How Your Practice Can Deal with Social Distancing

17 Important Tips To Survive Tough Economic Times

Many of my clients’ practices have been either closed temporarily or forced to only deal with emergent-need customers. They have asked for marketing suggestions on what they can do during this physical distancing period. Here are some tips I have shared:

Audit Your Costs

Get rid of unnecessary expenditures that do not add to your bottom line. Concentrate funds toward investments that deliver trackable results and those that can make a more immediate impact to get you through short term turmoil. 

Review Marketing and Building Referrals

Google just announced that it was suspending the ability to display new reviews or responses to better allocate their resources and protect small businesses that have been forced to deal with suspended/closed hours and services. They will continue to show existing reviews, but will be adding new ones at a later time, so stockpile them at this time. Like you, patients have more time to do tasks that they would otherwise not get to. Also, people want help during these times. Don’t be afraid to ask for it.  

Virtual Consults  

Now, more than ever, is the time to go virtual. Social distancing and working from home has gotten consumers acclimated and engaged with virtual meetings and online consultations are effective at elevating the commitment of your visitors and converting them into clients. Online consultations include the ability for your visitors to provide personal photos and more detailed insights that are necessary for you to provide an effective consultation. You can consult with them "live" or record and securely send it. Although this is a way to consult during these times, I believe this the way of starting a relationship with your best prospects and you need to make this a sustainable part of your new business acquisition processes.

Google Virtual Tour

Consider having a certified Google photographer come in and do an interactive virtual tour of your office while they have access to your facility without interrupting patients, etc. Virtual tours are good signals for Google (and consumers) on your Google My Business profile, website, social media, etc. Boost your engagement, share your practice visually and confirm/validate your brick and mortar business on Google Map Listings (GMB). 

Content Creation

Q&As are some of your best content, mainly because they come from your clients. Since you address these questions every day, you should be able to crank out a high volume in no time. If you find it easier and more conversational, use your phone and answer in voice recognition. Compile your content and use in your blog, or forward to your agency to leverage you best content.  

Q&A Videos

Make a list of the top ten questions you get for each procedure you do. Find the right setting, set up a camera or phone, use a good microphone and lighting, and start answering questions. Each Q&A can be a video for you to upload to YouTube and then imbed in a video gallery on your website, as well as to post on FaceBook, Instagram, etc.  

Photo Gallery or Results

If your practice has the ability to promote before and afters, we know that your photo galleries are you most powerful section of your website. Take this time to not only add more before and afters, but update them. Cull out old, inconsistent, low quality cases that are not representative of your high quality results. And reorganize them so that cases that better reflect the patient make up of your practice appear first. If your practice does not utilize photo results, take this time to develop relevant pages to demonstrate the results you deliver.

Improve Conversions

The most immediate way to generate more business is to convert the exposure and leads you are currently producing. Convert more leads into consultations by revisiting telephone intake recordings and roll play with your team. Also, develop more robust email/text messaging sales follow-up. More strategic digital follow-up includes links to specific website resources (ex. - About Us, practice-specific actual results, affordability/finance page, “What to Expect in Your Consultation” page, Relevant FAQs, etc. Lastly, consider updating your signatures by adding a photo and digital handwritten signature. The goal is to develop rapport faster than your competitors.

Plan Your Social Media Strategy

Social media will continue to play a bigger role in your practice in this environment. Develop a social media content calendar for the rest of the years and take into account seasonality, events, holidays, birthdays, and relevant topics. We have a Free comprehensive content calendar we can send; just request it.

Conduct a Full Assessment of Your Marketing

Practice owners know that the Web is their most important marketing medium and there is likely a small fortune of missed opportunities but they never have the time to uncover and address them. Use this time to get a comprehensive assessment of all your digital market opportunities. Sure this includes evaluating your website and SEO, but also your social media, paid advertising, review/reputation marketing, generating more referrals, GoogleMyBusiness/business citations, Google local, and calls-to-action. Take advantage of our free digital marketing assessment.

Nurture Professional Referral Relationships and Build More

There is no better time than now to do personal outreach (telephone calls!) to all of your established referral contacts and collaborating with them. We all could use more friends during these stressful times and taking the time will solidify those valuable relationships. Also, use LinkedIn to target and build on your referral network. Use this time to fortify your credibility by providing helpful, thought-leadership content that can help them and their customers.

Be Open to Tactics You Previously Dismissed

Don't let past assumptions or experiences shut off opportunities in this different environment. For example, practices that have been reluctant to utilize Live Chat and Text Messaging calls- to-action, or other creative "next step" strategies, like online consultations mentioned above, need open their minds to new ways of converting. Even with lower traffic during these times, you can make up for it with higher conversions. Crisis can be a catalyst for creative solutions for the open-minded practice.

Target and Narrow Your Promotional Message

What are the qualities of your practice that make you unique that also build profits? It's important to place your energy on the facets and services that make patients want to go to you. Keep your patients' psychology (Lipstick Effect) in mind when targeting procedures and treatments. Consider what your target cosmetic consumers want. Don't just think about what you want to sell; think about what your customers want to buy. 

Consider Bundling Your Services

Use creativity and strategy to find a combination of services that offer value-added benefits to patients. Much like Advice Media, by bundling your highest value services, you can provide them at an overall lower cost. 

Focus on Value

Value > Price when it comes to purchasing decisions. Customers will still pay more for higher quality self-improvement services; your goal is to communicate your differentiators that add a higher level of value. But also be willing to provide and promote affordability and financing (not the same thing as advertising a discounted price).

Office Vibe

Many practice owners enter the office through a rear entry, never to experience what their customers see, feel and experience. Take a moment to assess your customer experience spaces and update them appropriately. Also, for health reasons, remove magazines and other community sharing items.

Don’ Overlook Low-risk Internal Marketing

Think about digital assets that have an impact on your patient acquisition rates, but cost little, or nothing to build - better engaging social media posts, building and interacting with more positive patient reviewers, internal email/text messaging marketing and patient loyalty marketing. These things don't cost a lot to do, but add tremendous value and ROI to your web presence and targeted exposure.

These are just some suggestions that your practice can implement during these difficult times. I encourage you to extend support and other ideas to colleagues and even competitors that contribute to the whole of our industry. We will come through all of this stronger and more united than before.

Please add comments or other suggestions we can share with others. Thanks!