapist who would give out coupons but then be grumpy about it when people cashed them in… don’t be that person.

13)   Is it easy to schedule their next appointment after they pay?

We take a lot of these ideas for granted; it’s easy to assume that the small things that don’t bother us very much, won’t bother anybody else either.  (A leaking faucet, never having exact change, your website being down so directions to your office can’t be looked up.)  But all these things add up to you not looking fully professional, which does not inspire confidence or the other good feelings we’re looking for.  Do you best to streamline the experience for your patients to make it as smooth and pleasant as possible, and it will pay off in the end.  You’ll gain a reputation for excellence and professionalism, which will always bring more patients.

Next post: How to take the “everything you do is marketing” concept a step further by creating a unique “experience” for patients that sets you apart from other acupuncturists in your area. This method is used in every industry, even in higher education.  So you’ll get a sneak peek into acupuncture higher education when you return – see you then!