A peek into the world of marketing

“Marketing is not an event, but a process... It has a beginning, a middle, but never an end, for it is a process. You improve it, perfect it, change it, even pause it. But you never stop it completely.”

The quote above is attributed to marketing expert and author Jay Conrad Levinson. Regardless of who actually made this statement, it is important to recognize it as true and significant. For any business, including a chiropractic practice, marketing should be a sizeable and indispensable aspect. However, too often doctors are prone to view marketing as an event that primarily occurs when patient numbers are down. Then, when traffic picks up, the marketing volume drops to a low hum.

If this approach sounds uncomfortably familiar, this is a roundtable discussion to help jump-start a new marketing campaign. Three panelists joined Chiropractic Products in discussing the ever-evolving world of marketing.

Mya Anderson is marketing manager with VeridianHealth, a nationwide provider of services in physical therapy, billing and collections, and electrodiagnostic (EDX) testing to physicians and their patients across the country. Headquartered in Deerfield, Ill, VeridianHealth employs hundreds of medical and business professionals and serves thousands of physicians with its many product offerings. Anderson’s background is in marketing communications and project management within the software and health care industries, and she is currently focusing on promoting new clinics for the FirsTherapy Plus program.
Kent Greenawalt is president and CEO of Foot Levelers Inc, located in Roanoke, Va. He is also publisher of Success Express, a journal for the chiropractic profession. Greenawalt is the recipient of several awards from the chiropractic profession, including the American Chiropractic Association’s (ACA’s) Humanitarian of the Year award, the highest honor the ACA can award to a nonchiropractor.

Mark Sanna, DC, CCRD, FICC, is a second-generation chiropractor and president and CEO of Breakthrough Coaching, an international consulting firm. The company, based in Vernon, NJ, has coached thousands of chiropractic and multidisciplinary practices since its founding in 1988. Sanna is the author of the book Breakthrough Thinking and is the recipient of numerous awards, including the coveted endorsement of the ACA.

What type of marketing strategies do you recommend for most DC offices? For DCs just starting? For those expanding their current services?
Anderson: I would recommend a campaign that debunks some common misconceptions about chiropractic and focuses on practice philosophy. Frequently, people are concerned that seeing a chiropractor for a specific problem will turn into an ongoing commitment, requiring too much time and money out of their own pocket. Advances in technology, such as magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) combined with EDX testing, provide objective documentation for justifying treatment until the patient is better. EDX testing and physical therapy services are an excellent way to expand one’s services, and many savvy chiropractors are finding many opportunities here to increase patient-care options and grow their practices. If you are providing these services, you should ensure that you’re properly marketing your capabilities to your fullest.

Greenawalt: New doctors must introduce themselves to the community, so a marketing strategy based on general public outreach is appropriate. Be visible in your community as a chiropractic professional and a source of health care services. Contact community organizations for opportunities to speak to groups. Hold an open house to announce your new practice and allow the public to tour your clinic. Invite the local broadcast or print media to cover this event, or run your own press release. Have your practice listed in local business directories. Run a regular ad in the health section of your community newspaper.

To expand current services, examine your interests and protocols and determine how they mesh with service gaps in the local market. Identify opportunities and determine how you can serve groups that haven’t been reached by chiropractic. Look at current issues in health care and create new protocols related to wellness, sports teams, occupational health, antiaging, and public interest in natural and alternative therapies.

Sanna: Marketing your practice on the Internet is one of the most cost-effective strategies available. People are using the Internet for researching health care topics; these “netizens” are now seeking information that traditionally is provided during face-to-face consultations. Knowing how and where to position important information regarding your practice, techniques used, and before/after photos are critical. Inappropriate combinations of photos, important text, or special effects can result in Web pages that are not found in search engines. The use and pervasiveness of Internet technologies now give chiropractors the opportunity to market their practices—and even their personalities—with varying degrees of creativity.

What are the average costs that chiropractors can expect to spend on marketing materials and marketing plans?
Anderson: You need a number of contact points—newsletters, brochures, and advertisements—but I would most strongly recommend a Web site that focuses on staff qualifications, practice philosophy, range of services, and appointment booking. People bank online and make purchases online—why shouldn’t they be able to request appointments? Get your patients to provide email addresses for appointment reminders, and send reminders 2 days before their appointments. All of your printed materials should direct patients to your Web site. A basic Web site creation will cost you a couple thousand dollars initially, and then about $100 per month if you are updating the content. Why not set up a computer in your waiting area with your Web site set as the home page? Your patients would also welcome the opportunity to check their email or read the news while they wait for an appointment.

Greenawalt: Determine a budget amount based on the number of new patients you want to add to your practice over the next year. Create a line item cost schedule for your chosen marketing plan. Divide the total cost by the number of patients you wish to add to your practice. Then, compare the average cost per patient to the average profit your practice makes per patient and determine whether your practice can support the plan from a financial perspective.

If not, adjust your marketing plan to achieve an average cost per patient that you can afford. If necessary, start with a low-cost approach and increase the scope as you increase your caseload. Whatever your financial picture, you can’t afford to eliminate marketing from your budget.

Sanna: My advice is that you plan your marketing strategies a minimum of 1 quarter in advance so that your practice team is aware of which programs will be deployed in the months ahead. When seeking to create growth in your practice, set aside 10% of your gross collections toward your marketing budget. If you are satisfied with the current volume and would like to maintain that level, 5% of your collections should be dedicated to marketing. It is also important for you to analyze the effectiveness of each marketing event or strategy upon its completion. You can do this by calculating the return on your investment (ROI) that the event generated. An acceptable ROI for a marketing project is three to one. In other words, if you spend $1,000 for a marketing project, it should generate at least $3,000 in return. If an event or strategy generates less than a three-to-one ROI, the project must be altered or possibly deleted in favor of a different project. Your ROI can be calculated by multiplying your case average by the number of new patients that the particular event generated.

What marketing tools do you recommend when promoting chiropractic services?
Anderson: Create a newsletter that you distribute via email and regular mail. Find useful articles and recommendations to share with your patients. Advertise in local newspapers and/or the Web sites of those newspapers. Health clubs frequently offer on-site advertising or placement of ads in their publications. Partner with a health club and work on-site if you can. Sponsor a high school club or activity, and advertise in their literature. Write case studies of local patients and how you helped them. And if you’ve contracted with vendors that provide co-op or free advertising as an affiliate benefit, don’t forget to take advantage of what they have to offer.

Greenawalt: Have a professional create a portfolio of printed materials to inform the public about your practice and services. As your protocols and markets expand, have the portfolio updated. Obtain literature from chiropractic vendors for use as general-educational tools, and incorporate them as part of your marketing program. Educational brochures on chiropractic can be stamped with your clinic name and location and distributed at public events. Your practice will be associated with valuable information found in these materials. Brand your practice so that when the public thinks of chiropractic services, they think of you. Create an image and logo for use in the media and at your clinic to associate your name with the benefits of chiropractic. Find unique ways to differentiate your practice from others to secure your market niche.

Sanna: Chiropractors must join together if we want to make even a small impact in the billions of dollars spent on advertising by the giant pharmaceutical companies. Only by pooling our resources can we purchase the type of advertising and support the quality of lobbyists that will support chiropractic reimbursement and increase the flow of patients into chiropractic practices. It takes significant financial resources to affect public policy on a legislative level. My goal can only be achieved if chiropractors come together in a spirit of unity to protect our profession.

What marketing materials do you recommend for patient retention and referrals?
Anderson: Provide educational pamphlets to your patients and network with other doctors who might refer their own patients. Describe your services clearly and make sure that the pamphlet has your address and phone number on it for easy referrals. Evening hours are useful in retaining patients, and an answering service or appointment scheduling via email would suit busy lifestyles.

Greenawalt: Keeping patients interested in their care is important to retention. Use educational tools and progress reports to inform patients. Display chiropractic videos and publications in your waiting rooms to give existing patients, their families, and their friends the opportunity to be informed while they wait.

Make free handouts available for existing patients to give to friends and family.