Catherine Maley, MBA - Attract More Patients and Profit » Aesthetic Patients Topics from Catherine Maley Cosmetic Marketing Expert

Golden Handcuffs for Your Best Patients

Catherine — Wed, 28 Dec 2011 17:22:26 +0000

2012 is going to be a challenging year for aesthetics thanks to lingering recession, Groupons, heavy competition, less Internet traffic due to the sheer number of competitors and fickle aesthetic patients who show little to no loyalty.

It is VITAL you corral your best aesthetic patients so they don’t wander off. It’s also cheaper than spending a fortune finding new patients. It’s also more fun to work with patients who know, like and trust you than total strangers who are apprehensive.

A great solution is the VIP Club Card. It builds “silent golden handcuffs” around your best patients who return often and refer their friends. These high-quality patients love feeling special and getting preferential treatment so use that to your advantage. Give them a unique VIP Club Card with perks and they’ll help you succeed in 2012.

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For a free download of Catherine’s book, Visit www.YourAestheticPracticeBook.com or call Catherine at (877) 339-8833. Her firm specializes in creative patient attraction – conversion – retention strategies to drive aesthetic profits.

Why is the Aesthetic Patient is REALLY in Your Office

Catherine — Tue, 13 Dec 2011 21:18:46 +0000

You want to do everything you can to learn why the new patient is there to see you because here’s a hint: There’s a chance there’s more to their answer then originally stated.

If you and your staff bond with the new patient and let them talk, they may tell you the real reason they are there and the circumstances involved. I guarantee – it’s often not the price but something else you would never know unless they told you and they will only tell you if they feel a connection to you.

Here’s a real life example of a patient coordinator story told to me:

The patient coordinator was told by the new patient during her initial consultation that her hair stylist referred her to Dr. Smith because he was the best and his office was close by. The back story was that the patient learned her husband was going to divorce her so she desperately needed to use up the $20,000 limit on her credit card before he shut the credit card down. This consultation had nothing to do with price, competition, shopping around or negotiations – but you would never know that unless you bond with and make the prospective patient comfortable enough to open up to you.

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Lay-a-Way Program Helps Conversions

Catherine — Tue, 18 Oct 2011 17:53:49 +0000

This weekend, I attended a conference where a very smart (and rich) guy was talking about the economic indicators for the next 4 years. Without going into the depressing and scary statistics about unemployment, the prolonged housing crisis, and government unrest, it looks like we are not going to see better times for awhile.

The good news is if you know that, you can adapt accordingly, so here’s an idea: Offer your big-ticket aesthetic procedures on the lay-a-way plan. Patients can put money down today to lock in their commitment and then make payments to you up until their surgery date. You can even decide on a monthly amount you will automatically charge their credit card.

While this may seem like a hassle or too much work, it’s well worth it if you have prospective patients who want what you offer but can’t afford it or don’t want to spend their money all up front.

This way, the patient stays loyal to you, they are grateful you gave them a way to get what they want and you have a patient on the books rather than a prospective patient who visits other practices to see if they’ll help them.

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Guarantee Surgery – Wha-Wha-WHAT???

Catherine — Tue, 04 Oct 2011 17:52:40 +0000

There’s a pretty good chance you don’t guarantee your surgeries so please hear me out.

Consumers in general are skeptical. Patients are even more so since they want to know they’ll get a good result and they won’t have buyer’s remorse. They don’t know whom to trust and often have a tough decision to make between several practices. So how can you stand out?

Offer something your competitors don’t and watch your conversions grow. Offer a guarantee they will be happy with their result or you’ll throw in a revision for up to one year. However, put parameters around it. They must adhere to your directions, show up for their appointments and agree to communicate.

You probably do this anyway if a patient is unhappy so offer it up front to take away their fear of making a mistake by going with you versus someone else. And it tells your prospective patient you’re confident in your ability and that builds their trust in you.

So even if 1 out of 100 take advantage of it and you lose a little money, you’ll get 10x more conversions and 10x more profits by offering something unique. Try it!

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Where Are Your New Patients Coming From?

Catherine — Tue, 06 Sep 2011 17:51:53 +0000

Here’s a 1-minute video with an exercise to determine where your big-ticket procedures are coming from. Hint: The answer is in the data so watch this, do the quick exercise and let me know what you find out:

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Cosmetic Surgery Demand is Booming

Catherine — Mon, 29 Aug 2011 21:16:15 +0000

I recently read that 1 out of 5 Baby Boomers polled said they have or would consider having cosmetic surgery. So I did some math: 20% of 76,000,000 Baby Boomers = 19,000,000 people (of which I am one) who are open to cosmetic surgery. That’s a lot of prospective patients!

And here’s more good news. Those 19,000,000 Baby Boomers are going to continue aging so they will need your services again and again. Be sure to offer minimally-invasive procedures and surgical procedures since many will start out small and eventually want surgery. Then they will want to maintain their surgical procedure with injectables and lasers. Like I always say, “You have patients with endless needs. Take care of them for a lifetime – not one time.”

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* Photo Courtesy of www.freedigitalphotos.net

The Human Side of Plastic Surgery Patients

Catherine — Tue, 16 Aug 2011 21:41:48 +0000

When a prospective surgical patient takes the time to:

Stop what they’re doing,

Pick up the phone & make an appointment,

Block time out of their busy schedule,

Hassle with traffic,

Fight apprehension of meeting you for the first time, and struggle with the discomfort of talking about a body part they are uncomfortable with -

That’s someone who has emotional needs to fill.

Mainly they’re not feeling good about themselves so they believe looking good will make them feel good, which is true.

They’re looking for confidence and you can give them a big dose of it by treating them like they are special, by listening to them and by assuring them you understand how they feel and you can make it better.

Because as much as this is about surgical skill, it’s much more about feelings and addressing them so patients choose you over all the others.

Feel-Good Marketing Works

Catherine — Fri, 29 Jul 2011 16:07:56 +0000

Almost every plastic surgery website I visit talks about how caring and compassionate the doctor is and how their main concern is for the patient.

Yet, patients tell me about how they were treated curtly, the doctor didn’t listen to them, they felt rushed, their questions weren’t answered and on and on.

Use that to your advantage. Answer your phones better than your competitors do. Treat your visiting patients better than your competitors do. Devise built-in “touch points” to reach out to your patients throughout the year in a feel-good, thoughtful way.

You’ll stand out big time from your competitors and make a huge impression on your patients who will return and refer.

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Where Do Your Aesthetic Patients Comes From?

Catherine — Fri, 15 Jul 2011 17:49:58 +0000

Here’s a quick exercise that puts aesthetic marketing in perspective. Open your surgery schedule and look at the last 30 – 100 surgeries you performed and ask yourself this:

Where did those surgical patients come from?

Did they come from your Website?

From your printed ad?

From another patient who referred them?

From a current patient who’s ready for more?

The last survey I did with my physicians they told me that, without fail, at least 70% of the surgeries they performed came from current patients and their referrals.

Then I have to ask, why wouldn’t you, in turn, spend 70% of your resources on your current patients who return and refer?

Don’t you think you’d get a better return?

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3 Steps to Smart Aesthetic Marketing

Catherine — Tue, 21 Jun 2011 16:00:56 +0000

Step #1: Smart aesthetic marketing focuses your message on the patients you most want to visit your practice. You do not want to be everything to everybody because that’s too general and won’t appeal to anyone. Decide now who your “preferred” patient is in terms of:

- Ethnicity

- Age

- Income

- Zip Code

- Lifestyle: single or married

- Professional or stay-at-home mom

- Procedures they want

- Concerns they have

Step #2: Understand what that particular target group is most interested in and how your services provide the best solution. You can brainstorm with your staff or, better yet, ask your patients directly.

For example, the younger Hispanic female may be most interested in hair removal or liposuction at the best price possible whereas the mature professional Caucasian woman may be interested in paying top dollar for a natural-looking face lift. Your headlines reaching out to these different groups would be completely different:

Sick of Unwanted Hair? Get Rid of It Painlessly.

Afraid of An “Overdone” Face Lift Look? Read This….

Step #3: Be where they are, so they see and act on your message.

- Attend/speak at events they attend

- Buy banner ads on websites they frequent

- Mail them educational materials with an offer to call now

Although this may feel counterintuitive to you to condense your focus, it will actually give you more results because you are working with quality rather than quantity.

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