How to Attract More Chiropractic Patients by Using Public Speaking
PRACTICE MANAGEMENT
Dr. Edward Martin
DC
Are you having trouble finding new chiropractic patients? Well, adding public speaking to your marketing plan might just be what you need.
Try to think about how many new patients you could attract if you give 100 speeches each year. For example, let’s say that you spoke twice a week to different groups that had 50 to 100 people in the audience. It would result in giving you exposure to anywhere between 5,000 and 10,000 potential new patients each year.
The people in each audience will see you as an authority figure in your field. In addition, most groups will allow you to speak from 30 to 60 minutes, which will give you enough time to gain their trust and answer many of their questions.
Now, if public speaking is such a great marketing method, why do you think most chiropractors don’t use it? Well, actually, there are two reasons. First, public speaking is one of the most common fears that people experience. Second, most people were never told that public speaking is a very effective marketing method for attracting new patients, so they never looked into using it as a strong marketing tool.
"It would result in giving you exposure to anywhere between 5,000 and 10,000 potential new patients each year"
In addition, there are five very important factors that chiropractors need to learn to use public speaking successfully. These factors include:
Factor #1 - A Specific Goal or Reason for Giving Speeches Is Needed
Chiropractors need to form a specific goal or reason for giving speeches. For example, you might have a goal of attracting 100 patients each year, as a result of giving speeches. Alternatively, you might want to earn an extra $100,000 in the next 12 months. Each chiropractor might have a different goal, but it is important to aim at a specific goal.
Factor #2 - A Slow and Safe Way to Practice Your Speeches Is Required
Chiropractors need a slow and safe way to get use to public speaking. This requires practicing or rehearsing very short speeches in front of small groups. As you become comfortable with oneor two-minute speeches, you will have the confidence to try longer speeches. It is also important to rehearse with small groups and gradually try speeches with larger groups. You will find that traditional public speaking classes make the mistake of putting a new speaker in front of a large group of people for 15 to 30 minutes, which is why those classes have a very high dropout rate. It is much more effective to practice public speaking in small groups that allow each person to develop public speaking skills at his or her own pace. In addition, it is very important to practice speeches that will attract new patients to your office. Many traditional public speaking classes make the mistake of having you practice speeches about current events. This type of rehearsing will not prepare you to give important speeches about chiropractic topics.
Factor #3 - The Intention or Willingness to Use Public Speaking on a Regular Basis
A chiropractor needs to have the intention or willingness to give between 50 and 150 speeches each year. At this point, you will need to commit to giving a specific number of speeches each week so you can attain your yearly goal. Furthermore, in order to be motivated to give many speeches each year, chiropractors have to be sure that they have a specific goal that they want to achieve (Factor #1). They also have to get use to giving speeches in a slow and safe way (Factor #2 ). If any of these factors are missing, the chiropractor will not be willing to make a strong effort to find many speaking engagements. So start setting specific goals that you want to achieve and determine how many speeches you will need to give in order to achieve your goals.
Factor #4 - The Business Side of Public Speaking
This factor deals with the need for chiropractors to think about strategies that will make their speeches more profitable. The chiropractor needs to start thinking about the following questions:
1. Where should I speak?
2. What kinds of groups do I want to speak to?
3. Should I speak to certain kinds of associations, corporations, organizations, conferences, conventions, colleges, churches, government groups, different industries, nonprofit organizations, associations and organizations for different kinds of professionals, etc.?
4. Does my speech topic interest the kinds of groups that I am trying to contact?
5. Why would different groups want to hear my speech?
It is very important for chiropractors to develop a smart business plan for attaining profitable speaking engagements. This is also the point where you will determine if your speeches are producing referrals, new patients, consulting jobs, requests for you to speak to different groups, and great business contacts.
Factor #5 - The Decision to Use Public Speaking as Part of Your Marketing Plan
This factor is where you decide if you will commit to adding public speaking to your marketing plan. At this point, you will have to be honest with yourself and decide if you are really going to look for speaking engagements.
If you only give a few speeches in a 12-month period, then it is obvious that you have decided to only dabble in public speaking. However, if you give 100 speeches a year, you will soon discover that public speaking is a very powerful marketing tool for your chiropractic practice.
Here is one extra marketing tip regarding the use of public speaking. If you decide to start giving speeches, be sure to use this marketing tool for at least six months. Many chiropractors try to give speeches for one or two months and then they quit. Public speaking, like other types of marketing, takes some time to figure out what works and what doesn’t work. So make the decision to become a successful and well-known chiropractor by using public speaking.
Dr. Edward Martin, DC, is a chiropractor, motivational speaker, and a public speaking and marketing coach. He is the author of the forthcoming book How To Attract More Chiropractic Patients By Using Public Speaking. Dr Martin offers public speaking and marketing seminars, as well as individual coaching sessions. He also offers coaching sessions on the phone for chiropractors around the country. For more information, contact Dr. Martin at 818-314-2054 or ed\i>ardm77(fgmail.com.
