Patient Marketing What Works?

By: Catherine Maley, MBA, Author, Your Aesthetic Practice

Introduction

Aesthetic marketing today is all about the quality of each patient relationship rather than sheer quantity of patients wandering through your office. It costs a small fortune in today’s competitive environment to attract an aesthetic patient to you so you want to do everything humanly possible to keep them.

Patients with Endless Needs

The beauty (pun intended) of aesthetics is that you have patients with endless needs. If an aesthetic patient wants to look good today, they also want to look good tomorrow and next week and next year and year after year. So it’s your job to keep them happy and connected to you so they return again and again.

Back to the Fundamentals of Patient Marketing

A solid strategy for patient marketing to work is to get good at the basic, fundamental steps to growing your aesthetic practice and here they are:

#1 – You have to get your telephone to ring with cosmetic patients who are interested in your services

#2 – But then you must be able to convert those callers into scheduled Patient consultations

#3 – And then you must be able to convert those patient consultations into revenue-producing procedures

#4 – And then you must keep those patients coming back for more

#5 – Last, but not least, you must encourage them to refer their family, friends and co-workers.

Aesthetic Marketing Rules

Rules about marketing and human nature are important to keep in mind since they apply to your preferred aesthetic patients:

A buyer is a buyer is a buyer so if an aesthetic patient bought from you before they will buy again from you or from your competitors

It’s much easier to make the 2nd sale than it was to make the 1st – you’ve already done the hard work

The most neglected high probability target market you have is past and present patients

Patients welcome frequent contact and communication. You may be interested to know the #1 reason patients leave you is not because they are unhappy with their result. It’s because of your indifference. Ignoring your patients and not keeping in touch allows them to drift away.

Lastly, your “hidden” competitive edge is the quality of your on-going relationships with your aesthetic patients

Patient Email Marketing

Send out e-newsletters explaining a new procedure you offer and send simple e-blasts with a purpose. Make them eye-catching, add a holiday theme with compelling offers, and a tight expiration date so they impulsively call you now. Be sure to offer gift certificates and remind your patients to forward this to a friend to help with word-of-mouth referrals.

Direct Mail to Your Current Patients

For the price of a stamp, you get your personalized message directly to your patient and you’ll have their attention way more than you will when they’re hunting around on the internet or channel surfing. Direct mail gives you an increased chance of getting noticed, getting your piece opened, getting it read and getting it responded to. What should you mail your patients? Here are some ideas:

Handwritten Note Cards

Handwritten note cards are the most effective way to build a loyal following. Frankly, this alone will help bond your patients to you as well as differentiate you from your competitors since most are never going to do this. Take advantage of their short-sightedness.

Send eye-catching, colorful greeting cards with your own handwritten message, a colored envelope and a live stamp to specific preferred patients for specific reasons such as Holidays are here, thank you and refer a friend.

This effort speaks loud and clear to your patients that you sincerely care about them and this extra effort will make you stand out from the others – I guarantee it.

Personalized Patient Letters

Aesthetic patients want to feel special. So, the more personal you can make your communications, the more your patient will feel your genuine concern for them and the more likely they are to respond.

Throughout the year, send a themed patient letter telling your patient about a new procedure, your office renovation or a new staff person and include a very special offer for a limited time only.

Face-to-Face Time is Golden

The more time your patients spend face-to-face with you, the more likely they are to bond with you, stay loyal to you and refer their friends.

Have two big events per year such as a Holiday party or your annual fundraiser so your current patients can connect with you socially as well as introduce you to their friends they brought along.

Follow Up is Crucial

Here’s the secret to true revenue growth: FOLLOW UP

It’s always a good idea to follow up with current and lost patients – it shows you are interested in knowing the patient and it makes you stand out so do it whenever it makes sense. For example,

Thank you for coming in note card

Great to see you email

Evening phone call after a treatment or procedure to see how the patient is doing and

We Miss You note card

The more points of contact you have with your patients, the more likely they are to choose you, and only you, when they’re ready for aesthetic enhancement.

Conclusion

Your ultimate goal is to attract your preferred patient to you and then keep them loyal by using persistent and consistent communications, events and excellent patient relations with relentless, never-ending improvement that leads to a WOW patient experience and that leads to referrals and more aesthetic profits for you.

Call Now – Toll Free : (877) 339-8833

By: Catherine Maley, MBA, Author, Your Aesthetic Practice

Aesthetic medicine is a lucrative business that’s created a fiercely competitive industry. Plastic surgeons, as well as other specialties and corporations, want to capitalize on the growing demand for cosmetic surgery. This means plastic surgery patients have more choices now than ever before so marketing cosmetic surgery effectively takes strategy.

Marketing for Plastic Surgeons

No marketing method works all the time or every time.  People change, the media changes, tastes change so marketing for plastic surgeons needs to be strategic.  Different long- and short-term messages and avenues must be tried and tested until you get the results you’re looking for.

Marketing Plastic Surgeons Must Define Preferred Patient

When marketing cosmetic surgery to the mass media outlets, remember the importance of target marketing. You’ve probably heard the saying, “You can’t be everything to everybody.”  Cater to the group you consider your preferred cosmetic surgery patients. Learn their demographics and needs. This is important because only a certain percentage of the population will purchase cosmetic enhancement procedures, products or treatments. By marketing cosmetic surgery to the right niche market, you’ll be more profitable. You won’t waste your effort, time or money by throwing out your message to just anyone.

Marketing Plastic Surgeons Start with Current Patients

While you’re waiting for your mass media marketing strategies to take hold, implement some “fast-acting” marketing projects that give you revenues now. Start with your current cosmetic surgery patient base. They already know and trust you. Therefore, they’re much more apt to respond to your marketing efforts. So use these marketing mix strategies to cross-promote comparable procedures and treatments and encourage patient referrals:

Patient Newsletter Marketing

Your patients want to hear from you about what’s new with you, your office and the world of aesthetics so send a monthly or bi-monthly newsletter to your cosmetic surgery patients to educate them on the latest news in the cosmetic enhancement world.

Marketing Plastic Surgeons Use Patient Postcards

Patient postcards are an easy, cost-effective to stay in touch with your patients.  Invite them to your event, tell them about a new procedure and add a special offer so they call you now to book an appointment.

Patient Email Marketing

Email marketing is by far, the fastest, cheapest and easiest way to stay in touch with your plastic surgery patients.  Make them eye-catching, fun, informative and always include special offers with a tight expiration date so patients respond now.

Have a graphic designer create an html message with a special offer that can be e-mailed to your patient database monthly. Be sure you have permission to send email to your patients, and they must be able to opt out if they want.

Word-of-mouth Referral Program

Offer some incentive for your patients to refer their friends and family. The best referrals will come from satisfied cosmetic surgery patients who were treated well and who got a great result. Thank them with a personal phone call and/or note each time they send someone to your practice.

Tracking Results When Marketing Cosmetic Surgery

Make sure your staff asks every new patient how they heard about you. You can also code your ads, use a special telephone line or have cosmetic surgery patients present a coupon for the special price you mentioned in your patient postcard, patient newsletter or patient email.  You’ll be able to pull up reports periodically to track trends and marketing results.

Conclusion

It takes different messages and different formats to connect with your preferred cosmetic surgery patients because if they aren’t ready for your services today, they will be three, six, nine months from now. Be sure you’re there to address their needs.

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For more free tips, strategies and resources, visit Catherine Maley, Author of Your Aesthetic Practice atwww.CosmeticImageMarketing.com or call (877) 339-8833.

Plastic Surgery Marketing Tips for the Aesthetic Practice

By: Catherine Maley, MBA, Author, Your Aesthetic Practice

Introduction

You cannot be successful in aesthetic medicine without a steady stream of plastic surgery patients coming to you – period. But how do you attract, convert and retain them in today’s competitive environment? The answers are below.

The female aesthetic patients’ wants, needs and concerns are complex and ever-changing. Rather than a goldmine, it can be more like a mine field to understand these patients and why they chose you over all the others, stay loyal to you and refer their friends to you.

You Are in an Enviable Position.

You cater to a very hungry market – the plastic surgery patient who wants to look and feel good and will invest their time, money and effort to do so.

Think about it. The patient who cares about their appearance has a built-in need now and for years to come because if they care today how they look, they are really going to care as the aging process takes an even bigger toll.

So, putting in the effort up front now to attract these aesthetic patients to your practice and nurturing those relationships will prompt them to return again and again for procedures, treatments and products to help them look and feel good.

10 Plastic Surgery Marketing Tips

Here are 10 plastic surgery marketing tips to growing a multi-million dollar aesthetic practice:

Tip #1: Target Higher-Value Patients: Identify who your high-end (mature and affluent) patients are and then focus 80% of your efforts on them.

Tip #2: Understand the Decision-Making Process of an aesthetic patient: Help your patients make a good decision by assuring them with social proof they will be happy with their decision.

Tip #3: Make the Aesthetic Patient Feel Special: The more special you can make the aesthetic patient feel, the more likely they are to connect with you, open up and say yes to you.

Tip #4: Increase Revenues-Per-Patient: You are leaving money on the table if your patients don’t realize everything you offer. 20% of your AP would buy much more from you if given the chance. 5% of those would buy even more.

Tip #5: Stop Ignoring Your Aesthetic Patients: The #1 reason patients leave your practice is not because of a bad result. And, it’s probably not because they didn’t like you and your staff. It’s because of your indifference.

Tip #6: Encourage Referrals: At least 70% of your new aesthetic patients should be coming from your current patients.

Tip #7: Reactivate Your Lost Patients: It’s always faster, cheaper and easier to reconnect with patients who have visited you before than it is to attract total strangers to your practice.

Tip #8: Create a WOW Patient Experience: Aesthetic medicine is all about the relationship the patient “feels” they have with you.

Tip #9: Build Your Credibility Through Strategic Alliances: Get someone else credible to sing your praises to their own database of patients, customers or clients.

Tip #10: Make Your Communications Personal and Timely: There are certain times of the year your aesthetic patients will most want to hear from you.

Conclusion

The most valuable asset you have is a list of high-value plastic surgery patients and prospective patients who care about their appearance.

The patient who already knows you, likes you and trusts you is golden to you. They have endless needs you can address for years to come. I guarantee, they want to hear from you, be educated about the youth-defying opportunities available to them, and they want to feel a connection to – YOU!

As a plastic surgeon, have you ever felt as if you were throwing your money away on cosmetic surgery advertising that just didn’t work?  You knew it wasn’t working but you kept running your ad anyway, hoping that the repetition would finally kick in and prospective cosmetic patients would call you? And, remember how the advertising sales representative kept insisting on the need for repetition and patience?

The growing competition has increased aesthetic advertising a lot. The American Society of Plastic Surgeons’ 2006 statistics show that in just one decade cosmetic surgery advertising has increased by 2000%!  That means you need to think more strategically about your plastic surgery advertising efforts.  You will have to target your audience and appeal to them in a way that separates you from all the other plastic surgeons.

It is difficult to write plastic surgery advertising that gets your telephone to ring and many variables go into the making of an effective direct-response ad. Do you currently copy what you see in the ‘social’ magazines or the newspapers in your community where the content is often no more than a photograph of a pretty girl with a list of the services you offer? Or perhaps you use a publication’s graphics department where ‘creative’ people design an ad for you and then hope for the best?

Well – no more.  Now is the time to reconsider your cosmetic surgery advertising before investing another dime in it.

Plastic Surgery Advertising Objectives

What are you expecting your plastic surgery advertising to accomplish? Are you looking for name recognition, to build awareness of your services among prospective patients? Or reinforce your brand image, remembering that every ad is a building block for your brand?  While all of that is nice, your true objective is to get the prospective patient to contact you – period.

You will need to commit to advertising and do what it takes to get a good response. If you play it safe, you will get safe results but is that what you want?  What you really want is for your plastic surgery ads to be effective and provide a return on your investment.  That means you need to think creatively.  You need to consider how you can tell your target audience what they want to hear and then give them a reason to respond to you now.

Elements of Good Plastic Surgery Advertising

There is no one way to write a great ad.  It takes an educated guess and then testing and tracking to see if it is working.  Changing just one element in your ad can change its response so try different things and if it doesn’t work quickly, try something else. However, every one of your plastic surgery ads need to contain the following:

Tense

The most successful cosmetic surgery ads are written in the second person, using the word “you” because every reader is asking themselves the same question, “What’s In It for Me?” so be sure to tell them by spelling out the benefits they will receive.

Headline

Your headline is the most important element. The best headlines promise the reader a benefit.  Also, specifics get better readership than generalities. By the way, people read the headline five times more than they read the body so be sure yours is eye-catching and memorable. An example would be, “You Could Look 10 Years Younger – Tomorrow!”

Graphics

Research has shown that cosmetic surgery advertising showing before and after photographs had a better response than ads that didn’t show any.  Your ad should show the end-resultof using your services. And, use photos that depict your preferred patient target.  So, if you are attempting to attract the younger girl for liposuction, be sure to use that age in the photo.  And you’ll be viewed as more credible when you use your own patients in your cosmetic surgery advertising and tell your readers it’s an “actual patient” rather than use a model.

Copy

You cannot bore people into using your plastic surgery services; you can only interestthem. Tell the readers what your services will do for them and tell them by using specifics. Here are some ideas:

-  Testimonialsmake copy more credible since readers find the endorsements of your patients more persuasive. It’s always more compelling when a patient tells another patient how great you are (rather than you tell them how great you are).

-  There is a saying that says, “You Sell More When You Tell More”.  This is called marketing through education and prospective cosmetic surgery patients are thirsty for information about procedures they are interested in.  So, if you are writing long copy, use bold subheads that state the benefit then explain it in more detail in the following paragraph.

-  Try a believable ‘how to’ statement – “How You Can Look 10 Years Younger …”

-  Use power words such as “Introducing”, “Announcing”, and “Free” – still the most powerful word in the advertising vocabulary

-  Use action words such as “Discover”, “Learn”, and “Enjoy”

-  Use a question to peek the readers’ curiosity – “Do You Think This Woman Had a Face Lift?”

-  Use your name in the headline to strengthen your brand and obtain additional name recognition – “Do You Think Dr. Smith Perform a Face Lift on this Patient?”

Do Something Different for your Plastic Surgery Advertising

Again, think outside the box. In advertising, you need to rise above the clutter.  Try something different:

- Produce your own DVD.  Have a professionally-produced DVD made of you, your staff and your office. Offer a Free DVD in your advertising to identify people interested in cosmetic surgery.  Provide a toll-free number with a recording explaining some of your highlights and inviting them to leave their name and address so that you can send them a free DVD. That gives you enough information to follow up with them later.

- Patients want information so offer them a special report on the details of a procedure.  Perhaps the emotional roller coaster of a face lift before, during and after surgery. Have one of your patients keep a diary and take photos every day to chart their recovery.  Prepare a report you can mail to the prospective patient and then follow up with them later.

- Design your ad to look like a newspaper editorial. This format allows you room to explain a procedure in detail and can pass for a feature story, a health column or human interest story that involves a patient and their before and after photos.

- Use a local celebrity or personality to tell their own story about how your services have improved their lives.

- Advertise your participation in a local fundraiser to show your interest in helping your community in a selfless way.

- Invite your readers to participate in a study or an educational event.

Special Offers

The point of the special offer is to get the readers to raise their hands to say they are interested.  The offer is the single element in your plastic surgery advertising that gets your reader to stop, notice and act now rather than wait until tomorrow – or never.  You need them to respond to you now.  Here are some ideas:

- Make your offer irresistible. Offer a free gift when, for example, they schedule a signature facial from your aesthetician

- Announce if they register for your online newsletter, they receive a $20 Off coupon for retail products you carry

- Offer a complimentary computer imaging or skin analysis session so the prospective patient can see herself, her concerns and the possibilities for improvement

- Offer a simple report that explains the various wrinkle fillers available so the reader can make an informed decision

Expiration Date

It’s imperative to include an expiration date to an offer.  You want to instill a sense of urgency so they act right now rather than wait.  Although they have good intentions, life gets in the way and you don’t want this opportunity to slip by.

Lastly, be sure to offer multiple ways for them to contact you – by mail, email, telephone or personal visit. While they may not be ready to schedule the consultation with you just yet, they would like a less intimidating way to learn more so give it to them in the way they are most comfortable with.

And remember, the patient that responds to your plastic surgery advertising is golden.  Nurture that new relationship with ongoing communications so the patient bonds with you.  Your dialogue with them should help build a bond so when they are ready; they call you – and only you!

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Ms. Maley is President and Senior Marketing Strategist, Cosmetic Image Marketing, San Francisco , California . Dr. Werschler is Assistant Clinical Professor of Medicine/Dermatology, University of Washington School of Medicine, Seattle. Ms. Larson is a Cosmetic Practice Development Specialist, Premier Practice Institute, San Diego , California .

The authors report no actual or potential conflict of interest in relation to this article.

With hundreds of laser models currently on the market, considering how to acquire this technology without breaking the bank is important. This column analyzes some important issues to consider before acquiring new laser equipment. Because laser technologies are produced and updated so frequently, making the wrong decision can result in poorly trained staff, outdated equipment, or equipment that requires costly upgrades and service. Many practitioners find themselves with laser equipment that sits in a storage room collecting dust because they do not know how to use the technology or market it to their patients.

Why Rent?

Opting to rent laser equipment can eliminate the aforementioned problems. Space is a precious commodity, and renting lasers can help turn those expensive doorstops into profit centers that enable your practice to stay on the cutting edge of today’s medical advances. Additionally, when renting lasers the twin burdens of maintenance and obsolesence are off-loaded from the practice. All preventative maintenance and repairs become the responsibility of the rental agency, and upgrades or replacement with newer technology is done on a regular basis.

Renting a laser provides low barrier entry into the laser market; you are essentially outsourcing laser services in your practice. The practitioner schedules the patients and the laser, collects the fees from the patients, and pays the rental company a contracted rate.

A rental company will supply a certified technician to operate the rental laser, as well as a modern laser system with a complete line of accessories. In addition, rental companies provide in-service educational and certification programs for office staff. Because a certified technician is on site to oversee the proper use of the laser, the physician’s liability is reduced by making sure all safety measures meet American National Standards Institute requirements. This also decreases staff salary overhead, as the rental company pays the technician directly.

Renting provides access to highly advanced laser equipment only when you need it without the capital expenditure, financial exposure, or risk of equipment obsolescence involved in purchasing. In addition, liability risks, maintenance issues, and concerns about either using the equipment too much or too little are eliminated.

Why Purchase?

Although renting equipment offers some advantages, it also reduces your potential income from the laser because the rental fee affects your profit margin. Rental costs vary greatly, commonly ranging from a flat rate of $800 to $1,200 for a half day; $1,000 to $2,000 for a full day; or a percentage of the total daily revenue with no initial cash outlay. The rental fee includes the laser equipment and the certified technician. Rental companies can also address liability issues, depending on your insurance plan, to ensure coverage. Because of the expense associated with renting a laser, the incremental cost of doing business on a given day is increased, as you will need to treat a certain number of patients just to break even.

Another disadvantage to renting is that the laser you get may not be in top condition and may show considerable wear because it is continually being moved from office to office. Malfunctioning equipment causes scheduling problems and dissatisfied patients. Although renting has its advantages, it is not a viable long-term option if your goal is to expand your aesthetic practice.

A primary benefit of owning a laser is the profit margin. Fillers and toxins are an expense for the physician each time a patient is treated, but this is not the case with lasers. Purchasing a laser requires a substantial initial expenditure and some minimal recurring costs such as the maintenance fee or service contract and disposables such as cryogen. Although the initial cost of purchasing a laser can be somewhat of a deterrent, the long-term benefits generally outweigh the start-up costs. Furthermore, various options are available when purchasing a laser such as leasing with an option to buy.

Owning a laser gives you the advantage of having the technology available at all times for your patients’ convenience. The ability to offer aesthetic services at the convenience of your patients can easily increase revenue by 20% to 30%. If you can only offer laser treatments on certain days (ie, when the rental equipment is in your office), you are sacrificing potential income. The aesthetic patient can be demanding and may not be willing to wait. Thus, by not owning the equipment, you risk losing your patients to competitors who can offer appointment times that fit their schedules.

Upon purchase, laser companies also provide equipment training and certification for the physician and office staff, as well as marketing tools to help build a laser practice. Owning a laser and operating it regularly allows the physician and office staff to become familiar with the equipment and proficient in its use.

Maintenance

Regardless of whether you own or rent your laser equipment, maintenance is a consideration. When laser equipment breaks down, the practice is disrupted. Lasers will either need to be sent for repair or the technician will need to come to the office. This means that appointments must be rescheduled, creating an inconvenience for patients and office staff. Most maintenance issues can be resolved within 24 to72 hours.

If a laser is purchased, a maintenance contract also should be purchased. Periodic maintenance contracts provide scheduled maintenance for the laser and also can provide warranty type coverage for unexpected breakdowns. Maintenance contracts range from $1,000 to $10,000 per year. However, if the laser is generating $50,000 to $100,000 per year, the cost is relatively small compared to the revenue generated.

When renting a laser, maintenance is included in the contracted fee. Although the rental company is required to repair the laser, the breakdown is still inconvenient to your patients and office staff. Furthermore, rented lasers are more likely to malfunction because of excessive transportation, wear and tear, and multiple operators.

Conclusion

Before deciding whether to rent or purchase laser equipment, consider the goals of your practice. Are you providing laser services to expand the aesthetic side of your practice and using lasers as the loss leader, or are you merely offering an additional service to your patients? If you are new to the aesthetic market and would like to test the waters before you jump in, renting is a good opportunity. It allows you to try different systems to better understand the technologies and determine which would work best for your practice. Distinguishing between the various lasers and their capabilities can be confusing; renting allows you to evaluate the equipment before buying. It also gives you the opportunity to build up your aesthetic patient base without the pressure of a monthly lease payment.

The transition from renting to purchasing should occur when the revenue generated exceeds the cost of ownership. Typically, a $100,000 laser will range from $2,100 to $3,000 per month depending on the term of the lease. If you are only renting one day per month, you are a good rental candidate; however, if you are renting 2 to 3 days per month, you should consider purchasing.

Comparison Matrix for Lasers

By Catherine Maley, MBA is President of Cosmetic Image Marketing.  Her firm specializes in aesthetic marketing, cosmetic marketing, cosmetic patient marketing, aesthetic patient marketing, physician image marketing, medical marketing consulting, aesthetic marketing tools, aesthetic advertising and building aesthetic profits for physicians.
(877) 339-8833
info@cosmeticimagemarketing.com
www.cosmeticimagemarketing.com