Just as with an insurance based practice, there is no one magic bullet to success when building a chiropractic cash practice.
Below is a summary of the keys to success you should internalize and never forget – from day one of starting the journey – if you decide to transition towards or open a cash chiropractic office.
1. Always be Marketing – From the clothes you wear to how your staff and practice look and feel, you are always marketing whether you want to be or not. Customer volume solves most business issues so always have at least 4 or 5 ‘marketing poles’ in your community pool bringing patients through the door. One fishing pole might be as simple as asking for referrals or reviews while another is a simple online ad and yet another as complex as an outside health fair event. Either way, always have a marketing plan in action – not place – action!
2. Always use a System – Anything and everything that happens inside or outside your business – from in-taking a new patient to an outside marketing event – should operate from a system that is comprised of protocols and scripts. Scripts are what you say and Protocols are what you do.
3. Always be Educating – Whether in public or in the office during a visit with the patient your focus is educating them about their health and the impact your services can have in restoring and maintaining it. All other chatter including greetings and quick small talk should lead back towards education – and never about you… ever
4. Lower your Overhead – The big juggernaut clinics of yesteryear are dropping like flies or at the very least gaining heavy scrutiny from government agencies and insurance carriers which leads to unwanted stress. The goal with your cash model should be lower overhead and lower stress.
5. Get Committed – Being passionate about serving the community through life changing chiropractic care without other entities making your care decisions for you should serve as the driving force to never going back to insurance or quitting on your cash practice dream even if the going gets tough. Stick with it!
My business partner said years ago that “there are much easier ways to make money than owning a chiropractic business.”
However… there is no more important or rewarding profession on the planet… Period!
The impact we can have on the health of people in our community and the world is more profound than any other since health service or product.
However, the key to having a successful cash (or insurance based) chiropractic office is you must still run your chiropractic ‘business’ just as any other successful small business must run theirs. Remember…