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Maximizing Your Business In 2012

Geoffrey Cooling

Harnessing Your Workflows To Increase Business in 2012

 

Initially you should set down strict ground rules for the recording of information in your CRM. It is imperative that you consider this in order that you can fully utilize the power of the software. The status of all recorded contacts should be updated and clear. In other words the exact status of every contact should be recorded clearly in a searchable field. All and any points of contacts with anybody on your database needs to be recorded. That means any phone calls either in or out, any letters either in or out, any appointments whether attended or not.

These ground rules will allow you to maximize your defined searches for marketing purposes, defined searches will allow your marketing to become more targeted and sophisticated. This will assist you to meet your budget forecast for both volume and revenue, maximizing Patient returns, retention and indeed referral. The secondary step you need to undertake is the introduction of a proper Patient journey strategy. You need to lay out a strategy that gives value to your Patients but which is also balanced to bring tangible benefits to you. Again once the strategy is formulated your CRM will assist you in the deployment of the strategy moving forward.

You should also consider and assess your ongoing consultation pattern, product knowledge and upsell strategy. I think that you should consistently audit your Practice this year to ensure that the changes you have made and the benefits they bring continue. I also think that it would be of real value to you to sit down and formulate a strategy to increase your ancillary revenue flow. I think that this can also feed into your Patient Retention strategy. You should consider a deployment of a loyalty club and how you may utilize this in a possible marketing campaign.These are the outlines of the things you need to consider:

 

Strategic use of your CRM

With reference to your ongoing strategic goals, you need to design a policy for data entry on your CRM to ensure maximum efficiency of filter searches and automated processes.

Tactical use of your CRM

Again pertaining to your strategic goals, you need to design a policy for the tactical use of your CRM utilizing the full power of the programme to realize your goals. This policy would include Patient Journey, three month letters to test no sales, one year letters to test no sales, letters to prospect contacts, follow up letters to prospect contacts. Integration of your loyalty programme, communications for the loyalty programme.

Data entry rules for your CRM

As discussed these rules are inherent to your success and need much thought, without them your entire strategy is at risk.

The Patient Journey

This needs to be assessed and set in stone; I have been considering this a lot lately and have changed my conceptual thinking slightly. Up until now as you may be aware I have considered six monthly call backs as optimum. However, I think that the right balance may actually be eight monthly call backs. This period of time may be a better balance to maximize benefits for both you and the Patient.

Tactical deployment of the Patient Journey

This pertains to the automation of communication processes in reference to the Patient. Again this relates to your CRM policies.

Maximizing Patient Retention & Referral

You need to consider a way to pull all the strands together to maximize your Patient retention; this would include many elements of your practice.

Ongoing Consultation Auditing

Audit your consultation continuously, keep what works and discard what does not. Assess if you need to further engage with a Patient and where you need to do this.

Ongoing product training

Continually brush up on your product training, truly understanding your product portfolio leads to better ability to give advice. It also gives you the information needed to discuss product and price differentiation. Do not just understand the feature sets, de-cipher them and offer advice on them in language that your Patient understands.

Upselling strategy

Do you have one? If you do not consider it carefully, the segmentation of your pricing can help you here.

Increased Ancillary Revenue

I think you should look at formalizing a strategy to increase your ancillary revenue, I also think that once this is done you should set out a policy that will allow you to deploy the strategy.

Loyalty Club Deployment

You need to consider further strategic goals of a loyalty club and how it can be deployed to maximize ancillary revenue, Patient retention and referral.

Regards

Geoff

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