What if there was a way for you to get an additional 15-20 new patients per month with minimal effort and have a good time while doing it … Is that something you would be interested in? Of Course! In this article I will present you with 3 surefire ways to accomplish this without spending a lot of time or money.
Enter Dr. Schmooze : To converse casually, especially in order to gain an advantage or make a social connection. (www.dictionary.com)
The first method in schmoozing your way to the top is to find out what your patients enjoy doing when they are not at their place of employment. This can be as simple as going up to a patient and saying “Mary, what do you enjoy doing when you are not being an accountant?” You should keep a database of all your patients and their hobbies as this will be very handy when you give them a gift. How cool would it be that when 
Mary sends you a referral, we could reward her with something she would enjoy, such as a magazine subscription or coffee table book of her hobby. That is something your patients have never experienced from any other office they have visited and will set you apart. When gifting a patient a book, always inscribe a short message on the inside. When gifting a patient a magazine subscription, make sure to have a line on the address label read “Compliments of Office Name”. For about $10-$15 you can make a lasting impression on a patient.
The second way to get additional patients is to bring lunch to the workplaces of your existing patients. I can not believe how simple this concept is and what great results our clients have been getting from it. Start off by putting a sign on your front desk that tells people to drop their business card in the adjacent fish bowl for the chance to win lunch with doc. Every week or so, draw a card out of the fishbowl and give them a call letting them know that they won.
Here is the key part: after confirming a date and time, ask how many people that you can bring lunch for. Ideally, you have a group of 5-10 people sitting around a table at your patient’s workplace that can all become new patients. There should not be any hard sell but more of a casual lunch and leave them with some health passes encouraging them to come in. Most of our clients have been averaging 10 new patients a month from this technique just for bringing lunch which costs about $8/person.
Another thing I should note that applies to everything your office team does – team appearance is critical. People will judge you based on your appearance before you even shake their hand to say hello. Every person on the team should be wearing a name tag, doctors included. This is especially important in multi-doctor offices and offices with a solo female practitioner. Shirts and pants should be pressed with no wrinkles. Male doctors should be wearing a tie and females should be dressed in business attire. Casual Fridays should be a thing of the past. If a patient walks in to the office for the first time on a Friday, how will their opinion differ than if they walked in on the previous day?
By utilizing the three methods I mentioned above along with every day courtesy and emotional contact, you will notice a significant jump in new patients and well as patient retention. The closer the bond between the patient and your office, the harder it will be for them to discontinue care. You can’t lose when you schmooze!
Peter Drubin is the co-founder of Social4Chiros. Peter plays an intricate leadership role in the structure and function of the organization. As an author, speaker and social media guru, Peter’s coaching and communication style is packed with practical information, that is geared for easy implementation and effective results. His rich experience in chiropractic marketing provides his clients with a clear and concise road map to achieving and surpassing their personal and professional goals.
