A Slap-head's Approach to Private Practice

Late last night I went out to McDonalds.

It was dark, it was late, and as I walked down the street I saw a man on the other side of the road look up, clock me then change direction and turn to walk straight towards me over the road.

Interesting, I thought.

He was a lean, olive-skinned bloke. Looked like he was from somewhere in the Middle East, perhaps.

He stopped right in front of me - a fraction too close, standing in my personal space - and said "Excuse me".

"Hi" I said, quietly taking my hands out of my pockets and wondering where this was going to go.

He wasn't exactly threatening, but it was late at night on a dark street in London, and he had clearly singled me out for attention from the few other people out and about.

"I see you have very short hair. I am opening a salon soon just over the road. I can do micropigmentation for you if you wish. Here is my card."

I smiled, he smiled, and we went out separate ways into the night.

As you may know, I am (ahem) "follicularly challenged".

In other words, I have male pattern baldness.

It doesn't bother me in the slightest: as I always say, you can either have testicles or hair - but seldom both.

A long time ago I decided that if I started to lose my hair I would shave my hair really short rather than have a Chrome Dome or - worse still - attempt to cunningly conceal it by sweeping the hair from the sides over the top (thus giving the impression of a full, natural head of hair)

So that's what I do: either shave down to 1mm or so or go completely bald, depending upon how lazy I'm feeling.

And Stephen - we'll call him that, because that was the name on the business card - thought I was the ideal customer for his new venture.

Good on him.

I've been helping consultants to grow their private practices for quite a few years now.

And whilst I can't KNOW, I do think that there are many other, better ways Stephen could grow his aesthetic practice.

(But then again, maybe his strategy is working. Maybe he has a chain of four salons already and this is the 5th one he's opening. After all, there's no doubt he's targeting the right people - men who are local to his salon and shave their hair very short because they are balding...)

Anyway, the point is not the merits or otherwise of his approach.

It is to say that the difference between consultants who have successful private practices and those have unsuccessful ones is usually pretty simple.

The successful guy is doing what the other guy won't do.

Not CAN'T do...

...but WON'T do.

Best wishes,

Dev Lall BSc(HONS) MB ChB FRCS(Eng.) FRCS(Gen. Surg.)

Founder, The Academy of Private Practice

P.S.

Of course I'm not suggesting you should wander the streets and hand out your business card to all and sundry.

But what I AM suggesting is that if you want your practice to grow then you need to be proactive about it.

There is no magic bullet, no "hidden secret" to growing a successful private practice.

All it takes is effort and application, to ensure you are visible to potential patients and those who could refer them to you.

A good way to start?

Click here to get your FREE 31 Hints, Tips and Strategies to Grow your Private Practice

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