Chiropractic Screenings Experts Marketing and Promotion Report

Chiropractic Screening Club Should Be Called ‘New Patient Club’

2011-06-30T16:22:00.008-04:00

The fact of the matter is that Chiropractic Screening Club should be renamed ‘New Patient Club’ because that’s what it’s aimed at and that’s what it does!

What is Chiropractic Screening Club?
It is more than just a practice marketing program – more than just an expert going out on your behalf doing screenings and talks to bring you those who will become new patients. It is far more than that. In fact, it is the most effective way to get those you desire as patients to come to your office and steadily increase your office visits toward your ideal volume all while cutting the expense of it by more than half! Screening Club helps chiropractors solve their practice growth difficulties. But, why become a member?

Single Word Explains Why Your Past Screening Efforts Sometimes Failed
The problem in desperate need of solution was this: Despite the most diligent efforts, why do screenings and talks produce amazing results for many but not for all chiropractors? If something works, it should “work” in all cases. But, it hasn’t. Why?

One word: frequency. It turns out that, among those using screenings and talks as a predominant practice marketing activity, those doctors who establish a schedule of screenings and talks at certain intervals effect the most predictable and steady increase in office visits. In contrast, those who do not establish such frequency, no matter what volume, show, at best, momentary increases but more commonly, stagnant or declining numbers of office visits.

Getting Volume Patients to Chiropractors Wasn’t Enough
Screening Experts was founded upon the purpose of “getting volume people under chiropractic care through screenings and talks”. Literally thousands were getting under chiropractic care in this fashion, an apparent success. Eventually, it was revealed that this generalized result, would not be enough. For it was based on a collective of all screenings done for all participating doctors and therefore, some practices expanded and some did not, all while numbers of new patients increased overall. A new direction was in order. So was a new motto.

The Screening Club Solution to Increased Office Visits for Chiropractors
With this newfound information, key factors of event scheduling were isolated by Screening Experts and worked into a formula which is now used for all clients – a formula which applied, will take virtually any chiropractor’s practice marketing budget, and get the most effective results out of it by scheduling events in a very specific way. Moving forward with this, in 2008, the motto became “volume numbers of chiropractors and their practices getting volume people under chiropractic care through screenings and talks” which firmly established that, from there forward, an increased volume of chiropractic new patients should include an increase on the part of every chiropractic practice represented.

All of which culminates in 2011 with Screening Experts’ hottest practice expansion program ever: Chiropractic Screening Club.

Joining the Chiropractic Screenings Club provides the following benefits:

• 60% off Screening Service Fees
• Free Screening Rewarded for Every 12 Done
• Incentives to Keep in Your Frequency of Screenings
• Special Advice and Tips on Screening and Lecture Venues
• Full Event Calendar and Practice Expansion Formula

All told, Chiropractic Screening Club membership allows you to realize just how far you can take your practice toward and beyond your goals. Most importantly, it will show you that, when screenings are done in an exact and precise way, they do not have to cost you a fortune. The results of this simple, cost-effective formula are yours with your membership, waiting to reward you the more you do. So, dust off those practice goals you set a while ago and call Screening Experts to find out how to join up with those who are making it happen for real.

Frank Sardella
Chiropractic Screening Experts
for more information on Chiropractic Spinal Screenings
go to: www.chiropracticscreeningexperts.com
(845)787-3349

High-Profile Chiropractic Practice Marketing at No Expense to You!

2011-05-04T15:47:00.016-04:00

How to fund effective chiropractic practice promotion without spending a dime of your precious, hard-earned and well-deserved current collections and income

There is no question that “how to promote a chiropractic practice and expand it” is no longer an issue of any great magnitude. The best of consultants have devised the most clever, creative and advanced practice marketing programs and campaigns. Nearly infinite methods of getting new patients, patient referrals and reactivation have been discovered, solving every issue standing in the way of practice expansion – all of them, that is, except for one: Cost. Neglected as a valid barrier, cost yet ranks in importance with getting any campaign, once paid for, to work. Yet, not one consultant has addressed this as a valid barrier, until now.

New Source of Funds For Your Marketing Campaigns
Your Secret Benefactor

The Screening Experts at Screenings Inc. have now developed a self-funding practice marketing program which enables practice marketing and expansion while eliminating the need to spend ANY of the existing practice collections and reimbursements at the outset with the added following benefits:

o Practice Marketing without spending ANY current income
o Increase your patient case average ($) or PVA
o Eliminate up to $1,500 of out-of-network deductibles
o Increased patient compliance to corrective care plans
o Decrease drop-outs from treatment
o Increase patient referrals

The solution comes from a cooperative and concerted effort between Screenings Inc. and Troluna Inc., an innovative company bent on getting chiropractors increased billing, collections and reimbursement through addition of durable medical equipment to patient treatment. While so called “DME” programs and “Tens Unit” or “Electro Therapy Device” programs have become a fad, and have been previously rejected as an idea for recommendation to Screenings Inc. clientele, a reconsideration was made after meeting Troluna president Christina Luncinski and hearing of her purpose to help chiropractors, a drive too similar to that of Screenings Inc. to ignore. After merely one conference call, the latest trend in practice expansion was born and the most successful screening and practice marketing strategy ever had been developed.

This program is the solution to getting the practice marketing and expansion going in any practice so as to fuel and finally achieve forgotten or seemingly impossible practice goals, all while not spending a dime of current collections!

What if someone else picked up the tab for your practice marketing?

Do you feel reluctant to spend any duly-earned income on practice promotion? While it can be difficult to let go of such a reward for granting the miracle of life itself to the patients under your care, in actuality, you should be reimbursed even more than you’re earning, let alone able keep every last penny in spite of necessary marketing expenditures; but, that is another blog entirely! Reluctance is natural but one knows poverty can follow abundance quite closely if practice marketing is not activated. Suffice to say that marketing is vitally needed but its expense is undesirable.

A New Source of Marketing Funds
An Interview With Troluna President, Christina Luncinski

As a direct result of this new working relationship between Troluna and Screenings Inc., and with the varying facts and details, conflicting opinions and all manner of rumors surrounding the field of DME, an interview was in order which would reveal to others what was discovered as to what makes Troluna different and so pro-chiropractic, not merely “pro-money”.

Here is the interview:

FS: Thanks for agreeing to answer up to some questions for our readers, Christina. I thought it was important to get you to explain a few things.

CL: Well, thank you for allowing me elaborate to your readers.

FS: You’re most welcome. I should start with the fact that one of the biggest barriers we face in screenings is in-network vs. out-of-network benefits for prospective new patients, especially high deductibles. Our clients have placed some very stringent restrictions on the qualification process of prospective new patients lately. What I found most outstanding about your program is that you can satisfy a high amount of that deductible taking the burden off of the doctor and patient. This opens the door to new possibilities in qualifying screening prospects. Let me ask you, how much of a deductible will you “eat up” on an out-of-network patient case and how does that compare to other DME programs?

CL: We will absorb up to a $1,500 deductible and we don’t charge patients for any kind of co-insurance. We have a higher deductible allowance than most companies for one, because we understand the tough times here financially as well as economically and how insurances change. Secondly, we want patients to be able to receive the treatment they need at no cost to them, so they can focus their money elsewhere…not healthcare!

FS: $1500? That’s an amazing number. I keep going over it in my head and I am astounded that you could absorb even half of that. Now, how about reimbursement? I understand many DME companies will reimburse for TENS Units and, although providing other DME, will only reimburse for the TENS or perhaps not provide any other equipment or limit reimbursement rates. How does this work with you?

CL: We are happy to be able to help the doctors out even further! We are able to reimburse the doctor for the work he does for our company on a growing list of items, not just electrotherapy devices.

FS: Well that’s news. I think many doctors think that electrotherapy devices are the end-all of the industry. The biggest complaint I have heard as regards DME from my clients, on the other hand, is how they have to purchase equipment up front or have to wait for a certain day of the month for a check from the insurance company. You mentioned that your doctors don’t have to wait for reimbursement. Can you explain how this works?

CL: Well, this part is just fantastic! The equipment is given to the doctor on a consignment-like basis, so there is no cost to the doctor! As for reimbursing the doctor, the insurance company has absolutely nothing to do with it, so the doctor need not wait on them for any payment. The doctor will receive payment for reimbursement of his services from Troluna as soon as the needed documentation is completed and sent in to us. They are your typical medical health forms so they are very easy to complete. In this regard, the doctor pretty much tells us when HE wants to get paid. As soon as we receive those documents, the payment is issued to the doctor.

FS: Sounds like you let the doctor set the terms. That interests me specifically about this. We have a similar philosophy in doing public screenings that we never form a “parasitic” relationship with any referral source and that helping the referral source profit from the relationship is what makes the relationship successful. Well done on that one, Christina.

CL: Thank you, Frank.

FS: So, while we’re on the subject of reimbursement, what average reimbursement per patient might a doctor expect with your program?

CL: As low as $200 per case; that amount will never decrease. If a patient needs more than one item that is on our reimbursable list, the doctor is paid accordingly for the education and time given to the patient for equipment prescribed and told how to properly use it, continual monitoring of the patients progress and completing those two forms we talked about earlier.

FS: Well that’s quite a guarantee you make and I can see where the profit would be for all parties – patient included. Doctors who have a hard time with retention often find that the patients fail to keep their treatment programs because there is no modification of lifestyle outside of their 2-3 visits per week, which only accounts for maybe an hour out of those days. These devices allow for treatment off-site. I would say, off hand, that your unique way of running your program sets you apart from other programs I have seen. So, what do you feel sets Troluna apart as a leader in the DME field?

CL: First and foremost we CARE! We care about the doctors and their patients. We want everyone to be happy and we will do whatever we can to tweak or change something so the program fits perfectly into a practice. We personally call the patients and introduce ourselves to them to let them know we are here should they have any questions or concerns. Customer service is our top priority for both our doctors and our patients!

FS: Amen on caring, Christina. I feel this is the most important component as this explains why I have been so successful in getting people hooked up with the chiropractic care they vitally need. As someone driven by the purpose of the chiropractic message and model, what interested me most of all in your program is your purpose in the field. Tell me, what has been your experience in the field of chiropractic? Why do you want to help chiropractors?

CL: I have been in the chiropractic industry for almost 10 years and for the first 5 of those, I personally worked for a chiropractor as a CA. That is where I first saw what was happening here. I saw people getting relief from their pain and being able to return to an active, healthy lifestyle. To be honest with you, I believed some of the stereotypes that I heard before I worked for a chiropractor. While I was there, I was literally amazed and I couldn’t get enough of it! I thought this recovery that was happening was so amazing and we needed to tell everyone about it and get everyone in here to feel better!! Little did I know, a lot of the world already knew about the benefits of chiropractic! I was young, and new and just learning, so I thought it was the greatest thing ever! I still do and I still have that enthusiasm to help people. The relief is available however a patient may need to be basically educated about the solution because as I once was, they might be unaware of it!

FS: Well, I think you just summed up why we will be working together to fuel expert practice marketing campaigns with this program. I think the end product of both of our work would be exponential expansion. One last question: What message would you have for doctors who are apprehensive about doing a DME program?

CL: I hear any number of reasons from time to time as to why a doctor may be less than interested in utilizing DME in his practice. Some think it is somehow illegal, or there are kickbacks – all of these things which, bluntly stated, are untrue. Factually, kickbacks are illegal as the Stark Law from Medicare states. We offer a reimbursement for your SERVICES, not for any type of patient referral and so any illegitimacy doctors may fear is non-existent with this program. As I said, the doctors fit the patient and instruct them on how to use the device(s), monitor their progress and complete medical forms. We take care of the rest.

One other thing I should mention is that the equipment is the patient’s to keep. I recall a doctor expressing concern about a prior DME company because he had a difficult time getting the equipment back from the patient! The patient couldn’t just keep the equipment under the terms. There are no such terms with Troluna - no hassling patients to recover the equipment.

Some say it sounds too good to be true. To that we answer, “just give us a try” and find out for yourself once and for all, with no cost to you or your patient and no contract. There is nothing to lose! By working together we can increase your revenue for your practice and also assist in the treatment of your patients!

###

There you have it. You now have the information which was used in the making of the decision to create a powerful marketing strategy with its own built-in funding – not to mention the marketing value of adding the DME devices into your already stellar treatment of your patients. We have so much marketing material already in the works!

Consider this: What if someone else came along and offered to pay you for your practice marketing, with no strings attached? What if someone showed up on the scene and said you could tap an immediate source of unlimited marketing funds which would never have to be paid back? And, what if it dove-tailed perfectly with the care you deliver and even enhanced the results you would get with your patients? Pipe dream or not, this is the new Screenings Inc. program and the ultimate practice marketing strategy for you to achieve your practice goals NOW as opposed to “someday when I have the money for marketing” – a day that never seems to arrive!

It’s ok to admit. You don’t like shelling out money for marketing and could think of some more interesting ways to spend your hard-earned dough. But, if you won’t pay for it, who else will? This rhetorical question of the ages now has an answer. You can keep your existing collections, even increase them, through use of the ingenious “deductible-reducing” and extra-income-generating program by Troluna Inc. to fund a marketing machine Screenings Inc. will strategize and implement for you. Most importantly, you can start today. Now, more than ever and with the help of Troluna we are creating a new generation of patient referrals! So call now to find out how to get started within minutes.

Call the Screening Experts Screenings Inc.

Frank Sardella
Chiropractic Screening Experts
for more information on Chiropractic Spinal Screenings
go to: www.chiropracticscreeningexperts.com
(845)787-3349

©2011 Screenings Inc. All Rights Reserved. Printed and Published in USA.

Penetrating the Fog of 'Innate Stupidity' - Patient Referrals Revolutionized

2011-03-27T13:18:00.015-04:00

Have you sensed it? That unknown barrier through which you force all of your promotional activities, which seems to be the only thing standing in the way of booming your practice? It is quite invisible to you but nonetheless real. It keeps your patients from referring and restrains your marketing efforts, drastically reducing their effectiveness or rendering them null. It may even keep you awake at night with frustration. All the while you try to break through it with each check you write, with crossed fingers, a lick and a promise, for yet another marketing campaign.

It shows up in the attitude of people you meet. Have you sensed it at the last public screening or talk you did? Had your extreme purpose to help restore health and vitality, your plan to supercharge innate intelligence fallen on deaf ears? You are not alone. This is a phenomenon which is experienced by most chiropractors and to which I lovingly refer as “innate stupidity” quite literally. I know, it’s pretty funny – but not THAT funny. A shrinking practice is no laughing matter. Cute name or not, it is real. Naming it is one thing. Handling it is another.

Everyone seems to have an answer to this conundrum. Your local Yellow Pages representative is especially confident in this area as evidenced by the ever-rising annual rates for an ad in the phone book. Then again, he also sells ads to the pizza shop next door, the owner of which he bedazzles with the same demographic data and “selling points” as he does you. And, who opens up the phone book Friday night at dinner time to order a house call from your office? Extra cheese and pepperoni is an easy sell, let’s face it. People naturally reach for pizza – not chiropractic. Strange, isn’t it?

Innate Stupidity

What IS this bizarre, seemingly insurmountable barrier to your efforts for new patients? Wouldn’t it be excellent if there was a law about it which would make it easier to understand? – a fundamental that can undo any barrier to new patients coming through your office door and open the proverbial flood gates? Wouldn’t knowledge of the basics of this subject be of value to you in your promotional choices and actions?

Yes, you say? Then, we are in total agreement.

What if you were to find out today that there is such a law, a guiding principle at work which, known, would empower you to get anyone you wanted under your care? And, what if you could know it and be in such good control of your marketing and promotion that you could literally take your attention off of it and focus on what you do best – restore health?

Well, you can.

From more than fifteen years of chiropractic marketing, promotion and screening and lecture experience we have been collecting information from, observing and surveying public individuals, chiropractic prospects and chiropractors themselves while field testing many resultant programs and have assessed all the results, refining them and making them more effective. While doing so, we searched for a basic understanding of what makes the typical chiropractic patient or case prospect tick. And we found some astounding answers.

The result was a culmination of all of the data that is available to date, with the latest industry trends as well as patient needs, into a program called "Screenings That Rock" which could synonymously be called "Promotion That Rocks" as these have now been found to be the same thing. The program is a combination of written materials, video demonstration and lecture as well as on-site consultation and implementation. It’s now time to put these things to good use. For the basics of the subject we now call “Innate Stupidity” have been revealed and are easily grasped.

What are these basic principles? They are the underlying reasons:

• Why some chiropractic promotional programs work and some don’t…

• Why telemarketing always seems to fail (and how to remedy it)...

• Why one program from one consulting group may work in one instance or area, and not another…

• Why some venues seem to produce good results and some don’t (and how to turn ANY venue to your advantage)…

• Why some locations yield easier results and some are like trying to do brain surgery…

• Why some public individuals will accept chiropractic as a concept and possible solution and some will not…
Factually, knowing these principles will definitely give you the edge and confidence you need to get your entire community under care, while carefully avoiding those individuals who would cause trouble and on whom care would most probably not be effective anyway.

A chiropractic screening is something which has gotten a bad rap, not in that it is an ineffective method, but only in the way in which it is considered in the minds of chiropractors and many industry professionals. We have redefined “screening” to actually include EVERY type of marketing and promotion you attempt in your practice. Yes, even a newsprint ad, website, yellow page ad or mailing. This has revolutionized chiropractic promotion in that it takes all the various strewn, seemingly unrelated categories of promotion, referrals and public events and proven them as a working whole, all of them performing the same function in a very specific sequence. With our program, referrals, advertising, public screenings and talks all fall into the same category, simplifying your life considerably.

The basic principle which underlies all promotional confusion

This is the biggest screening secret of all. We have simplified it into an easy-to-understand-and-use series of levels of “intelligence” on the subject of the body and health. They may not readily be visible to you, but they do exist and understanding them will give explanation to all of your past promotional failures and successes too! Paramount about these levels is the fact that they are a graded scale of “intelligence” on the subject of chiropractic and begin with “Innate Stupidity” and end with “Innate Intelligence”. Finding a person on this scale will enhance your ability to figure out what the person you are screening needs to bring them to the top of the scale whether reaching them face-to-face in a variety of venue types or through an advertisement. Each method of reaching simply starts at a different spot of this scale. Don’t you think knowing this scale might be important?

Want to expand? Do you want to do it steadily with confidence in set principles and fundamentals which will enable you to effectively choose and USE promotional campaigns instead of leaving it to others? It is now possible for you to learn the exact process of practice growth and the relationship your care and its success play in the promotion of your practice. You can now use this process to create a referral generation machine and make use of every natural resource you have in your arsenal and, yes, that includes ALL of your patients too.

Call the Screening Experts today to get an interview about your practice and situation. We will perform a mini-assessment free of charge and customize a program to revamp, revitalize and stimulate resurgence of your chiropractic promotional campaign and your underlying purpose too. We will prescribe a program which begins with these discussed basics which will begin the undoing of ineffective methods and put into use ones that work. Get started on the "Screenings That Rock" program now. Our dynamic campaigns will be just what the doctor ordered and will end the frustration and channel the energy toward what you do best – saving lives!

Call Screenings Inc - The New Generation of Patient Referrals
Frank Sardella
Chiropractic Screening Experts
for more information on Chiropractic Spinal Screenings
go to: www.chiropracticscreeningexperts.com
(845)787-3349

©2011 Frank Sardella and Screenings Inc. All Rights Reserved. Printed in USA.

Where Should Chiropractors Go For Practice Marketing Advice?

2010-11-20T14:26:00.005-05:00

PRACTICE MARKETING ADVICE FROM THE MOST UNEXPECTED SOURCE EVER

The answer to the mysteries of practice nmarketing is here in this blog - this article. Your years of wondering which consultant to pick from ends here, truthfully, because you are about to find out what it takes to marketing a practice successfully and, so knowing, will immediately figure out for yourself (with a little hint and nudge from me) who is the best - and the answer will surely surprise you as you are probably thinking of a completely different person than the one you will find out in a paragraph or two below.

How do you feel, after a full and complete exam, report of findings and a brilliant treatment program when one of your patients says "I would like to discuss this with my 'Doctor'"? How about when you go in for the cash close and the guy says, "I need to talk it over with my wife"? Or, how about the considerations you hear form patients (mostly negative) that are based on something they heard from a "friend", neighbor or some other non-qualified source? It's a little unsettling, isn't it? Something isn't right about it.

So, what is wrong with it? What do all of these scenarios have in common? The person is seeking out information but from other sources than the original. You see this in your practice. I see it in my clients.

Well, let's take the medical doctor giving your patient advice on getting chiropractic care. This is obvious, right? Does he know what you know about the subject? Hardly. The truth is he is partially or wholly, as the case may be, unqualified and wouldn't be the correct person to speak with. Truthfully, if your patients has any more questions or concerns, YOU have not answered him; because as far as all things chiropractic are concerned, save channeling BJ Palmer himself, you are the SOURCE of the subject.

You know this, don't you? You know that no amount of a patient going home to talk to a spouse (who knows even less about the subject), talking to a mwdical doctor or consulting anyone is not going to convince him to do it. Can we all agree that if he does this it will almost certainly make him LESS likely to ever desire chiropractic care?

You have been frustrated about this before undoubtedly.

While not speaking for everyone everywhere, it is pretty certain that there are bona fide experts on a subject. You are the expert on chiropractic. But who should you trust for your marketing.

The answer may surprise you. Odds are you were thinking, "Ok, Frank, you're setting me up for the close. Now you're gonna tell me YOU are the practice marketing expert and I shouldn't 'consult my doctor' to find out whether or not I should use you." Right? Were you thinking that in earnest?

Well, that was not the point I was about to make. And it is certainly not the whole answer.

Yes, I am expert - but, why?

The answer to your question about practice marketing and promotion as to who best knows how to promote you is....

Ready?

A patient.

Your successes in care precede you and are the only form of promotion there really is for your practice. What, after all, should you promote? It's the success in getting someone well, someone out of pain or back into life. And what better person to tell the story than a patient.

There it is - the cat is out of the bag. Your patients ARE your marketing.

I am not just a 16+ year veteran of chiropractic practice marketing, chiropractic screenings, chiropractic screening location finding and corporate health fair marketing - I am a patient miracle success story who is doing what any well-treated patient would have done. We dpon't need to go into detail. If you are interested in my story, go to my website (see below) and click the link "Meet Frank". The whole story is there. The point is, even if not me, you have a volume of people primed to promote your practice.

Your recruitment pool is your patient database. Period.

And you can take that marketing campaign to the bank. Enough said.

Frank Sardella
Chiropractic Screening Experts
for more information on Chiropractic Spinal Screenings
go to: www.chiropracticscreeningexperts.com
(845)787-3349

He Started a Practice and Never Was Heard From Again: The Danger of No Promotion Budget

2010-11-20T09:33:00.030-05:00

You are starting a practice. There are so many things to consider; so MANY expenses! From your X-Ray Machine to the drywall and paint, computers to adjusting tables and equipment, there are so many of them you can, literally, watch your budget money dwindle to nothing with the greatest of speed. But, how did the budget get set in the first place? How do you figure out what the start-up costs really are and where do they end? If you have done this before, they probably end somewhere with your office being complete! After your big "Grand Opening" event, however, how do you fill the clinic? The answer turns out to be the biggest, most neglected and most important, probably-in-the-cut-corners-to-save-budget-money category...Practice Promotion - the cornerstone of any practice!

In functioning as a chiropractic advocate and promoter for more than 15 years, one thing has become clear: Practice Promotion is a question of "Priorities" and on this fact alone, a practice can be made or broken. Such promotion is all too commonly pressed to the bottom of a very long list, the top of which where the word "Promotion" should be engraved in letters of gold! And, reversing your priorities is your ticket to success.

Consider this. While you are picking out the colors for the walls, setting up an incredible, healing environment and thinking of all the people in the community your office will help, none of these things will mean anything if no one ever sees them. Let's modify that to include that the "creation" mode you are in when this happens is to be commended. You should be as creative as possible on it. After all, it's your work environment. But, does your vision at this point include ACTUAL patients lying on those tables? Your first thought may be "yes", as you envision yourself treating lots of people, and even have a picture of it in your mind as you read this. But we are talking about ACTUAL people in your community. Let's face it. How are you going to reach these VERY REAL people?

As a first step, ask yourself a few questions. When you figured out your "budget" to start up, and in weighing out various expenses, would you have left out a telephone? Would you have cut adjusting tables out of your budget because they were "just too pricey" and figured you could start up without them? Would you leave the walls unpainted and left your office looking half done? This would be absurd! Right? You would NEVER leave something this VITAL out of the plan. You need to have an inspiring space in which to practice for doctor, staff and patient. Where, however, is the money to actually put the patients there?

With nothing left in budget to promote your "newly built" practice, you begin to feel your satisfaction and enthusiasm with your new space start to dwindle and perhaps consider your efforts were for naught. This is a budget planning failure, but, more specifically, a breakdown in understanding of the basic facts of promotion. Practice building doesn't end with the 4 walls. It includes a measurable QUANTITY of patients along with a measurable effort in promotion to get them! After all, when you complete your space, it's just that - an empty space!

One of the key problems here is found to be in a confusion that new practice starters have on the subjects of Marketing and Promotion. These are two distinct subjects and, while these topics each could take up several blogs of their own, their confusion is the main point being driven home here.

The look of your space and how you will treat your patients, what services you will offer, your brochure, cards, staff, etc., all of these are what is called "Marketing" which could be on a par with what marketing agencies call "branding". Whatever the industry jargon, this is marketing in its purest form; taking a product to "market". But once put on the market, it needs to be promoted. So, in your favor, you have spent much of your budget money, if not all of it (depending on how you look at these things) on marketing.

Now consider practice promotion. Promotion is how you take all this "marketing", the practice space, your results, your specific "brand" of Chiropractic Care and make it well known to everyone. Look back at your budget. Where was the money set aside for this? Can you see now, in the scheme of things, how neglect of promotion in the budget can make your noble efforts feel empty and wasted?

Realize that, in a "down economy", promotion is king. When conditions in any business sphere are such that income is low, business is "down" or things are "tight", promotion is the ONLY way out. If a business is failing, only promotion can turn it around. After all, is a business with no customers a business at all? Not for long! Therefore, a practice, at the moment it starts, by the definitions given here for "failing business", is actually in a condition of "failing" right off the bat. It has no patients!!! What's the only remedy? PROMOTION!!!

It's an easy diagnosis to make but, perhaps a difficult pill to swallow that a practice, at its beginning, may be "failing". And it should be clarified here that you don't need to adopt a view that you are a failure. Starting up a chiropractic practice is a noble, monumental and life-saving activity comparable to the birth of another human life. And it is as high in importance as the creation of human life for all the lives you will save and lengthen by getting it going. You are indeed a success for having gotten that far so it is more than okay to feel like you have won in doing so. In fact, take a moment to commend yourself for achieveing it or having decided to do so. From there forward, your only barrier is administrative in nature; you've spent everything on Marketing with little or none left for Promotion; and, the best medicine for a failing (or in this case "starting") practice. [IN still other words, a practice with little or no patients.] Take a look at your situation now. Is it starting to make more sense?

Borrowing to start a practice and spending the entire budget on the build-out and various Marketing expenses should NOT stop you from promoting. Promotion is easy and does not require excessive expenditures. It can be as simple as approaching the person in the deli who has a limp or obvious problem and introducing yourself or asking friends for referrals, and asking those referrals for referrals. Whole practices have been built and grown on this. Or it sometimes comes with a price tag as in doing a local home show or health fair. In any case, price is NOT the governing or deciding factor - people met, qualified and signed up FOR A DEFINITE APPOINTMENT to come to the office is!

If you are starting a practice, figure into your budget plenty of finance for promotion and don’t spend it on other things in the process. Set it aside. If you don’t know how to budget for that, talk to someone who has experience with it. If you have already started a practice and didn’t have a promotion budget, you are not a lost cause however, I suggest you figure out how to borrow MORE or sell off something of less importance to pay for it, like your car! Wouldn't you tell your patient to do the same when he balks at the cost of care and ignores the health benefit in the long run?

Whichever the case, "we ran out of budget money" is NO excuse for cutting promotion. Using it as one is for sure, the demise of your practice and all your good intentions, dreams and plans. For you will not be able to pay back any of your start-up costs if there are no patients lying on your tables to treat, heal and charge.

Take a moment. Close your eyes. Go back to the moment you decided to become a Doctor of Chiropractic. Can you recall why you got into practice in the first place? Was it something like "to help as many people as possible through the miracles of chiropractic care"? Now re-affirm that decision you made. Good. Now realize that, without a promotional budget in place, you aren’t helping anyone, your creditors included. So make the decision to change this. Move Promotion to the top of that priorities list and turn your dream into reality. It really is that simple. Trust in it and propser!

Good luck to you in your practice and here's to promotion being at the top of your list, with a full office of patient miracles to follow!

The screening experts and consultants at Screenings Inc. can help you find the right marketing and promotion strategy for your practice. Our practice influx assessment, analysis and planning is spot-on in getting your promotions figured out and operational. Call today to find out how you can make something out of very little or nothing at all in terms of budget.

Frank Sardella
Chiropractic Screening Experts
for more information on Chiropractic Spinal Screenings
go to: www.chiropracticscreeningexperts.com
(845)787-3349

Chiropractic 'Ham' on the Street!

2008-09-09T16:38:00.007-04:00

I have always been a little frustrated, I must reluctantly admit (I never admit defeat), at the amount of work it takes just to set up venues to promote chiropractic through screenings and lectures. It's not my favorite activity by any means and compares, perhaps, to something on the order of getting my teeth cleaned - it's necessary but I always put it off as long as possible. It's neither fulfilling nor fun. It always seemed to me there should be an easier way. Why can't we just start talking to everyone around? I mean, do you even realize how many people walk by you on the street per day? Why spend so much energy on something grueling when we could just simply talk to everyone we meet. Isn't there an easier way?

Yesterday, I found that easier way.

It was actually the most fun I've had in 13+ years of Chiropractic screenings and even lecturing, an activity which is one of my personal favs. It was both enjoyable and fruitful. What was I doing you ask? I was taking the message to the streets. I was on the streets of Manhattan, talking to people about Chiropractic. And, it was a blast!

Without getting into the mechanics and particulars, in my first 15 minutes, I had 3 appointments signed up, with a very refreshing, enthusiastic response from those I approached. It was simple and it yielded better and faster results than even the best of events I had done prior. As you can imagine, I became very interested. So interested I am reworking my screening event planning around this concept.

Yes, there were logistics to consider and, yes, there were demographics involved and a bit of planning prior to going out. But, with minimal planning and little or no permission required, we were able to make quite an impact. It was so much simpler to not rely on someone else's permission to do it. We just planned it and did it.

Major discovery here? Not really. It's kind of a 'no-brainer'. All I see is that we need to get back to basics and start talking about Chiropractic again, and, to everyone we know and meet. This pilot program enabled me to ignite what will become a very provocative way of doing just that and getting more people through the doors of Chiropractors' clinics.

Next time you're in a public place, start a conversation with someone and see. It's quite an amazing experience and you will find well-qualified candidates all around you. You will find there is an easier way to do this. Try it and let me know what you think. You'll find me out on the street!

Frank Sardella
Chiropractic Screening Experts
for more information on Chiropractic Spinal Screenings
go to: www.chiropracticscreeningexperts.com
(845)787-3349

Bankrupt, "Former" and Moonlighting Chiropractors: A Sign We Must Work Harder

2008-09-04T00:03:00.005-04:00

I recently met a Bankruptcy attorney who is a trustee for the New York State bankruptcy court. He told me that he has seen many doctors of chiropractic filing Chapter 7 lately. Though it's difficult to shock or surprise me, I must admit, this fact made me stop and think. Why such financial trouble for such a high-producing, effective profession?

This experience reminded of another encounter I had while doing some late-night grocery shopping in my local supermarket. While supermarkets are normally a popular spot for me to spread the chiropractic message through screenings, this trip I was disappointed to bump into a former associate from one of my client's offices. I hadn't seen him in years, since he left the practice to open his own. He wasn't grocery shopping, though. I was surprised to find out he was stocking shelves and taken aback by the decline of his general attitude toward the profession. I couldn't believe the apathy with which he told me he had given up altogether and then said he was studying physical therapy. What happened to this man who loved treating chiropractic patients?

Just the other day, I had another chiropractor tell me he took a temp part-time job to "make ends meet" while things have been slow. But, why were they slow?

Most of all, I have lately been bombarded with offers to consider several "business opportunities" which involve revolutionary nutritional products which I "may want to consider selling to my clients." I am talking about various MLM products which I have been seeing showing up on the front counters of many chiropractic offices. But what about the business of chiropractic care?

Put it all together and you get a single commonality: Money. But why did any of us get into this profession in the first place? Did we really get into it for the money? When I was growing up, I was taught that the big money guys had "MD" license plates. Being in chiropractic I can see where this is true. The profits are made by "modern" medicine. You spent all those years in chiropractic school and have student loans hanging over your head for a reason. And, I have yet to hear one of you report it was solely for the money. Can you remember why YOU wanted to study chiropractic?

I don't want to drag this out or beat a dead horse. You've gotten the "purpose" lecture enough. You know the score. I just wanted to tell a couple of quick anecdotes, not to depress or worry you more but, to examine what's missing. Do I really have to type the "p-word" here? We all know why we got into it. Read my bio on my website. I changed my whole life and career around the help I received from just one chiropractic office.

I consult chiropractors for one reason, they helped me. I'm simply returning the favor. I'm also still in referral mode.

So, you see, when you really use the power of everything you know...everything..innate intelligence, autonomic nervous system, subluxation, etc....EVERYTHING....and really help people get better, living better, healthier lives through the miracles of chiropractic, well, isn't that what it's about? If you're unsure consider one more thing.

Why do patients refer? Many people ask the question backward. Doctors ask, why DON'T my patients refer? There's no answer. Is it because you didn't ask them if they know someone who lives locally and has a health problem? Nonsense. While this is a valid "technique", no amount of technique was ever needed for a genuine cure. Fix them up and improve some aspect of their lives and they are on the front lines. Ask the reverse question and you're getting somewhere. They refer when you really help them.

I'm living proof. 13 Years ago, I had the experience of getting my life back. I've been referring ever since. That's what I create and what I do for you - the chiropractor - the hero of the story. No one ever asked me to. I started to do it, naturally, just like anyone else would do...even you!!

Call our screening experts and consultants today and get a comprehensive assessment and program to fit your specific practice and budget.

Frank Sardella
Chiropractic Screening Experts
for more information on Chiropractic Spinal Screenings
go to: www.chiropracticscreeningexperts.com
(845)787-3349

Chiropractic Low Reimbursement Solution - Sell Something Else?

2008-08-27T09:04:00.020-04:00

Imagine this. You have lunch with a friend and he says how he's suffering from back pain. He tells you all about it and you want to help him. And here's what you say: "Roger, I want to tell you about something that I have been involved with that helped me with that exact problem." You go on to enlighten him about this tremendously effective product that you have been utilizing which has a special ingredient originating from the plains of the Midwest and has been nature's "best kept secret" for more than 110 years. You explain that it has not only handled the worst of your symptoms, it has improved your overall health and enjoyment of life. Your life is so much better because of this product, so much so, you have decided to take it up as a business and your livelihood keeps improving as a result. He believes you because you look so happy, drive the right car and have a big boat. You let him try the product and he begins to get a little excited about it and you begin to get him involved in the "business end" of things. Before you know it, you have him in your "downline" and he is spreading the word. Your network is huge!

So, what's the product? The product is so big and powerful, it's better than any MLM* product out there. And you're already a distributor. You have been in it's downline since the day you decided, for whatever reason, to be a part of it. What is it?

It's Chiropractic and it's your life's work for better or worse.

I have worked in chiropractic since 1995 when someone first took the time to share it's benefits with me - a time when I desperately needed it. I have been in my doctor's "downline" ever since and, in the MLM scheme of things, I would be a "Master Director" by now. So, what's my point? Why the cute play on the MLM concept? While I am not targeting MLM as a whole, or bashing the idea, it has come to my attention that MLM has somehow found it's way into the Chiropractic profession at it's weakest point; and that weakest point is THE problem I have been striving to help Chiropractors with every day for more than a decade. I'm talking about failing practices resulting in problems of income.

Let me be more direct. In the last two years, I have been approached by more and more prospective and regular clients who have sat me down because they wanted to "show me something I may be interested in", which turns out to be an MLM product they are now selling in their offices to patients. This is, in my past experience with MLM, a standard MLM pitch: a "great product" which "really gets results" and involves some ingredient discovered in far-reaching lands which, now discovered, solves some major ailments and promotes wellness. Each doctor seemed to be in love with the product, a factor which really made me wonder.

I have turned down all of these offers firmly, if politely, with no hard feelings. But each one of these, and there have been many, has given me an uneasy feeling I could not identify until very recently.

I have, over the years, looked into and even distributed some products. All in all, I looked into about 5 or 6 major product lines and became a distributor, briefly, for one or two. So I am speaking from direct experience of having tried this. I failed at each one and only recently figured out why. After all, what problem was I trying to solve? That is an easy one.

Money!

But no "business proposition" ever solved this problem for me. And I had other problems too. One was my health. Someone solved that for me and turned my life around. Chiropractic became very interesting to me. And I became one of it's largest 'distributors' around.

Since getting into the business of helping chiropractors, I met a woman involved with one of the more major MLM's. She urged me to come to a meeting. The meeting was hosted by someone hailed as a guru of the company. I noticed all of the distributors in attendance seemed awed by her presence, glued to her every nuance, joke and anecdote, shaking their heads in agreement with every major point she made. I was actually quite impressed with this woman. It was obvious to me how she attained such high status and became such an opinion leader. And this itself was inspiring. That's when it hit me.

I found that she actually had the purpose of selling those products. You should have heard how she spoke about those products. She just loved the products and really wanted to share them with others. Her life had made obvious improvement from having those products in her life. All the other distributors, including my friend, so engulfed by her inspiring speech, seemed as though they were looking for an answer to how to make more money. I know because I think I felt that way too. It's the whole reason, I later realized, I had come to the meeting in the first place.

The answer was simple. Sell something that you really, honestly know will help others. I left that meeting, not signing up as a distributor, knowing that I already was doing this in my business. And I knew my clients were too.

In retrospect, I could have made lots of money with this company. What with the amount of Chiropractors and other practitioners with whom I am in direct contact at any given time, multiplied by the amounts of patients they have in their collective practices - it boggles the mind. This factor is why, I believe, I have gotten approached by so many. Any, why not? This is good prospecting on their part - a perfectly valid technique in sales. But, I could not do this and feel I was helping anyone but myself. So I chose against it.

At the conclusion of the meeting, I explained about my business and why I was in it. Mind you, part of the lecture promoted having a "residual income" and gave the impression that the nine to five scenario was doomed to failure and poor quality of retirement years. I was surprised how my volunteering my purpose and how much fun I had at my job was met with rebuttal after rebuttal of how the MLM scenario was better. Between the lines I felt like I was looked at as some sort of chump for actually wanting this. It was shocking that no one there seemed to understand. But they were there to make money. So I knew we would not see eye to eye. And, there, I made my decision on the subject.

That was several years ago.

I should mention here that I do not feel any ill will toward any of these or others in this MLM industry, nor do I think any less of them as business people or find those looking to 'make more money' beneath me in any way. This is not a judgment of MLM or those involved. This is an article on Chiropractic, Chiropractors, what they do and what they should be doing about the troubles they may be having in forwarding their profession against seemingly insurmountable odds. Whew...that was a mouthful!

I have found that MLM itself, as a parallel industry, could be taken as a good, neutral example of the concept of distributing a product one believes in, received help from and wishes to help others with. Why not apply these principles to our profession? Consider this. Are special juices, vitamins or household products covered by insurance? Do insurance companies send you a check for the products purchased by your patients? Of course not. In MLM, you must sell others on the value of the product and get them to buy. AND, as an additional function, you usually get them signed up to be distributors - what a great scenario! Imagine practice like that.

You have, in your hands, a life-saving technology which provides better help to the human frame and human life in general than any health product on Earth. You have helped so many people journey back through illness to wellness time and time again. Your patients have hailed you, if only in their heads, as a miracle worker and perhaps have referred others. What is that worth? Insurance companies want you to believe it is worth very little. In fact, they tell you exactly how much and, well... it's not much!! Imagine forgetting about insurance, and getting a value placed on the care commensurate with it's actual worth! Then, 'sell' that care to someone who really needs it. If that's not enough, get those you have helped signed up to 'sell' it to others. That's a multi-level concept I can get behind, how about you??

Perhaps your instinct in reading this is to say this can't be done. You may think of all the reasons you couldn't pull that off. But, aren't those the reasons you would turn to another MLM-type business in the first place? All I'm saying is that, we do have the right product and, it does help others. Most importantly, we know it WORKS! That is something we know in our heart of hearts, much more so than any other product we ask patients to buy, from back pillows to vitamins. It's value? Priceless!

So, what do you say we join up and start a new trend for Chiropractic? Let's make cash practices with massive down-lines of patients referring with everyone benefiting. It took ages for Chiropractors to overcome accusations of being snake oil salesmen and have made their way to be seen as in-demand, respectable and effective, members of the health and wellness community. Regardless of what skeptics may say, or those same old negatives still floating around, you provide more help to just one of your patients than many other medical professionals help their whole career. Let's deliver what we know to be effective - effectively and, most of all, start getting paid! You and your patients will feel much better about it!!

Call to get a practice evaluation and custom taylored marketing program today.

Frank Sardella
Chiropractic Screening Experts
for more information on Chiropractic Spinal Screenings
go to: www.chiropracticscreeningexperts.com
(845)787-3349

*For those few who have not had contact with the industry, MLM means "Multi-Level Marketing", a "pyramid" type direct selling/marketing structure geared toward making profits through various tiers of direct distribution of a product - also known as "network marketing" and other names.

©2008 Screenings Inc. All Rights Reserved. Published and Printed in USA.

Screenings Are Only the Beginning: THE 3 Dimensions of Practice Expansion

2008-04-16T21:54:00.004-04:00

In a world of confusion labelled "modern-day promotion", it can be difficult to see through to which type of promotion will suit your needs. Of the day-to-day concerns you face in your practice, promotion may be but one-too-many. Perhaps you're one of the many doctors who are spending money on promotional campaigns but just don't get out of them what you think you should. Then again, perhaps you've shied away from promotion altogether or feel you "just don't have the money" or decided it's something "only large practices do". Regardless, the subject itself is sufficiently confused as to give you a "one-dimensional" view of it, leaving it at the bottom of your list of your priorities. But, what if there was a way you could break down this huge generality of "promotion" into simple, organized categories which make it clear what you should do? Forget about how "too good to be true" this would be and understand one thing: These categories DO exist and you CAN use them to lower your outlay and up your return.

It has been a long-standing known for chiropractic practices that there are basically 2 types of practice promotion which are "new patients" and "reactivation". This is pretty obvious but still leaves a few uncertainties. When you look at the various promotional CHANNELS available, you will quickly find that the confusion soon sets back in.

To answer this, I found a key distinction. There are various factors which comprise this generality of "practice promotion" which make it confusing and when taken as component parts can simplify things considerably. Here are the most basic components I see:

1. Who are you marketing to?
2. What are you selling them?
3. How do you reach them?

"Who are you marketing to?" This would be former or prospective patients. "What are you selling them?" This is something you've known inherently and is what you deliver every day. "How do you reach them?" These are the various promotional media channels available to you to utilize. Now we're getting somewhere. As you can see "promotional channels" is easier to break down than the broader category of "practice promotion".

Considering there are several types of the MEDIA CHANNELS used to promote your services to former and prospective patients, I set out to categorize types of promotional campaigns for simplicity and better, more efficient use. In other words, I wanted categories to distinguish between spinal screenings, lectures, newspaper advertising, direct mailings, patient mailings, yellow pages, etc. This broken down, I was able to develop a "3-dimensional practice expansion" approach and was able to help doctors relatively quickly at a much lower start-up cost. These campaign categories were found as follows (not necessarily in this order):

1. Past
2. Present
3. Future

Now that we've observed them, in what order do we apply them? How do you utilize each one? Where do you start? All good questions but, first, allow me to define each.

What is the first thing most practices need? NEW PATIENTS NOW! That's a "Present" promotional campaign. This would be doing talks or spinal screenings, health fairs, etc. - even telemarketing which is usually used to make appointments. It's direct contact with people to get them into your practice now, now, now! This is my most-demanded service and comprises the majority of doctors of chiropractic I service. It could be any activity which gets people through your door right away. Therefore, this does not include, print advertising or the like.

Unless you're building a new practice from the ground up, your existing practice was built on patients already serviced. You have a database of them right in your office. This is the most under-rated, valuable, gold mine of promotion potential most doctors overlook. After all, who is the easier "sale" to get under care? Someone who never saw a chiropractor or someone who has seen you? Let's categorize this under "Past" promotional campaigns as in converting "past" patients into present ones. This is a little bit longer of a process but not the longest of all. This would involve post cards, newsletters, weekly tips, reactivation cards/letters, etc.

So, how will you guarantee a future for your practice? Further, how can you create an "automatic" practice expansion tool that will work for you? Joe Minimizer has a dull ache in his back. He doesn't think he needs you now but, in three months or so, when he "throws out" his back, who will he think to call? It is "Future" promotional campaigns which will place your name in his thoughts. A regional newspaper in which one of my clients advertises calls this "Top of Mind Awareness"(TOMA) advertising. It's an answer to the question "who do you think of when you think of chiropractors?" and it includes repetitive promotion such as small frequent newspaper ads, bulk mailers to general public (not patient database), billboards, yellow pages, etc. This is usually more costly and results are much longer term however, used properly, it can be very effective. It frequently gets ruled out, I found, because it has been used in the "Present" category instead. Example: A doctor gets desperate for new patients and lays out a couple thousand for a mailer. The first mailer goes out to 25,000 people. He gets no phone calls and pulls the plug on the program. No patients and thousands wasted. Stats stay low. Enough said.

Now that you know these 3 dimensions of promotion, the next thing would be to know all about YOUR practice and establish how these could be used effectively and efficiently. This is where many advertising reps who solicit you to advertise in their publication can fall short and steer you wrong. They can inundate you with statistics and demographics which may not apply directly to YOUR situation. This is not to denounce all advertising media. Much of is it valuable when used properly and WITHIN YOUR CONTROL. I am merely putting things in sequence. Selection of promotional media channels comes LAST.

Using the 3 Dimensions, my approach is to get a "snap-shot" of what's happening in your practice and where it's headed. I also would like to know where you would LIKE IT TO BE headed as opposed to where it is ACTUALLY headed. I, first, find out all about you and your practice. Where are you now? Where have you been? Where do you want your practice to go? What types of marketing do you do? Etc. Using my Free Practice Analysis, I get a good picture of your current situation and potential future. Based on the results, I am able to evaluate your situation and calculate 7 basic things:

1. Doctor/Practice Goals - What it will take to attain them
2. Current Production Volume - What it will take to increase
3. Operating Costs - How they relate to your bottom line
4. Past/Current Effective Campaigns - How they can be improved
5. Ineffective Campaigns - How to cut the waste
6. Marketing Budget Overage/Underage - Your correct budget
7. Barriers to Expansion - How to eliminate them

You need to have an organized view of your practice before making effective use of the 3 dimensions to expansion. These 7 calculations allow a better assessment of which channels you should be using, how much you have to spend as well as in which order you should implement them.

My approach is usually "Present", then "Past", then "Future", in that order. First we establish a strong screening program which delivers at least one chiropractic spinal screening per month. (Present) Then we establish a patient database promotional campaign. (Past) I have a really successful monthly mailing which is quite cost effective and results-driven. With both "Present" and "Past" campaigns FIRMLY ESTABLISHED and the practice is steadily expanding (based on rising office visits), THEN we look for an appropriate "Future" promotional campaign.

There are so many possible combinations which vary depending upon your exact situation. Hence, a unique Free Practice Analysis for every doctor who contacts me. For instance, perhaps you presently do talks or already have a patient newsletter. Perhaps you aren't getting anything out of spinal screenings you're doing. My area of expertise is to find and get implemented an effective campaign. I use the 3-Dimensional approach to this after an intense evaluation of your practice. Frequently, I am able to get some instant revitalization going by simply starting or improving a non-existent or non-working screening campaign. Most times, just by the shear momentum of such a campaign, this affects an increase in practice statistics. I had a chiropractor in PA who was at 80 visits per week and jumped more than 40 visits to over 120 in less than 6 weeks just working in a screening/lecture schedule and my patient monthly mailing campaign.

It's important to me to continue to find ways to reduce your costs while increasing results. I diligently work toward this end and firmly believe that the secret to my own success is to continually improve this more and more. I developed this approach, the Free Practice Analysis, in order that I would not sell chiropractors a bunch of things that they just don't need, so I could provide them real, tangible help. It ultimately led me to establish this controlled, 3-dimensional approach to promoting chiropractic practices and stimulating their expansion. The 3 dimensions of practice expansion is THE principle I use to do just that. You can follow this principle and win - and I would like to help!

Frank Sardella
Chiropractic Screening Experts
for more information on Chiropractic Spinal Screenings
go to: www.chiropracticscreeningexperts.com
(845)787-3349

Chiropractors in 'Competition'?

2008-04-08T11:40:00.003-04:00

In my 13 years of experience within the Chiropractic field, I have experienced many of the frustrations Doctors of Chiropractic face on a day-to-day basis and have seen many practices crumble under the pressure. I have even seen a doctor or two go into another profession. So, I guess I don't have to tell any of you about the trials and tribulations facing a profession that provides more 'healing' than any of the medical 'healing arts'. I look at the profession's history and I think, "Wow! It's almost a miracle that the profession still exists after all it's been through." What with the attacks from the AMA, Big Pharma and Private Insurance. Even a few Chiropractic "defectors" now speak out against the rest of you to make themselves look good. Who ever thought we'd see the day when your own kind would be selling you out? Boggles the mind so I don't think about it, and neither should you. Well, except for one thing.

While on the subject of those in treason to the profession, speaking out against it as if they were MD's, it brings up an interesting point which I have observed in working with Doctors throughout the Northeast. I'm talking about COMPETITION. Somewhere along the line, this word has come to mean something different than it obviously and unarguably should; so much so, in fact, that this very issue is the foundation of our foremost policy at Screenings Inc. I mention it here so we can all understand it better, laugh about it, then move on and expand the profession as we should. So, competition with whom? Some feel they are in competition with other chiropractors. This couldn't be farther from the truth. Look at the first paragraph above. You've got plenty of enemies to compete with.

Let me first say, however, that I find that most don't hold this viewpoint although, perhaps feeling a little resentment toward the guy up the street who has a much bigger practice. The frustration is understandable. It's sometimes a jungle out there trying to get the people in the door while someone else makes it seem effortless.

It is probably safe to say that your enemies would be very happy if you were in competition with your brethren. I always picture some suit at the AMA, cherry wood furniture, red leather chair, lots of books and lavish surroundings, feet up on his desk, smoking a cigar and laughing with his colleagues about the chiropractors competing for patient prospects and talking smack about each other. Think about it. It may not be exactly what happens, but it's pretty close to the truth.

Without getting into too much detail, most of my observations were in talking to clients about their communities and hearing them speak derogatorily about their neighboring docs. I've heard things like "oh, so-and-so rips off his patients" or "commits insurance fraud" or "treats his staff poorly." Know where most of these "facts" were obtained? Former staff of that doctor who now work for the complaining doctor. Let me ask you, did you ever have a disgruntled employee or a "bad seed' you fired? Did you ever suspect they were speaking badly of you to others? They are! You may have hired a few of these people who were "treated badly" and had plently to say about their former boss. Who are you more likely to believe?

The other indicator of this is when I get the question about "working for other doctors in the area" or, "providing exclusivity". When I am asked if I work for other chiropractors or about "exclusivity" I always answer the same way: "Chiropractors are not in competition with one another. Your competition is outside the profession. (Again refer to the first paragraph.)" It's those working against you procuring billions and spending billions to make more billions who want to take you down. I do, however, very carefully plan campaigns to coexist and work just as effectively and never cross promotional lines or make competitive campaigns. This is suicide. My theory is that with enough campaigns that fold into one another (as opposed to contradicting each other thereby creating competition), the benefit of collective advertising and promotional muscle will be there for ALL to share.

Lastly, I give them this equation: What is the population of your city or town? How many chiropractors are within the radius of that area? How many people out of the number you gave for the population need chiropractic care or will need it in the future? I would say, based on stress levels, lifestyle, etc., that most of them need it. So, divide the population number by the number of doctors and you'll have a number of people YOU and YOUR PRACTICE are responsible for. Now, let's even say that only half of them will need you; do the math. It's probably a number you couldn't handle at your current size.

Bottom line? Work together. Don't talk about the guy up the street. When I go to a show, fair, event, etc., I go around and introduce myself to all the other chiropractors and make friends. I see how they're doing and let them know how it's going for me. I tell them the doctor I'm working for and promote camaraderie among all. After all, they're plugging away just as hard as you are.

Do I deny there are occasional "bad seeds"? No. I know there will always be a few. But, just as it is an extremely small percentage of patients who are trouble, so is it with anything else - including others in your profession. Work together and don't worry about what's happening in the other guy's practice. Your share of the population needs you. I work for you to get your share taken care of and I may work for your neighbor to help him do the same.

I want to commend all for choosing chiropractic as a profession. I work with you because I believe in the chiropractic model of body health and treatment and wish to forward it. This is also because I have received the full benefit of chiropractic care. So, when I'm out there doing spinal screenings, I am really trumpeting the results and the changes you can make in people's lives. So let me say, well done to all. For, if you wanted money, you'd be one of those guys in paragraph 1!

Think about your alternative to a chiropractic community - Chiropractors in competition. How would you rather take on enemies or compete with Big Pharma? Imagine you alone taking on the AMA or the insurance companies as a whole. Imagine having to compete with the billions spent by just ONE pharmaceutical company. Wouldn't you rather have a community to back you up? I thought so. And so would I!!

Yours in Innate Intelligence,
Frank Sardella
Chiropractic Screening Experts
for more information on Chiropractic Spinal Screenings
go to: www.chiropracticscreeningexperts.com
(845)787-3349

Why Spinal Screenings Can Still Be Effective

2008-03-17T13:24:00.003-04:00

While, by survey, I have found many doctors of Chiropractic to have gotten away from spinal screenings for many reasons, I am finding them a more effective than ever for practice expansion. This is evidenced by the fact that my most in-demand product, steadily for the last 2 years, has been chiropractic screenings. Overall, I still find that this one-on-one interaction with prospective new patients to be the utmost in marketing even rivaling patient referrals. So, for whatever reason you may have gotten away from doing them, just know they are still a valid, more-effective-than-ever method of getting new patients. They are my number one source of increased office visit figures and statistics in Chiropractic practices; and, there are 3 HUGE, co-dependant reasons why they can fail.

Reasons I have heard from doctors, though many, boil down to just a handful of simple ones. Aside from an "all-referral" word-of-mouth-based practice (still a very valid method indeed) which need not rely on screenings, there are 5 basic explanations:

1. Sick of doing them or don't want to
2. Not effective at doing them
3. Not comfortable doing them
4. Not enough time to do them
5. Lack of venues to do them

I list these here for a couple of reasons. First, for you to see which category you feel describes your situation most. Doing so can give you a reality on how to use what I am saying to your advantage. Secondly, I wish to show them irrelevant in terms of why you may have found screenings to be a source of expansion failure in your practice. For, here is a way of explaining them which I know ALL chiropractors will understand. THEY ARE SYMPTOMS.

Symptoms? But, of what? Herein lie the three "HUGE", co-dependant reasons indicated above. They are, Purpose, Consistency and Venue, and are THE ONLY things I have found standing in the way of starting the expansion of your practice.

Well, you've been hearing about purpose since chiropractic school. But go back a little earlier. Do you remember what sent you there in the first place? Whatever your reason, it's clear you had one and, let's face it, it most likely wasn't money! Surely Dentistry or Plastic surgery could have provided you a gold mine. Do you also remember how on purpose you were when you first got out? Take a moment to reflect. Regardless, with practice trials and tribulations, patients leaving, the media bashing you as well as the insurance companies cutting you off at every turn, how do you keep up the purpose. Mind you, I am not lecturing you on your lack of purpose or even accusing you of not having one. I merely bring this up because it is the key element on which a successful screening program is based is purpose. The purpose to help as many people through chiropractic care is the drive needed to make screenings successful and is what I credit as making me so successful at doing screenings and closing new patient prospects. It is an absolute MUST!

Once you have purpose, you must have consistency. Clients who hire me sporadically to do random screenings get some great results on the short term however, I know I am not creating any long-term effects on their practice unless we do them on a regular basis. My goal is to get all of my clients setting up a consistent schedule of, minimum, once per month. A good consistent number screenings, scheduled at regular intervals, trumps ANY single event no matter how many you can schedule at a time. I should also mention that, in starting out doing them, venue doesn't even matter. Just get at least one scheduled per month to start, book out the next few months and then keep booking for the months beyond that. You can always add a second or a third per month later. Once you get this consistency, the visit numbers will start to rise. THEN, you can worry about the venues.

Obviously, some venues are better than others when it comes to screenings. I have done every venue imaginable from Starbucks to gyms, corporations to book stores, super marksts, mall shows, street fairs - I even did them at IHOP and Dunkin' Donuts. You can almost point to any public venue and I've been there. What I can tell you is you are right in thinking there are good and bad venues. Once you get a consistent schedule going, you can start to evaluate each venue as to traffic, and quality (not necessarily quantity) of people. Once done, you can give closer attention to this for maybe 4-6 months away and get better places booked. As they may take longer, this gives you plenty of time to secure them on your schedule without leaving you with no events booked. As you close each one, you're one step closer to having 12 TOP NOTCH venues.

Mind you, I'm not saying this is law or gospel. This is only a blog and we all have our say on today's Internet. This is just me sharing with you what I have found successful in my daily work with screenings. Doctors and their practices are the 'patients' that I see in my 'practice' and, just as you spend the majority of your week working diligently toward your patients' rehabilitation, so do I spend time doing and observing screenings, prospects and venues, making changes and improvements as I go. Bottom line: Screenings, when USED PROPERLY considering the 3 key elements above can be immensely successful....and so can you. Cheers!

Frank Sardella
Chiropractic Screening Experts
for more information on Chiropractic Spinal Screenings
go to: www.chiropracticscreeningexperts.com
(845)787-3349