It told my audience of plastic surgeons that I was serious about making my mark on this
industry.
I was interviewed by The New York Times, Newsweek, ABC News and I have sold thousands
of them so they are sitting on surgeons’ desks all over the US as well as digital copies all over
the world.
And my book is actually helpful and adds value to surgeons who want to “better their best” so
it’s been a gift that keeps on giving.
But Here’s the Secret
I didn’t just spew my brilliance and hope for the best. As the title suggests, I actually surveyed
many cosmetic patients to find out why they chose you or your competitor and what you could
have done to win over more patients.
This way, I am seen as the cosmetic patient attraction specialist because I spent so much time
and effort dissecting their wants, needs and desires.
That allowed me to help plastic surgeons grow their practices faster and easier because I gave
them shortcuts and insights that made all the difference.
You can do the same.
Write a consumer book that is of value to the consumer who is interested in cosmetic rejuvenation.
Here are 3 strategies that will make your book pop ….
1. Focus
Write about one body part or one procedure.
Be seen as an expert in one thing and they will stay for more.
And come up with a catchy title so the readers know immediately if this is for
them or not.
For example:
5 Things You Need to Know About _____________
The Truth about ___________
The Secret to a Great ______________
Don’t Consider _________ Until You Read This
2. Add Tons of Social Proof
Cosmetic patients want to see other patients just like them who have “experienced” you and
your skill.
The best way for you to “show off” your expertise is to show off your skills through great before/
after photos. And be sure to add a variety of demographics so the prospective patient can see
themselves in these photos.
Reviews are the next element that should be sprinkled throughout your book. What others say
about you is infinitely more important than what you say about you
However, have your patients tell their story. Everyone has one. Their story starts with the
problem (pain) that was causing them angst.
Then why they chose you over all the others (and that’s why the reader will choose you too).
Then what the process was like (hopefully, they will brag about how well you and your staff took
care of them) and then have them end with how great their life is now that they finally took action.
3. Market the Heck Out of Your Book
Writing your book is one thing but actually getting it in front of the right audience is another.
You don’t need it to be a best seller. You need it to get in the hands of prospective patients who
actually are looking for a surgeon to help them.
Spread the word about your book using every media outlet you have access to AND where
prospective patients go for information. Here is a partial list to get you started:
Have a book signing event and take lots of photos and videos
Invite the media – you never know.
Send an Email invite to your current patients and have them forward to friends
Post on your social platforms and have them share with their friends
Add it you and your staff’s email signatures with a link to buy your book
Get invited to be a guest on popular blogs
Get invited to be a guest on applicable podcasts
Sell your book on Amazon and google books
Give all of your consultations your book to increase your conversion rate
Send out press releases (google press releases for vendors who can help)
ORDER MY BOOK
A Complete Guide to Understanding Your Aesthetic Patient and Growing Your Aesthetic Practice. Catherine Maley, MBA went straight to the aesthetic patient to get the answers you need to succeed with your patients.
Now at this point I’m sure you’re wondering HOW to write this book because it can seem like
a daunting task. I get that.
A big reason for this is because you don’t know what to write.
But that’s the beauty (pun intended) of your book…
You just write about what you do every day of your career.
You meet with prospective patients.
You listen to their story and what they want
You set expectations so they understand results to expect
You do surgery and make them comfortable before, during and after
You get them back in to see their final result and take before and after photos
So your content is basically “The day in the life of a plastic surgeon.”
Yes, it can be that simple.
But it’s still not easy. You have to either put in your own time and/or pay others to get this book project completed so here’s what you do:
Once you pick one procedure or body part, it’s time to collect content and this is actually the
easy part.
Using an iPad, have your staff videotape your consultations for that procedure with prospective
patients.
The prospective patients don’t need to be in the video because you are simply capturing what you
normally say to explain the do and don’ts, the results to expect, the pros and cons and so on for
that procedure.
You also want to capture the objections and questions the prospective patients ask because if they
have those questions, so do other prospective patients.
Also record any tools you use to communicate with patients to help them understand. Maybe you
are good at sketching or using computer imaging and so on.
And, to help bring in the emotion and the human side of cosmetic rejuvenation, you want to videotape
patients at different stages of the process such as:
Those who are still researching
Or the night before their surgery
Or during their recovery
And definitely at their post op when they are looking good and feeling terrific!
Now you need to put it all together and get it published and here’s how:
You take all the videotape and audio you collected and hand it off to a transcriber such as rev.com or
fiverr.com and then hand the transcriptions off, along with your photos and testimonials to a ghostwriter
(you can find one at www.upwork.com but be sure they have lots of 5 Star Reviews) and let them edit it
into a readable format.
Then you review their draft, make your own final edits and its now ready for print.
I suggest keeping this easy on you and your pocketbook and self-publishing. You can then have Amazon
print and ship for you at www.createspace.com.
And there you have it. That’s why each and every plastic surgeon should write a book, and how to you create your own!
For more helpful practice-building strategies, visit me at CatherineMaley.com.
TESTIMONIALS
5/5
"Catherine outlined a plan that put key metrics in place, gave us a clear plan to follow throughout the year and trained our staff to increase their conversions by at least 10%. Since engaging with Catherine, I’m happy to report that revenues are up 15% over the last three months - 22% in the last month alone! I highly recommend Catherine’s consulting services to any practice looking for “best practice” additions to their operation."
"I have finally tapped into the most efficient way to grow my cosmetic practice and that is to “fish in the pond of my own patients”. When patients return to my practice, over 85% will purchase another service, product, or procedure. Not only was it worth over $200,000 in revenues this past year, it also reminds my patients I’m still around so they don’t wander off to my competitors. Catherine’s group has far exceeded our expectations and goals we had set up for them to achieve."
"Our consult conversions were running at 40-50%. Then we attended Catherine’s online training and implemented her strategies. They immediately increased conversion rates to 75-80%."
"I know how to run a profitable practice; however, it was not without major staff issues, inefficiencies and unproductive drama. With Catherine's guidance, I reorganized staff, set up processes for them to carry more of the workload and hold them accountable so I have more time to focus on patient care. The changes we put in place and the staff training to convert more callers and consultations will easily increase my revenues by 15% as well as save us time, money and costly mistakes. "
"Working with Catherine and her team has been very profitable. We’re only half way through the year and I’m up $200K and I’m booked out for the next 2 months even though we typically go into our slow summer months now. Her recent promotion brought in an extra $63,782 with more surgeries scheduled. I never realized how much money was sitting in my patient list but I’m a believer now!"
"Catherine Maley has one of the best Marketing Minds in the aesthetic industry, bar none. She understands the aesthetic patient and she also understands the challenges and frustrations we face as aesthetic surgeons. You will benefit from Catherine's tools whether you are new in practice or a seasoned professional.Turn to Catherine for guidance - she knows what she's talking about."
“Catherine’s Cosmetic Patient Marketing Service has been a great addition to our practice-building overall plan. While we still invest in our online presence, we also found immense value in the internal marketing efforts. We especially like that all results are tracked so we know we are getting a great return ... last year it was 1,148% and no staff time was used. That’s a much easier way to grow my cosmetic practice.”
"Catherine Maley turned our practice around. We converted more consultations in one week than we did in an entire month. Our practice went from a painful 50% no show rate to a remarkable 85% show rate. Even more impressive was our close ratio - from 35% to 80% and still increasing. We would recommend her to any practice that’s looking to not only increase their profits today, but sustain a healthy flow of income for many years to come. Thanks Catherine!"
"Catherine found me the best patient care coordinator I could have asked for. She worked out a payment plan that was fair to me and motivating to my coordinator. She also provided training tools to help my coordinator convert better, even though she was already experienced. The results have been phenomenal. So good, in fact, that my income increased 250% and I’m booked out for 3 months. Don’t waste any more time or money doing it yourself. Outsource to someone you trust!"
"Since we’ve been working with Catherine and her team for the past 5 months, we’ve brought in $79K in surgeries and have booked an additional 17 surgical procedures and 20 non-invasive body procedures since then. This does not include the additional new patient referrals and revenues we are seeing from the on-going nurturing of my current patient database."
"I had given my staff the goal to convert at least $35K per week in surgeries AND I gave them the tools to help which was Catherine’s Online Learning Center at More Patients Academy. They watched Catherine’s modules and implemented her strategies and converted $80K! That equaled a 2,550% ROI. Nice!"
Catherine is a business/marketing consultant to plastic surgeons. She speaks at medical conferences all over the world on practice building, marketing and the business side of plastic surgery. Get a Free Copy of her popular book, Your Aesthetic Practice: What Your Patients Are Saying View Author Profile.