Lessons From The NFL About Running A PT Clinic

by · 11th January 2017

5/5 - (2 votes)

Comes a question on Facebook last night:

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“Anyone have trouble attracting the people who value the services you’re providing?

I keep getting patients whose first response is “do you accept insurance?”.

They don’t do their research and look at my website to view that info – if they contact me by phone I give them the private pay talk, ideally I’d like to by-pass that talk… I want those patients that know they’re getting premier care.

Any suggestions are greatly appreciated”.

– Amy Savarese Moore, Posted on the Cash PT Nation Facebook Message Board.

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I have a few things to say on this…

And the first is that for most PTs, they’re not actually “attracting” anyone.

What’s really happening is they are at the mercy of the small number of people searching for a PT – looking (and expecting) to find someone who accepts their insurance.

See, most clinics waking up today are in what I call “reactive” mode.

Reacting to the people who “stumble” upon their website – the same people who also “stumbled” on the websites of the other 7 PTs in town, who also have a free listing on Google.

There’s usually nothing different about the websites – maybe the color of the font – and it’s almost impossible to differentiate yourself from the rest, once you’re part of the pack.

Another way to look at the problem is through the style of play of an “NFL” team:

PT clinics have existed playing a “defensive” style of game.

They wait for referrals to arrive, usually from a doctor, a third party referral or a past patient…

Either way, they are sitting back and waiting for the patient to come to them.

That’s fine.

But they come with all sorts of false beliefs about the value and pre-conceived ideas about what they should be getting – and one of them is often a “PT who takes insurance”…

So the answer is to switch your model to a more “OFFENSIVE” type of game and actively go looking for the type of patients you want.

(That’s what REAL Marketing is).

We are now essentially “running at them” – instead of waiting for them to run at us.

It’s much easier to get the ball back when you are already “on the move” – wouldn’t you agree?

So in this new game, what we have to do is expose them to information that changes the way they feel about you – BEFORE they call you…

That means when the “private pay” talk comes up – which it has to – it’s more likely to be a successful one because these people already know the true value of what you do.

That’s what a “Marketing Plan” is for.

In a nut shell, it is a sustained effort to influence a certain pocket of people and help them feel a certain way about how they view how YOU can solve their problem, better than anyone else.

And preferably, we need them to see it in a way that no one else has ever presented to them before – and if we can do that, they are happy to pay in cash or out-of-pocket, at any fee you set.

And guess what??

This is one of the topics we’ll cover at my 3-day Workshop Event in San Antonio, happening in Feb this year.

I’ll be showing you how to create a Marketing Plan that means you’re attracting the right people who value the services you provide.

Go here next for more details:

– 3 Day Workshop: More Patients, More Profits 2017. RSVP HERE! >

It’s limited to just 10 people – and there’s just 3 spaces left.

– 3 Day Workshop: More Patients, More Profits 2017. RSVP HERE! >

Sincerely,

Paul Gough

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MORE RESOURCES ON THIS TOPIC:

Click here to listen to – podcast EP:005 Why No One Wants To Pay For Physical Therapy Anymore…

And Click here to watch Youtube Show EP:009 Why Patients Value A Hairdresser More Than PT

And when you listen to the podcast and show, be sure to subscribe to the podcast on iTunes and the show on Youtube, to be notified of the latest episodes.

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For more PT Business Education Material:

Click here to subscribe to my email list and I’ll send you more Physical Therapy Business Education >>>

About Paul Gough

PAUL GOUGH is one of the top Marketing and Business Coaches in the physical therapy industry and his Systems are helping clinic owners all across America run more profitable clinics. He is a published Author, Newspaper Columnist and before his stunning success in business was hired by top professional soccer teams. HIS SUCCESS STORY is one that inspires many pt's around the world - at the age of 26 Paul QUIT a high profile job in professional soccer to begin his own clinic. He had NO money, NO business or marketing skills and NO experience - and yet now owns and runs 4 pt clinics and has a proven track record of growing a physical therapy business from 0 - $2m in record time.
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