Author Archives: Paul Gough

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.

Your PT Business Was Never Meant To Be A Struggle

by · 15th December 2015

As I write to you I’m sat in a coffee shop in “Melbourne”, South Australia.

“Coldplay”, playing on the radio over my right shoulder.

It’s the same coffee shop I wrote the final words of my first book “The Healthy Habit”, precisely this time last year…

…and it’s the same coffee shop that I’m writing the early words of my new book, that’ll be published early next year.

The relevance to you??

Let me explain:

Just last week I held a live, global video seminar with all of the PT Owners in my coaching program.

(There’s “32” of them now).

As part of the program I bring in guests from OUTSIDE of the PT industry to talk to everyone about the other things that business owners need to be more successful.

This time I hired in one of the worlds best motivational speakers – “James Ashford” – to talk to us all about “goal setting and planning for higher profits in 2016 and beyond”.

And on the call, James asked everyone what their goal was of 2016.

The typical answer, went something like this:

===

* “Get 50 patients per week”…

* “To get 200 patients per week”…

And for one guy,

* “To open 3 more clinics”!

===

But here’s the thing I had to point out:

That’s not what they REALLY want to achieve in 2016.

“That’s just what they NEED to do,
to get what they really WANT”.

Does that make sense??

See, none of us lie awake at night dreaming about another “50” patients coming through the doors this week…

No.

What we do dream about, is what we would DO, if they DID!

(Such as take an extended trip to South Australia…)

That’s the real reason WHY we want those extra patients and is what you must first figure out … and then focus on… if your goals are to be achieved.

To be more successful in business, it’s easier if you start AT THE END.

Think about “WHY” you want those extra 50 patients per week next year, anyway…

What difference would it make to the quality of yours and your families lifestyle??

When you know that…

…and you can FEEL that…

…it becomes a LOT easier to tackle all of the things you’re going to need to do, to get there.

(Like, invest some of your time and money in learning the rules of “direct response marketing”).

Most business owners are about to go head long into another years worth of struggle and frustration…

…waking up each day wondering why they’re not achieving their goal of “X” number of patients – not really sure why they’re even in business in the first place.

I’ll be starting the year thinking about my *travel plans*.

And, creating *systems* that’ll let me spend 5 months of 2016 out of the UK and with my family, looking for more swing parks for my boy “Harry” – and sun drenched coffee shops for me, sharpening my authors pencil (as I sip on my extra hot, no-foam Latte), knowing that my business is funding it all for me.

Is there any other reason to be a small business owner??

Anyhoo…

I have every faith that if you find your reason “WHY”, you could achieve it too.

Want some help to get there faster??

Click Here to Subscribe to Paul’s Marketing Tips Email List >>>

Sincerely,

Paul Gough

Autopilot The Growth Of Your Practice

by · 14th December 2015

Comes a question from a PT Entrepreneur looking to grow his clinic in record time:

===

“Paul, I’m wanting to grow my practice so that I can one day exit it. 

At the very least, I want to be able to hire people to work for me so that I can be an absent owner and cream the profits at the top.

Any tips for how I do it or get started?”

 – Neil, Denver. 

===

My answer??

“Systems”!

“Systems”!

“Systems”!

Autopilot The Growth Of Your Practice

Preferably ones that leverage automation.

(It’s how I did it anyways).

I figured that if I was ever to able to grow and scale my practice – and spend less and less time there – I had to figure a “fool proof” way for my practice to run.

Fool proof meaning that ANYONE I hired could run them for me, with very little training.

AND –

Mitigate human error.

Enter “Infusionsoft”.

Now when I first considered Infusionsoft it was safe to say I was frightened to pull the trigger.

Looks very complex from a far.

And, I am a “NON tech” kinda’ guy – so I stalled over the decision for about 8 months.

Until I took the plunge.

Paid my “$2000” and got some skin in the game and learned the rules.

Didn’t take long to realize how clever the software is – and is now the one single piece of technology that I rely upon to move me towards my goal of owning a business – and yet having complete autonomy and freedom to “roam around this big old world” with my little boy in tow.

So there it is…

If you’re even remotely interested in it, and you’d like a demo of how it could help you…

Get in touch with me here.

Sincerely,

Paul Gough

Fall In Love With The Process

by · 10th December 2015

Story time:

Saturday night it was my clinics “staff christmas party”.

And as well as staff, I invite friends, family and anyone else who contributes to the success of the clinic.

So I invited a guy who works with small businesses all over the world – mine included – helping to motivate staff, align core values and generally implement all of the things that most businesses over look (and rarely ever want to pay for), even though they are vital to success and growth.

Over a “beer”, we got talking about the “tension” that can so often build with doing something that YOU feel as though is amazing… could REALY help someone… but no one else seems to agree or care as much as you.

Fall In Love With The Process

An e.g?

Like spending hours and hours – maybe even days – creating a new advert promoting your amazing PT services

OR –

Creating a “back pain pain workshop” campaign that YOU think is so helpful and so wonderful – and is 100% going to help people with back pain…

…but the phone doesn’t ring!

Ever had that happen to you??

Guess what?

“Me too”.

And, it USED to get me all tense, tight and even “angst” from the very first day we put the ad out right up until the *minutes * before the workshop was set to start.

I used to take it personally.

Even tell myself:

“If I had back pain, I’d be

calling my clinic if I saw my ad…”

Ever done that??

(Me too).

That was until I switch from worrying about the end result…

..to “falling in LOVE with the process”. 

I realised that if I just did more good things, more often – and I followed the laws science of direct response marketing, *every time* – I’d win in the end.

Which means that instead of getting all tight and angst about one single advert or marketing campaign….

…I judge the success of my “labour” over a longer period of time.

Like 12 months.

So when I sit and grab a “beer” with my colleagues and I look pretty happy with the way the last 12 months has gone – that’s the reason why.

Have I had some “failures” over the last 12 months?

Of course.

Did I keep going?

Absolutely!

Why?

Because I’m engaged in the PROCESS of creating those ads and campaigns – regardless of what the public think about them.

If people don’t want to respond to THAT ad, that’s cool.

No biggie.

I’m 99% sure they will next time.

After all, I know better than them that their “daily, annoying, chronic lower back pain”, isn’t going anywhere.

(They just didn’t know that when they saw my ad! 😉

Anyhoo (ho, ho)…

Want something to help make setting up the PROCESS more speedy (and fun)?:

“Infusionsoft”.

It’s a tool that’ll let you grow, scale and run your business – from anywhere in the world.

Get in touch with me if you want to take a demo of the software that allows me to “autopilot” the growth of my clinic through this brave new health care economy.

I’ll hook you up with the guy who got me started.

Will save you a ton of time on being successful.

(A lot of energy too).

And, give you the edge over your competition still shuffling paper around their clinics, manually.

Get in touch if you want to know more.

Paul Gough

 

With The Slow Months…

by · 9th December 2015

Here is some food for thought on the subject of attracting patients to your practice – independent of doctors – using this strategy.

If you are already involved in Marketing your practice to consumers, a question to consider is:

===

“Why is it that there are thousands of people in your small town with things like neck pain, knee pain, back pain etc…

…and yet very few of those 1000’s are visiting a physical therapist to get those problems resolved??”

===

In my town alone, there’s 5 different physical therapy clinics trying to serve 70,000 people.

On the face of it, you’d think there’d be more than enough for us all.

And there is.

But the other 4 aren’t as busy as I am.

Not even close.

How do I know??

Because I often call them up on a Monday to ask if they are ok to accommodate the patients we can’t fit in – or don’t want to take on. 

They never refuse.

The difference is not just my PT skills, although I would like to tell you it is.

It’s as much to do with positioning, status and authority.

And here’s the big paradox:

The more you promote “your PT clinics services”, the harder it is to get new patients.

One of the big secrets of direct to consumer marketing is that people are drawn towards people who appear to be EXPERTS – and repelled by people who seem “general’.

Every time you run an advert that says you’re a “physical therapist” – you’ve just labelled yourself a “generalist”.

With The Slow Months...

It’s just one of the important issues I cover with the PT’s I work with.

If you’re not yet involved in marketing directly to the consumers, here’s something to think about:

We all have untapped assets in our professional lives.

An accountant will tell you that your assets are equipment, cash in bank etc.

But your biggest untapped asset may be your ability to help other people.

The area that you are an “expert”, where you could help others but at the moment you’re not, has the potential to easily have you earning six figures per year – and more – from your practice.

In the eyes of your potential new patients, adopting the strategy of “Education Based Marketing” turns you into an EXPERT, instantly.

It’ll attract patients to you who are LESS hassle and much more AFFLUENT – and is one of the fastest ways to financial freedom at your practice.

I’ve been perfecting this strategy at my own practice for nearly a decade – in the harsh environment of the UK where all citizens are entitled to Physical Therapy for FREE – paid for by the socialist Government.

I USED to struggle and reply upon “workers comp” type referrals… and I can tell you that ever since I turned to “Education Based Marketing”, I’ve had no problems charging $150+ even though they can get PT *free*, paid for by the Government.

The strategy is now working at many of the PT clinics that I help in the U.S – and if you adopt it, you’ll have people queuing up to be your patients – happy to pay their copay or deductible.

I’m releasing this now because I know that most PT clinics suffer in January and February when people are reluctant to eat into their “deductible” so early in the year.

Education Based Marketing makes what your offering irresistible – and there’ll be much less resistance to coming to see you in the notoriously slow months of January and February.

To be honest, I’ve held back in revealing my insider strategies for fearing of my own competitors finding all of this material.

As long as you don’t practice within 25 miles of any of my clinics, I’m happy to share them all with you.

Get them here:

–  The New Patient Overload >

January and February are looming fast – and I don’t want you to be as slow as most of the other PT’s in the US, are likely to be.

Sincerely,

Paul Gough

A Quick “Productivity” Tip For You ;-)

by · 3rd December 2015

So it’s only the start of December…

…but it’s already the “8th” day of Christmas in my house.

(I have a two year old who loves chocolate and doesn’t yet understand what an advent calendar is – or how its supposed to work… 😉

Are you having the “advent calendar fight” with the kids in your house already??

Anyhoo (ho ho)…

Yesterday, we completed module 5 of the New Patient Accelerator Program.

(Going great, thanks)

We spent almost 3 hours talking in depth about website design, conversions, important pages and getting more people to that website – meaning more potential paying patients.

But that’s not what I wanted to talk to you about today:

No.

During the Accelerator program “Neil”, (an awesome PT from Michigan) noticed that I kept looking at different screens as I was teaching.

So he asked me the question:

“How many different screens

have you got there, Paul?”

Great observation.

And my answer…

“3”.

See, having multiple screens on my desk improves my productivity.

Instead of constantly looking for different documents, opening and closing websites and trying to find Email etc…

…I keep everything I’m working on, or soon to be working on, open and on a specific screen.

On average, saves me about 20-25 minutes per day.

More than that…

I’m not losing any of the “flow” or momentum that most people do when they’re looking for stuff that they’ve previously had open.

Want to know what else??

My secretaries all have exactly the same set up.

One screen, either side of the iMac monitor.

They can use the EMR, our infusionsoft web forms and work from the telephone script – very easily.

Meaning they have less reason to moan at me – and more time to spend on *WOWING* my patients – and being even more amazing at what they do (…customer love!).

For more tips on productivity, you should check out a lady called “Lee Milteer”…

I paid to spend a few months working with her last year and picked up a lot that helps me get more stuff done – in much less time than it used too.

This was just one of them I thought I’d share with you.

Hope this helps.

Have an amazing day.

Sincerely,

Paul Gough

P.S: Note to Physical Therapists…

– Click Here to Subscribe to Paul’s Marketing Tips Email List >>>

Patient Attendance And Compliance – Set To Get Worse?

by · 2nd December 2015

Comes a question last night from a PT Entrepreneur in my *paid for* Facebook support group:

===

“Paul… my biggest challenge lately has been attendance and compliance with therapy. We have a high “chronic pain” population.

I heard somewhere that if the patient cancels often, they they are not valuing our therapy. That has stuck with me. I (and my staff) are working hard to make our clinic more of an “experience” as opposed to just coming in and doing exercises.

===

My answer??

There’s SO MANY ways to stop this I’m not sure where to start…

Oh yes I do. It’s here:

“It’s NOT the patients job to see the value in therapy”.

It’s OUR job to MAKE them see the value.

How do you do that?

Easy.

Patient Attendance And Compliance - Set To Get Worse?
Go right back to the interaction you have with them at their first phone call…

…start by spending twice (maybe three times) as much time as you originally did to ensure you asked the right questions to determine you’re a good fit…

And if you REALLY wanted to do it right…

…take it even further back by inspecting the “message” you have on your website.

Do you even have one??

If both of those things don’t clearly align with THEIR values, they won’t care.

And, unfortunately, it really has nothing to do with asking people to “sign their life away” at the first evaluation.

Getting people to sign ANOTHER agreement after the evaluation to “commit” to your care plan is just a way to cover up POOR communication and influence skills – and often frightens patients more than motivates them!

(Do you like signing for things? – nor do they!)

But here’s the thing:

The problem of getting people to show up for sessions is only going to get harder – and will be soon preceded by the REAL problem of actually getting people to show up at a PT clinic at all.

Want to know why??

We’re moving into a completely new economy.

It’s called the “collaboration” economy.

There’s a pattern emerging of companies teaming up to “cross provide” a better, more efficient service that may mean a lot of companies will get overlooked.

(Like smaller sized PT clinics).

An example?

Hospital Systems buying out doctor offices to access their data base and streamline services.

Those bigger hospitals can afford to run their PT clinics with an average visit of 3-4 sessions because they’ll make their money if and when that client needs something more costly and profitable – like surgery.

They play a long ball game.

How the world does business is evolving all the time.

And, I happen to think it’s “great”.

It makes it harder and harder for my competitors who won’t want to keep up…

Who spend more time “massaging their ego” than figuring out new ways of streamlining processes to make a bigger profit, DESPITE of the changes.

Over to you…

How will you deal with the changes??

And, do you want to know the the easiest way to stay ahead of your competitors and get the life you want from growing that business you’ve got??

Here it is:

“Get in a “peer group” of people so desperate to NOT to be held back that they’re prepared to pay for (with real money) – and then take action on – advice that they’re being given from people living the life and running businesses, they secretly want”.

It’s THAT simple.

And, usually much cheaper than the $100,000 you likely spent to get through PT school.

Go here next to beat them to it and ensure you’re never short of a stream of patients at your clinic:

– Click Here to Subscribe to Paul’s Marketing Tips Email List >>>

Sincerely,

Paul Gough

New Patients Vs. Past Patients – Who Is More Important?

by · 30th November 2015

On this Physical Therapy Profit Academy Tutorial we’re going to show you the importance of not JUST acquiring more new patients – but acquiring a patient who will want to buy from you forever.

It’s a common thought pattern amongst PT clinic owners (especially those just starting out, myself included when I first began my journey)…

To think ‘new patients, new patients’ is the sole focus when growing your business.

But the thing is, as you do a million things to try and grow your practice, do you ever stop to think about the value of your existing and past patients?

As PT owners, we often focus most of our attention on new patients and their acquisition while overlooking the needs and value of returning clients – the very people who help us REALLY build our profits.

Of course, flooding your clinic with more new patients is important for business too… but when we’re faced with statistics that state – successful businesses with 40% repeat customers generate 50% more revenue than businesses with only 10% repeat customers… it’s clear that returning patients are the foundation of a profitable PT clinic.

How Can You Turn Past Patients Into Returning Customers?

It’s all about the systems and marketing strategies you have in place in your clinic to transform a ‘one-time’ patient, into a ‘life-long’ client.

I spent the last year systemising my PT clinics so that everything is focused around getting a patient to buy from me for life (and not just become another future ‘no-show’).

Having these systems set up in your practice means that you can keep in touch with people forever.

And the best thing about returning patients? There’s no acquisition costs, they’re likely to spend MORE with us over time and happy patients will rave about your services to friends and family too.

So what made me realize this?

When I first started out, my number of new patients vs. returning patients looked like this:

9 new patients, 1 returning.

Whilst 9 new patients is still making me money, what happened to the other 8 that never returned?

And they didn’t NOT come back a second time because we weren’t delivering a great service… the problem was that we weren’t giving them reason to come again. Not only that, but we weren’t making it EASY for them to come back for more either.

How Can You Make Them Return?

Let me begin by telling you what the typical business owner says:

“Our patients come back and see us… Our clinic exists and relies upon the patients who come back and see us again.”

But what I most commonly hear business owners say when I ask – “How do you make people come back and see you?” is:

“Nothing! People just pick up the phone and make another appointment!”

Unfortunately, that’s just luck.

New Patients Vs. Past Patients - Who Is More Important-

And without solid systems in place, it’ll only be by chance that the phone rings again and someone books another appointment.

Do you want to run a clinic where you live in hope each day for that new patient you saw two weeks ago, to pick up the phone and request to see you again?…

I know I couldn’t sleep like that.

There are ways to avoid the dragged out waiting game…

In fact the list of ways to get past patients to come back is endless.

Before I realized the way that people make decisions, my business was at the mercy of someone who has been suffering for 6 months or so with a bad back, who thinks:

“Maybe I’ll give it another day before again”… “I’ll just take some more pills”… “I’ll just see how my back goes” – those are the decisions that all of our patients are making every single day.

So if you’ve got a clinic where people DO come back – good news! You’ve obviously got a great service (which most of us do, you know you can help people ease their pain)…

But even if you have a low percentage of people who show up for more than one session…

…the next crucial step is to set up systems that make it easier, and far more predictable for those people to come back and see you, so you can endlessly GROW and SCALE your practice.

And I show you the exact systems that I use here:

Screen Shot 2015-09-28 at 11.59.43

I spent years figuring these out.

Inside the course you’ll be let in on the same systems that I use in my PT clinics to constantly have a stream of a 60% new patient intake, and a 40% return rate (that keeps on growing!).

The strategies you’ll get inside this course work right now. These aren’t outdated or inaccurate strategies taught by the so called “gurus” who have never been a PT themselves.

This is a solution for your business that your colleagues and competitors don’t even know is available.

If you’re ready to build a solid foundation and keep your past patients coming back to you to leverage your income, take a look at this:

– 7 Low-Tech Ways To Get More New Patients

Be prepared to finally take control and “one-up” your competition by attracting patients to your practice for life.

– 7 Low-Tech Ways To Get More New Patients

I Got Back To My Desk – Then She Told Me This…

by · 24th November 2015

Back at my desk today.

After 6 weeks of travelling around the US with my family in “tow”…

…I’m back in my home town for a couple of weeks to catch up with some friends and family and of course, check on my PT business.

I’ll make the changes and necessary improvements that’ll let me continue to be an “absent” owner so that I can take off to Australia for a month or so over Christmas – to spend some time with my younger brother who lives out there.

It’s great to be back at work.

Arrived Back At My Clinic Today...

I love my business.

And, I love my staff.

(Most of the time!)

But occasionally one or two of my “team” get to the point where they just can’t keep up with the progress that the rest of us are making.

And, usually what happens is when I come back from a long time away from the clinic, those members of staff EXPOSE themselves.

It takes me about a week to work out whose lagging Vs whose prospering – and ultimately, who’s got to go so that we can make more progress.

See, I happen to KNOW for sure that spending time away from your practice, is, well, good for it, in the LONG RUN!

As an Owner, the WORST thing that you can do is to be in there at the desk or in that treatment room, all day long, every day.

You can easily get “lost” amidst all of the clutter and chaos that your staff like to ADD to your life.

But when you’re away from your practice, you’re able to think more clearly…

Invent new, more and better ways of doing things.

Refine the systems.

Improve the process’s.

And, ultimately, actually put your staff to the test and see if they’re running the systems like you asked – so that you‘re making the profit you need to live the life you want.

Because it’s NOT the staff who run a “business”…

…it’s not even you that runs the business.

No… it’s the systems that you put in place that are run by the people you hire, that run the business.

(It’s how it SHOULD work anyways).

Which means that if and when you land back at your desk and one of your NEWEST staff members announces that “she’s pregnant” (like what happened to me)…

…it’s ok!

Because when the time is right, someone else can step in to run the system for you in her absence.

Business is really simple.

Spend some time NOW creating the systems that’ll free up more of your time to do and enjoy the things that you REALLY want to do in your life…

…which I doubt very much is prescribe exercise plans or massage soft tissue for the rest of your days.

Usually, when I speak to business owners just starting out on their journey, they will often tell me they have NO desire to ever want to stop treating patients.

And my answer is always the same:

“Treating patients is nice – and it’s very rewarding.

But it ain’t half as nice as getting on an aeroplane with my family and knowing I can be anywhere I like, for as long as I like… and that my business is the thing that’s funding it all for me”.

…Could it be an industry wide issue that holds a lot of PT’s back simply because not many they know of have ever figured out how to actually create such a lifestyle boosting business??

Maybe.

Who knows.

But if you want some help to set your business up a little differently – like mine perhaps…

…go here next,

Click Here to Subscribe to Paul’s Marketing Tips Email List >>>

Sincerely,

Paul Gough

Website Traffic: Understanding The Basics Of Getting NP’s To Your Clinic’s Site

by · 20th November 2015

On this Physical Therapy Profit Academy Tutorial we’re going to show you strategies to get more visitors – and potential new, high paying clients, to your website.

It’s amazing just how “neglectful” of their website many business owners are.

Most won’t or don’t want to accept it, BUT, your website IS your business.

With over three billion internet users worldwide (and with that number of users growing by as much as 10% each year)… if you don’t have a good website that compels people to become paying patients, and multiple streams of getting prospects to land on your website…

…Then you’re missing out on a great opportunity to generate more revenue and profit for your PT clinic.

Website Traffic- Understanding The Basics Of Getting NP’s To Your Clinics Site

Why is this?

Basically everything online is changing and just like the iPhone, the internet is rapidly evolving too.

Your clinic’s website now, is the profit center to your business.

Once upon a time a website was just a sideline. It was something as a business owner you quickly set-up without much thought because people said you needed one.

And you probably had a lot of people tell you that if your practice has a website that looks nice, is dressed with lots of fancy buttons and pretty pictures, then people would be calling your clinic and simply come to you!

Well unfortunately, that’s not the case.

Essentially your website, and the online presence that you have, is the defining presence of your business. Having an online presence where people can effortlessly find you – is now critical to flooding your clinic with new patients and being the go-to PT in your small town.

How can YOU be the first PT clinic someone finds when searching online?

Let me begin by asking you a question:

Right now, how many ways do use to get people to visit your website?

One? or maybe there’s two?

For most people there’s only one way that they’re currently using to attract new patients to their site, and sadly for the majority, it’s usually ‘by chance’ that people arrive there.

But the thing is there are MANY things that you can be doing to increase your chances of being found online to attract HOT prospects.

I’ve found NINE ways to bring a constant stream of heavy traffic to your website – and even though this took me a while to figure out, once I put these nine things into place, I never have to grow tired again of battling physicians, and getting ‘beat up” by insurance companies to siphon new patients.

Just imagine if you could get rid of that headache too?

Well the good news is you can, and here’s one of the nine tactics that works:

Newspaper And Display Ads

This marketing tool is a money magnet.

We can use an advert to get people to call our clinic AND send to people to our website.

As well as placing our clinic’s phone number on the ad, our website will be there too, which means before they call, people will visit our website to check our clinic out.

It’s known human behaviour – 8 out of 10 people will go onto your website purely out of curiosity.

Just like if you were booking a hotel online – you’d go to their website first, and if they make a good first impression, you’re sold!

Well your website is the same…

You might think that the decision to buy services from you is being made on the advert and the telephone call, but their decision to buy is influenced in a HUGE way by what they see on your website.

People will read all about you, your staff, your clinic’s history, your Marketing message… and that will influence whether they pick up the phone or not.

Everything you can do to get people back on your website is going to help boost your profits and sales in the long run – especially if you have a site equipped with an amazing marketing message.

And I can show you how to do that here:

Screen Shot 2015-09-28 at 11.59.43

It’s a marketing course I created to show you simple ways that you can summon a flood of patients as soon as tomorrow with your online presence.

I’ve spent years mastering these strategies, and thanks to mastering them I was able to build a cash-only PT practice worth over 1.7 million dollars AND in a country that offers completely FREE services to what I do.

If you ever struggle with not being able to book people in for treatment sessions, or if you have issues with patients who don’t show up for their recommended number of visits…then you can put a stop to that by transforming your website into your very own salesman…

You’ll have instant access to the exact tools I use to multiply your income straight away.

Adventures Of A PT Owner – The Story Continues

by · 19th November 2015

As I write this email to you I’m in the departure lounge of the airport at “Myrtle Beach”, SC.

Waiting to fly back to Orlando, enjoying a nice, ice cold “Pacifico” beer, while I do.

As I gulp down my tall beer, I’m reflecting upon two things:

1.) The amazing day I’ve just spent with my Marketing Strategy team here…

And,

2.) Yesterdays “6 Week New Patient Accelerator” class.

I LOVE teaching that.

Always the highlight of my week no matter where I am in the world.

We’ve completed week 3 and already my students have created a system in their practice that allows them to begin to grow that practice – on their terms.

(Without doctors, and without having to HOPE that past patients send them referrals).

Adventures Of A PT Owner - The Story Continues

See, whether you’re a new start up asking for “cash”, or an existing, “in-network” provider, the way that you acquire patients is changing.

For the better.

It’s now all about YOUR ability to find your own patients.

That means you can take control of your own destiny and future prosperity…

And you’ll do that by simply building out a “trust” based Marketing system that helps you talk to the HUGE amount of people in your town who WOULD book an appointment with you, (if only they had more information about what you do), so that they could make a better, more educated and more informed decision.

We all want do do that, right??

Well, your PT patients are no different.

And it’s having that “trust” based automated marketing system in place at my own practice, that allows for this amazing lifestyle I’m living.

I’m not that much of a better therapist than any of my competitors…

In fact, most probably think they have better skills than me.

But not many of them can ever leave their practice.

The difference??

I AUTOMATE everything.

Meaning, I’ve got what they haven’t – “freedom”.

And instead of having people to run my business, I have systems in place that the people run.

Big difference.

Massive difference.

Means I can enjoy a LOT more time with my little boy.

When I’m with him, I’m REALLY with him.

And as much as we love our life back home…

…the weather isn’t all that great and the sunshine and pool of our villa in Orlando is much more enjoyable than the wind and rain blowing back there right now.

Anyhoo…

That’s it for today.

I gotta’ go…

My waiter is hovering over me asking if I’d like another beer before the flight leaves.

“Cheers”.

To your success in business,

Paul Gough.

Note for Physical Therapists: If you want some help to get started, go here to sign up to my email list and get Marketing ideas and strategies for your PT clinic sent directly to you:

Click Here to Subscribe to Paul’s Marketing Tips Email List >>>

My 1 BIG Tip To Light Up Your Physical Therapy Clinic’s Customer Service

by · 17th November 2015

Leaving Orlando today…

…about to board a flight to Myrtle Beach (SC), to spend a “VIP” day with my own business coach in Conway.

We talk once per week, and I visit his office once per year for a full day talking High Level Marketing Strategy.

It’s without doubt, the highlight of a trip that’s taken me from the West coast to East coast, across the last 6 weeks.

But, before I board, let me share with you one more idea that I “stole” from Disney.

I started this one at my own practice a few years back.

It’s called “Magic Moments”…

And, how it works, it this:

My 1 BIG Tip To Light Up Your Physical Therapy Clinic's Customer Service
Basically, all of my team – admin and staff PT – meet every Wednesday morning (without fail, whether I’m there or not) and what they each must do, is re-call one “magic moment” of the week.

It can be something they did, or, as I like best, something that they noticed another member of staff do for one of our patients that was, well, “magical”, in how it made that person feel.

See, my companies mission statement is this:

“To significantly brighten
the day of our patients, so much
so that we want to be the one
they talk about at home,
later that same day”…

(…Notice there’s NO mention of “easing any pain”, “educating” or restoring “function” – don’t tell the APTA lol 😉

And, “Magic Moments” helps us to do that.

What’s more, it allows my staff to regularly feel great about themselves and stay focused on their individual purpose, and our over all, company mission.

As a result, profits go through the roof.

Our attention to detail in the customer service dept. is second to non.

Why?

Because I realized a LONG time ago that JUST being a great health care provider, just isn’t good enough any more.

Even doctors are starting to fall foul of the often “dreadful” service they give out.

The consumer rules.

They have the choice.

And, you and I must deliver something that no one else does.

The problem is, 200,000 + people in the US are capable of delivering “PT”.

So my tip for you today is this:

Business is actually really simple.

Talk to people about their problems as *they see it* so they know that you “get them” and can provide a solution like no one else does (Marketing).

If you do that, more of them show up.

Then, when they all arrive, LOVE them like no one else has the time to do (…customer service).

Do both of those things, and my bet is that your PT business will BOOM in 2016 and beyond…

Who knows, maybe I’ll see you in the line for “thunder mountain” at Disney World next summer spending that more free time and more money you’ve found and made, having a TON of fun with your family, too??

Sure hope so.

It’s fun out here.

Go here next if you want to speed up the process:

Click Here to Subscribe to Paul’s Marketing Tips Email List >>>

Sincerely,

Paul Gough

The 5 “Disney World” Profit Strategies That Every PT Clinic Could Use…

by · 16th November 2015

Spent the whole weekend at Disney…

I go twice per year…

Once as a “daddy” to a two year old…

…and, once as the owner of a business looking for “Marketing and sales” ideas to implement into my own practice.

With that said…

…let me share with you 5 strategies that Disney uses that you, like me,  could apply at your own practice to boost profits.

Ready? Here, we, go…

===

  1. The “Up sell” in the shops at end of Main St – just as your think you’ve spent all that you’re going to, BOOM, there’s a shop waiting for you as you leave and there’s another $30 gone on candy!……where’s your “cash up sell” as patients are about to leave PT?
  2.  Vacation club – basically, a monthly subscription to ensure your vacation dollars get spent with Disney, year on year – have you got a monthly subscription massage program at your clinic? (…mine is called “a year or care”!)

3. They make you book dining or get priority fast passes before you even arrive in Orlando – Disney wants to control the start to end experience and this is the equivalent of booking all sessions in advance!

4. Discount for paying for all your tickets in full – noticed how they incentivise paying for more days up front?

It’s just $10 extra to pay for day five… we didn’t want it, but we bought it and imagine how many extra dollars we’ll spend in the theme park when we get there for that fifth day!…

(Are you giving clients discounts for being “a compliant/hassle free patient?? I have NO problem giving patients discounts for paying up front AND telling them why… i.e. because I like to reward my best patients).

5. Brochures/Literature sent in the mail on request, prior to booking your vacation – Even Disney does “lead generation”. The most profitable, most well know, most trusted brand in the world recognises that they have to give people information first to help them make the right decisions – are you giving your patients information to help them choose you??

===

…What’s that you say??

Strategies for a “theme park” aren’t appropriate for a small Physical Therapy clinic?

…Even though they’re working for one of the most successful companies in the world??

I beg to differ…

…In fact, I’d wager that these things are more suited to the Physical Therapy industry, than a theme park.

And now, more so than ever.

See, it’s the clinics who look out side the box at the “billion dollar” companies – and not at their competitors across the street just scrapping a living – who will prosper in this new health care economy.

And it’s going to get EASIER…

Having spent three days at the APTA conference talking to 100’s of PT’s, I can tell you that there’s a LOT of “doom and gloom “about the PT industry right now…

…Which is great for YOU.

Because while they’re all discussing how bad it is and whose fault it is…

…you’re the one reading these types of emails, investing in program and courses, looking for fresh new ideas to sky rocket your clinic to new, higher levels of success.

There’s OPPORTUNITIES to do something different, every where you look.

All that’s left for you to do, I guess, is actually take some action and start making some changes.

Especially if your clinics numbers have flat lined.

Because failing to take action on the ideas and opportunities I give you is a bit like going to Magic Kingdom, and choosing not to get your 3 “fast pass” tickets that’ll jump you to the front of the queue – and save you a ton of hassle and frustration.

And you know what??

As it happens, you can get a business success “fast pass”, from right here, now,

If you want some help to get started, go here to sign up to my email list and get Marketing ideas and strategies for your PT clinic sent directly to you:

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Maybe some more Disney tomorrow.

“See Ya’ Real Soon!”,

Paul Gough

APTA Conference – Day 1 Highlight

by ·

Want to know what it was??

“The coffee I had en-route!”…

Just kidding…

…No, without doubt, the best moment was listening to “Jerry Durham” talk about the importance of the customer life cycle.

If you’ve followed my work for any length of time, you’ll know that I’m a huge advocate of internal sales systems.

AKA – the “customer life cycle”.

Couldn’t have grown a business so big, so easily, so quickly, without implementing it at my practice.

And without systematizing yours, I guarantee you’re going to loose money.

Not good.

An example of how paying attention to the customer life cycle can help boost your profits??

“Patients not attending ALL the sessions you or a staff PT prescribes”.

APTA Conference - Day 1 Highlight

That can go through THE FLOOR, with a proper system in place to PREVENT it.

Even, dropping off schedule (“lost sheep” as Jerry calls them), with a lame old excuse about “being busy”, that we all know is just total “BS”…

But here’s the thing…

If patients are dropping off schedule – even re-arranging appointments – for what ever reason…

…it’s only because they THINK that what ever it they’re doing is more important than physical therapy.

And that’s the therapists FAULT, for letting them think that way.

Not good.

Having people trained, the systems in place and the step-by-step process to deal with ALL of these possible interactions, is what separates the Owners who make the big bucks, from those who just survive.

Having well thought out internal sales systems and processes is the ONLY way that an Owner can confidently step away from the business, without fear of the ship sailing off into the wrong direction.

And, without such such systems in place at my own clinic I wouldn’t have spent the best part of the last 6 weeks travelling across the US to attend the seminars, that is further enhancing my business and life.

It’s not that hard to get more success in business.

Just do all of the things that your competitors or even your peers don’t seem to want to do – or won’t find the time to do.

Or, as I was once told…

“Spend a year or two of your life doing the things they won’t, so you can spend the rest of your life doing the things they cant”.

Want some help to set your systems up so we can break you free the “ain’t got time for that!” trap???

Click here if you’re ready to take the leap and sign up to my email list and get marketing ideas and strategies sent straight to your inbox:

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Sincerely,

Paul Gough

What would “Walt” do? (…with your PT Clinic)

by · 13th November 2015

As I’m in Orlando, lets talk about “Disney”…

Disney is the kind of place where “no excuse” is needed, to want to go back and enjoy the experience.

Here’s some stats:

Something like 60% of everyone who will walk round the parks at Disney World today, is a second and third (or more) time guest.

And, about 40% of those people, have already been once THIS YEAR!

As in, like me, they’re making they’re second trip of the calendar year to see “Mickey” and friends.

Now here’s the thing…

I’ve been coming to Disney since I was “7”.

Made my first trip here in 1988.

And honestly, very little has changed.

Sure, there’s been some obviously big improvements, but to all intents and purposes, most of what I saw in 1987, remains today.

So the question is, how do they do it??

How do they get people like me to show up repeatedly, maximising the value of the customer better than any other company in the world?

Most likely, it’s because of how they make you “feel” from the very first moment you see their advertising on TV.

See, while most theme parks are advertising “rides” and “thrills”, Walt advertises “magical experiences” and “memories that last a life time”.

So good that by the time I’ve finished watching a 60 second commercial for Disney on the TV, it isn’t long after that I’m reaching for the credit card to book a couple of flights and a hotel.

(Or, looking for any excuse to be in Orlando – such as the APTA conference here today)

So here’s the moral in todays lesson:

Most PT’s are advertising the equivalent of the “thrill ride” when they say “we’ll end your pain fast”…

…that’s fine.

But it rarely works.

And most only do that type of advertising, ‘coz most everyone else does, too.

They don’t really know there’s a better a way…

…a way that connects consumers to their CORE desires.

Like,  a dancer being being able to perform in the next up and coming competition with less foot pain…

…a golfer, able to make it to the 18th hole with less back pain…

…and even, an active 50 year old able to walk further for longer with friends, absent of any knee pain.

These are called “marketing messages”… and when you know who your ideal patient is, it becomes very easy to talk to them in your advertising and attract more of them to your practice.

No body really wants Physical Therapy.

Much like, NOT many people lie awake at night dreaming about the rides on offer at Disney…

No, what they want, is a TON of memories with their children that last a life time.

And for that, they will pay Walt the admission fee at the gate, many times over.

The next step for you??

Figure out who your ideal patient is and talk to them directly in your marketing.

Say NO to the rest…

And, create a magical experience at your practice… one that has people raving about YOU and YOUR STAFF (…not your PT skills), and you’ll have more people waiting in line to see you than the “Black Hole” at the Magic Kingdom, on the busiest day of the year.

 

Click here if you’re ready to take the leap and sign up to my email list and get marketing ideas and strategies sent straight to you:

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Sincerely,

Paul Gough

What’s Missing??

by · 12th November 2015

Just left Denver, where I attended “Dan Kennedy’s” annual conference…

…and, flew to “Orlando”, ahead of the Private Practice Conference here this week.

This’ll be my 5th conference in 5 different States, inside 5 weeks.

It’s been a wild ride.

(Especially with my two year old son “Harry” travelling with me every where I go).

Lets talk about these Seminars:

You always see a few familiar faces, veteran marketers, smart business owners – and some absolute beginners.

I had good chats with “Joe Polish” (from ilovemarketing.com) and “Russell Brunson” (founder of Click Funnels), “Kim Walsh-Phillips” (the nations leading Facebook expert) as well as “Dan”.

It pays to go to great events, and hang out with great people.

But, what you also get is a LOT of people who THINK that by simply attending these types of events, that they’re going to be successful.

“Na-da”!

What's Missing??

An example:

I spoke to one guy called “James”, a Lawyer from Wisconsin – he comes to the event every year and yet his practice is no better off that it was last year.

As clever and as educated as he is, he’s unable to work out the reason why.

And yet it’s really simple…

‘James’ had done nothing to implement his ideas in the last 12 months.

‘James’ suffers from fake ambition.

If you ask any PT business owner if they want to grow their business and increase their profits, the vast majority will say “yes”.

It’s a bit like asking if people want to look younger, be slimmer, fitter, healthier, richer… it’s a bad question.

Because its not about “do you have the desire?”, the real question is “are you willing to pay the price??”

And that’s where most people fall down.

They say they want to lose weight, but they don’t watch their diet.

They say they want to get fit, but they don’t work out.

They say they want to grow their business, but they aren’t willing to study, learn and implement the marketing and business strategies they need to get the results they want.

It’s cause and effect.

If the effect (goal) is missing, then so is the cause.

 And so here’s what I want you to learn from todays lesson:

Don’t commit to the goal.

“Commit to implementing

the CAUSES that will get you

the effect you want”.

Fall in love with the CAUSES – like implementing better Marketing Strategies – and the effects will take care of themselves i.e 50% more NP’s each week!

If you want some help to get started on the stuff that causes you to reach your goals in 2016, then I can show you exactly how.

Click Here to Subscribe to Paul’s Marketing Tips Email List >>>

Sincerely,

Paul