Establishing a robust community referral network of medical providers, wellness and fitness professionals will help your center achieve sustainable growth and is a critical part of meeting OrthoLazer business performance objectives.
Good community outreach starts with positive patient outcomes and the right strategy to communicate OrthoLazer’s mission. Position your center as an integral part of the community’s pain management resources by emphasizing the benefits of laser therapy alone or as an adjunctive therapy.
It takes patience, persistence, and a continuous effort to broaden your local network and impact as many lives as possible with the benefits of laser therapy!
Chapters
- Understanding the Opportunity
- Getting Started
- Direct Community Outreach
- Meet Your Community
Understanding the Opportunity: Building a Referral Base Beyond Physician Owners
While your provider team and their physician networks are valuable assets, they’re just the starting point. Growing a local referral base beyond your physician owners is an important part of helping your center thrive. It helps reduce dependence on your owner team for example preventing the risk of patient volume dropping when a physician is on vacation or is away from their practice.
It will also allow a wider variety of patient types. The more conditions your center develops expertise in, the greater the ability to reach out to a diverse provider base. Maybe you’ll develop a niche with a difficult-to-treat condition and become a valuable resource for patients and providers looking for alternative treatments. Successfully engaging a broader referral base in your community will cement your center, and laser therapy, as a cornerstone of health and wellness.
Ideal Community-Based Connections
Below are examples of groups whos patients may benefit from laser therapy:
- Primary Care
- Physical Therapists
- Surgeons
- Wound Care Centers
- Interventional Pain Management Specialists
- Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation
- Physicians / Physiatrists
- Podiatrists / Foot and Ankle Surgeons
- Chiropractors
- Veterans Outpatient and Outreach Centers
- High School and Collegiate Athletic Trainers and Coaches
- Yoga Studios
- Personal Trainers
- Cross Fit Gyms
- Local Sports Clubs
- Senior Housing Communities
Getting Started: Build Your Community Provider Database
It's important to have an organized method of capturing the contact information of the people and providers you are meeting for ongoing relationship development. This can be easily accomplished with Google Sheets or Excel or if you want to get more formal, buying a license to a cloud based CRM system (e.g. salesforce.com) and will help you make the most of your community outreach efforts. Ideally you will collect first and last name, place of work, professional discipline, email address, and mobile phone number.
Continue to build this database by requesting that all new patients provide contact information for their primary care provider, physical therapist and other potential laser therapy referral sources at intake.
- Share successful outcomes with referring providers. This feedback is powerful and will help reinforce the benefits of laser therapy in their model of care! Send an email or letter with your patient’s outcomes, include OrthoLazer educational materials, and ask for an opportunity to share more about the clinical benefits of laser therapy.
- Always send a “thank you” note for a new referral from a referral source. This is your opportunity to nurture the relationship. Include a brochure and a link to your website.
- Create a monthly outreach connection detailing how laser therapy is a solution for their difficult-to-treat patients. For example, information on laser therapy post operatively to spine surgeons. These communications should be short while offering an opportunity to connect and learn more.
- Use your database for future invitations to events at your center and other outreach opportunities.
Continuously focus on building this valuable contact list with new potential providers and other locally aligned professionals!
Direct Community Outreach: Building New Relationships Through Engagement
Developing new referral sources is more than just pitching a service. It’s important to resonate with the values, concerns, and goals of the person you’re approaching. Genuine connection and strong relationships are formed as a result of successful engagement.
Core Strategies
Customize your messaging.
When expanding into your community you may be meeting with medical providers, coaches and personal trainers, or presenting directly to groups of potential patients. It’s important to tailor your content to your audience. Science, technology and indications are important to providers while the broader benefits of care are more appropriate for patients and non-medical contacts.
Learning how to cold call.
Cold calling can be a daunting experience if you can’t overcome the awkwardness. The best strategy is to remind yourself that you are offering advanced treatment that will help a provider care for their patients. You are proposing a partnership that is aligned with the physician’s goals of providing positive patient outcomes. Show up prepared with information, materials, and most importantly passion. Don't underestimate your expertise!
Understand the difference between informing and engaging.
Informing simply presents facts in a one-way communication. Engaging, on the other hand, actively involves the audience by understanding their concerns, addressing their questions, and building a relationship. Successful provider engagement cultivates trust, loyalty, and a deeper connection.
Meet face-to-face with providers.
Your goal should be a face-to-face meeting with a medical provider, the person referring patients. The second best option is a practice manager to build rapport and set up future provider meetings. Chatting casually with the front desk or leaving materials for providers seldom leads to substantial connections. Sometimes it takes more than one visit to gain traction. Be persistent but friendly and patient. Building meaningful relationships takes time.
Educate to illuminate.
Many providers may not be aware of the science behind laser therapy or how to utilize it with their patient base. Use the outreach tools found on the OL Knowledge Center, such as scientific research studies and other specialty specific content. Emphasize how laser therapy can work hand-in-hand with existing treatments to enhance patient outcomes.
Create your OrthoLazer Introduction Packet.
Items to include in your OrthoLazer Introduction Packet should include an introduction letter, educational content, and your business card. Use the OrthoLazer brochure as a folder and clip it all with a branded alligator clip! Make it easy to refer by providing paper referral pads or by sharing a digital referral pathway.
Proposal for Services.
A Proposal for Services is a professional and direct way to create a new referral source. This is a structured proposal that outlines OrthoLazer’s services and costs in a professional document and can be shared with, for example, high school and collegiate teams. See an example on The OL Knowledge Center.
Host an open house.
Invite potential referral partners to an open house at your center. Create an invite list of potential referral sources in partnership with your providers. This is your time to shine! Your provider team should attend and be passionate ambassadors for their center and the clinical value of laser therapy.
With systematic outreach, education, and thoughtful nurturing of relationships, the Center Director can drive patient acquisition and revenue growth. The initial investment of time will definitely pay off in long term OrthoLazer Center performance.
Get Out There and Meet Your Community
Participating in community events is an important strategy to promote your center and connect with potential referral sources and patients. To maximize your success, planning is important.
Planning Tips:
- The audience should determine the focus of your messaging. For example, if you’re attending a marathon, content should be patient-facing and focused on sports medicine injuries common to runners like plantar fasciitis and achilles tendonitis.
- On the other hand, if you have an OrthoLazer table at a pain management conference, materials and messaging should be provider-facing and focused on the science and clinical benefits of laser therapy.
- Always have a specific goal and purpose for your outreach activities, such as building your contact database, offering free consultations, or discussing laser therapy to manage a particular diagnosis common to your audience.
- Focus on collecting contact information from potential referral sources and patients. Have a sign-in sheet and consider offering a raffle prize, such as a free treatment package or gift card.
- When you have a good connection and conversation with someone, take notes and be sure to document your follow-up responsibilities to review later.
The ultimate goal is to move the ball for another connection. For example, ask “May I stop by your practice with more information and to set up a lunch? Who should I speak with?” Or with a potential patient, ask “Would you like to stop by our center and meet our team? When are you available?”
Getting Started
Purchase the Community Outreach Package found on the OrthoLazer Marketing Webstore. This branded 3-piece set includes a 6-foot tablecloth, a retractable banner, and a 10’ x 14’ tent. Making this financial investment is critical to success in the community and will pay off many times over!
Look for opportunities to present at medical conferences and symposiums. Get to know your provider teams’ specialties and look for opportunities for them to present laser therapy to their colleagues. Good collaboration between you and your providers plays to each of your strengths to successfully get in front of your local medical community.
Attend professional annual meetings as a vendor for specialties such as Advanced Practice Providers, Nurses, Pain Management, and the American Physical Therapy Association. The Community Outreach Package will create an impactful presence and support a successful event.
Collaborate with local businesses. Offer workshops as part of employee wellness initiatives and provide discounts to their employees and customers. Prioritize engagement with aligned businesses located near your center like physical therapy clinics, yoga studios, or medical offices. Get to know their team, bring OrthoLazer materials, and offer a free treatment course for one or two employees.
Attend community events as a sponsor, such as local sports events, marathons, and health fairs. Also consider festivals or events that attract a target demographic that could benefit from laser therapy. This is an opportunity for a direct-to-consumer marketing approach and will allow you to connect closely with potential patients.
