Want to Attract New Patients? Study online Dating! 5/5 (38)

Almost a dozen times a night we see advertisements on TV for online dating sites! What do the relationship experts say is the key to finding your perfect mate?  Knowing yourself!

You see, if you know what YOU want, what YOU like, what YOU want to do or not do, then it’s easier to find someone similar. An online dating profile includes pictures of course, but it also includes a written profile that is supposed to explain a little about who you are, and who you’re looking for. How does this apply to your practice? I’ve made a short list of questions for you to consider that will help you determine the kind of patients you and your practice naturally attract.

Now that we know the kind of patient YOU want…let’s narrow it down a bit and go find them!

Sub Markets or Niche Markets

There are a few major niche categories such as: Age, Gender, Lifestyle, and Demographics. For this post, let’s take a look at Age.

Age: Pediatric: Activities for children are plentiful! Schools have health fairs. Parks have organized soccer, baseball, football or basketball practices and leagues. Make a few phone calls to the leaders/organizers and explain that you would like to conduct FREE health screenings for the parents before/during or after their event/practice time. Coordinate with the store manager of a toy store to have a table out front on a weekend. As long as you add value and don’t compete with the store, they’re often willing to work with you!

Teen: With budget cuts, Junior High and High Schools have lost much of their extra-curricular budgets. They are looking for fund-raising opportunities. So give them one! Offer to conduct free initial health screenings for the students, parents, and staff and you’ll donate $30 after each follow-up exam in your office. They’ll be motivated to schedule an exam with you, and you’ll get them into your office for an initial exam!

Young Adult: This age group is socially driven and connected to specific retail, food and entertainment venues. Pay attention to where they shop, eat and hang out. Banners, posters, and handouts have to be altered to touch on issues that drive them. Social media marketing plays a bigger roll with this group, more on this later.

Adult: You have a lot to choose from when targeting this market. In fact, it’s almost too big! Focusing your efforts further by gender, lifestyle or income demographic will save you money and generate more patients than the ‘shotgun’ approach most people take. There are civic events, health fairs, trade shows, store openings, neighborhood fairs, Parks & Recreation events, fitness center member-appreciation days, races, marathons, fun runs, Co-Op marketing opportunities, and speaking opportunities (Lions, VFW, Chamber of Com, Women’s clubs, etc). As you can see, the list is nearly endless! This is why you need to decide WHO you want to attract first! It will make your message much more effective and draw in the patients you want to treat!

Senior: This niche is rather focused in their location and events. If a senior community has a central recreation center, then it becomes a candidate for a fun and entertaining health presentation. Most senior facilities have an activities director that will happily schedule you for a presentation. The rest is up to you! Have fun, engage the participants and develop trust. Then, and only then, will they open up to you and the idea of trying alternative medicine. Remember, you’re not just appealing to the older adult, but also to their children and grandchildren. It is a long-term investment that pays off!

Next Week:

Now that we’ve established that YOU are the Expert, and we’ve covered a tiny bit of the basics, and given you ideas about who to contact…next week we will discuss the Event.