Physical Therapy Marketing Information for Beginner & Experienced Private Practice Owners

Many physical therapy marketing ideas are floating around on how to generate more new patients for your private practice. Beware, most of them come from people who don’t even own a practice or a successful one for that matter. Don’t get caught into the trap of listening to heresay or following the blind. True private practice success is not merely about advertising, newsletters and emailing just to get people in your door. It’s about converting all callers and prospects, getting them to spend more, and inspiring them to bring family and friends. True success requires having a strong foundation that frees you from worrying about where your next patient will come from one month to the next. A strong foundation allows you to take a vacation without stress and worry. Only those who have successfully built practices, automated them, and are doing it now can best show you the way. The physical therapy industry is evolving and changing every day. Don’t wait to make changes. “What worked 2 years ago may no longer work today.” -James Ko, PT Physical therapy marketing is one of the most important aspects of your business. Get it right and you’ll succeed, get it wrong and you won’t. Simple as that. Many layers and depths are involved in developing a truly successful practice…it’s not just about marketing, advertising, and newsletters.

There are 3 ways to grow a practice today.

Watch this video below first and then read the rest of this page.

physical therapy marketing

Ok, once you’re done watching the video let’s get started! Best practices in physical therapy marketing involves utilization of multiple channels. Big mistakes made by most practices today are that they are still going door-to-door to physician offices every 6 weeks and sitting around waiting for them to refer. They do NOT know of all the different ways to get new patients and therefore do not have a physical therapy marketing plan of any kind. You have to do it better. There are a lot of physical therapy marketing ideas that are proven to work and bring a good return on investment. It’s no longer an expense but a necessary investment all physical therapy practices have to make. These are the channels you must attack and take advantage of if you are going to grow, let alone survive today.

1) Promote solutions directly to the community

If you want to target consumers individually you have to start by establishing presence on the internet at these mega sites such as Facebook, Yelp, Google Local/Maps, Angies List, and even Craigslist. You can post news and events of your practice. Believe it or not, many frequent Craigslist. Of course there are always things like Groupon and Living Social promotions but these other avenues also work extremely well. And since many practices do not have presence on these mega, heavily trafficked, sites you can capture the missed business. You must expand your physical therapy marketing to new channels in order to grow in this new century. Learn how to configure these accounts and maximize traffic to your website at the next IndeFree course near you.

2) Employers/Companies

If you want to get volumes of new prospects and patients at once, instead of individual consumers one by one, you have to target employers and companies. Doing on-site wellness clinics, injury prevention workshops, etc. can gain you access to a high volume group of prospective patients for your business. Learn the steps on how to offer this type of marketing in your community at the next IndeFree course.

3) Internal Marketing Physical Therapy Services

Once you get prospects in the door, it’s important to give them reasons to come back. Do not create disposable customers but rather members for life. You want them to purchase other services and bring family and friends or else you are merely creating a “disposable” patient. “Word of mouth marketing is a skill, not something that just happens because you are good with your hands.” -James Ko, PT Getting patients to be loyal for life and getting them to bring family and friends is critical to automating your physical therapy marketing efforts. This leads to independence and freedom. Nothing else. The alternative is you will have to market, advertise, and promote FOREVER. Here are some great ways to begin developing your internal physical therapy marketing. Put posters on your wall that educate patients on the types of ailments you treat. Not everyone knows what we do. Brochures in your lobby that describe the benefits of all your services inspire active patients to share with family, friends, neighbors, and acquaintances. This can help you duplicate and grow exponentially. Physical therapy marketing via print materials is an effective way to generate more business with less work. Remember, if it’s not written it doesn’t exist.

4) Internet Marketing Physical Therapy Services and Solutions A good website, that is found on search engines, makes physical therapy marketing easier. More and more people are judging you by your website today. Even physician offices, when trying to find a physical therapy facility for a patient near their home or work, will search online for “physical therapy” and the list that pops up will be considered first. If your website isn’t designed correctly, it will not ‘connect’ with them and they will go to the next one on the list. A ‘good’ site is one that displays the most important elements consumers want to see, and it must be “above the fold” (no scrolling or searching necessary). Having your site focus group tested is a good idea since it can dramatically change the effectiveness of your site getting people to call you or come in. At an IndeFree course, they will show you sample sites that are tested and proven to work.

Physical Therapy Marketing and Billing Course

5) Physician Marketing

It’s more important than ever to get physicians referring to you. There’s more and more physical therapy private practice opening today than ever before. Which means there’s more competition than ever before. And with the healthcare reform coming very soon, our country’s mission is to get more of our citizens insured by 2014. But the old way of going door to door doesn’t work anymore. You can’t be viewed as a lowly salesperson for physical therapy services. You have to become a partner in working with physicians to help make their job of managing patients easier. Send the message that you are an expert in what you do. Send the message you want to help the physician and understand their needs. You have to gain the respect of physicians or they will not TRUST you with their patients. Long gone are the days of showing up at physician offices unexpected, unannounced, and uninvited. You have to do it better. Your physical therapy marketing to physicians has to evolve if you want to grow today. Learn more at an IndeFree course near you.

6) Advertising Physical Therapy Services and Solutions

When the economy is down (like it is now), you have to have presence in the coupon mailers that circulate in your community. Almost everyone is collecting coupons these days due to the economy, even high income bracket consumers. If your practice doesn’t have presence there, you are missing out. Learn the best physical therapy ads to place in your coupon mailer at an IndeFree course near you. DISCLAIMER: Without the right ad, you may not see a return on your investment. The growth of “Consumerism” has required us, as physical therapists (and all healthcare practitioners), focus on direct marketing. Marketing, promotions, and advertising doesn’t have to be a dreaded task. It can be an enjoyable part of your private practice that leads to a highly successful business when embarked on correctly. Learn more physical therapy marketing secrets at an IndeFree course near you. www.indefree.com. Authored by, James Ko Physical Therapist/Founder (aka. jamesPT)

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