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The Most Important Tool for Building Your Practice By Linda Harvey-Carter You already own the most powerful practice-building tool. It's a mouth. Open it and you will succeed. Any successful private practitioner can attest that a thriving practice is built by referral. A personal recommendation from a trusted source is worth far more than a full-page ad in the phonebook (the monthly cost of which will exceed your rent). For the prospective patient, a "no pressure" opportunity to see and hear you speak will be more likely to close the deal than a four color newsletter complete with photo. Is There Interest? Are there enough people interested in hearing about TCM? Given the basic laws of supply and demand, the pool of potential patients is plentiful. Of the 280 million US citizens, 80 percent are using or interested in using alternative medical care. At last count, there are only 13,000 licensed acupuncturists (15,000 if you count medical acupuncturists) available for these 217 million people. Plus these folks are being bombarded by media coverage on acupuncture and Chinese medicine. So speak up; chances are good that someone within earshot is looking for what you have to offer. In my experience, public response to acupuncture is so enthusiastic that it can almost become burdensome. Within an average group of people in a social setting, we have one of the coolest answers to the first question that follows, "What's your name?" It's a great conversation starter, leads to many questions, and often evokes a laundry list of someone's problems. After many years of a full practice, a waiting list, and just a little burn out, I began to dread the "what do you do?" question in social situations. Eventually my stock answer was "I'm an accountant," which would be greeted by "oh" and a change of subject. You needn't be a public speaker, just get out of the house, live your life and you'll end up talking about Chinese medicine. Why You Need to SpeakSpeaking with people is vital because trust is an important motivator in making that first "purchase." When deciding to continue purchasing, trust is absolutely essential. Recent statistics suggest a significant shift in consumer trust trends and healthcare. Several decades ago, representation by an expert or authority provided immediate clout for a product or service. Doctors, in particular, meant instant validity. Not anymore. Now people are more apt to trust an uneducated friend or even the vitamin-counter clerk over expert advice. Socio-cultural phenomena aside, I believe trust develops from experience, generally the more frequent and positive the better. If not yet a patient, how is someone to have frequent, positive experiences of you? By hearing you speak and watching you interact. Another interesting marketing factoid is that if someone hears your name, or business name, four times you are considered reputable and successful. Most people won't even recall when, where or what they heard, but they'll recognize you. What to talk aboutAccording to the Hartman Research Group, about 10 percent of the population could be considered core users of alternative health and wellness related products or service. For these people who are a few miles down the road to wellness, natural methods of healing, nutrition and self-care are familiar pit stops. They've evolved from peripheral users who usually start with low fat or healthier foods, some form of exercise and vitamins (which is about 40% of the population). While peripheral users are potential patients, core users are your target market. Incidentally, they are usually female, caregivers (think husbands, children, aging parents) between the ages of 25-55. To core users, "overall experience" and "transfer of knowledge" are the most vital aspects of the purchase decision. Factors such as cost and convenience are more significant for those on the periphery. So, if an exchange with you is a satisfactory wellness/healing experience, while you provide some education, you're the bomb and they're a new patient. Since the average person knows little about acupuncture the educational aspect is simple. The experiential part is all about your bedside manner, enthusiasm and sincerity. When developing content for a speech, try not to think like a practitioner. Think like a patient. What do patients want to know? What are the most common questions asked during a first visit? Invariably they want practical, mundane information, not a theoretical explanation of Yin, Yang, Qi and Blood that practitioners are apt to share. The content for a general talk about acupuncture should answer questions like: Does acupuncture hurt? How many needles will I get? Where do you put them? Will I bleed? How does it work? What does it treat? Does it work for my condition? How long will it take? How many times do I have to come? How often? How much does it cost? Will my insurance cover this? Have you treated this successfully before? Remember, less is more. Rarely do general public talks exceed 40-45 minutes. I usually prepare no more than 15-20 minutes of material leaving the rest of the time for questions. The goal is to engender trust and transfer knowledge; people are more apt to feel a positive connection with someone who listens to them and addresses their needs. Unless the audience is a fibromyalgia support group, it's impossible to anticipate their individual concerns. And if you're talking the whole time, you certainly aren't listening. Where to speakThe short answer is everywhere: in line at the post office, social events, school functions, at the gym. Anywhere that people gather on a regular basis is a potential speaking venue. Every town has civic organizations like Rotary, Kiwanis or Soroptomists; these groups meet weekly and love to have a guest speaker on an interesting topic. Your local chamber of commerce will have a list of these groups in your area. Hospitals and residential care facilities must provide continuing education for their nurses and acupuncture is a welcome diversion from the latest in emesis basins. Nearly every chronic illness known to man has an associated support group for patients and caregivers. One caution: they are wary of speakers who want to capitalize on the vulnerability of their members and therefore resistant to anyone seeking to sell something. Your purpose, however, should be education, which leads to one final point. Your Frame of Mind Approach each speaking venue as an opportunity to give the audience something of value. If your goal is to educate, inform or empower you'll get patients by default. When your intention is to provide a service, to help people right then and there, you will engender trust and good will. Educating is much less stressful for most OM practitioners than promoting. It's folly to fear that by giving away helpful information you render a future appointment with you unnecessary. Think about the patients you've seen already, how often do they have one little issue? Giving demonstrates your caring and desire to help, do this and new patients will be the welcome byproduct of your efforts.
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