Leveraging the MD Referral Base

On March 31, 2006, in referrals, by Dan

Picking up from yesterday… Regardless of where you fall on the alternative health opinion spectrum, these folks can be an amazing source of referrals. By presenting yourself as a complement or support to your local physicians, you may find them far more likely to refer to you. To do this successfully requires three critical characteristics […]

Putting the "Complementary" In CAM

On March 30, 2006, in marketing, referrals, strategy and philosophy, by Dan

As a follow up to yesterday’s Putting the “Alternative” in Alternative Medicine, I thought it would be interesting to look at the term complementary from a business strategy perspective. There are some deeply entrenched camps on this issue. There are many who view the term complementary as subservient to the allopathic medical community. It’s the […]

Putting the “Alternative” in Alternative Medicine

On March 29, 2006, in marketing, strategy and philosophy, by Dan

The phrase alternative health care is often interpreted in the context of the modality used by the CAM practitioner. For example, instead of pharmaceuticals, a patient might choose the alternative of supplementation. While that’s technically true, there’s great value in expanding your concept of alternative to include the way you offer your services, and present […]

Pro Bono Work and Discounts: What’s a CAM Practitioner to do?

On March 28, 2006, in pricing, strategy and philosophy, by Dan

The Mackinac Centre for Public Policy has an interesting piece on the “myth” that free public health care empowers the poor. I’m not here to debate the public versus private issue (not today, at least) but it does raise some interesting questions. They claim that paying for health care is more empowering, since it forces […]

Is it Worth It to Buy A Naturopathic Practice?

On March 27, 2006, in naturopathic marketing, practice marketing, by Dan

A little follow-up to the post on valuing a practice. It’s surprisingly difficult to get CAM practitioners to consider buying patient or client files. To me, it’s a no-brainer. In most of these cases, the alternative health practitioner in question is getting out of the business, at least in that geographic area. They’re moving, retiring, […]

Alternative Health Business Startup Link

On March 24, 2006, in startup, by Dan

There’s surprisingly little help for CAM startups online (hence this site, I suppose…). However, the Canadian gov, and a few of the provinces, have specific info for starting your alternative health practice. A fair bit of it’s Canadian-specific, but it’s worth a spin through. Some interesting industry stats, too: Starting an Alternative and Complementary Health […]

Q: How Do I Value A Chiropractic Practice? (Part 2)

On March 23, 2006, in chiropractic marketing, measuring success, by Dan

(Click here for Part 1) When you buy a practice, you’re making an investment – you’re putting your money somewhere in anticipation of it multiplying. So just like stocks, mutual funds, or your savings account, you want the best return on your investment (ROI). The simple formula for ROI is: ROI = (benefits/costs) x 100 […]

Q: How Do I Value A Chiropractic Practice? (Part 1)

On March 22, 2006, in chiropractic marketing, measuring success, by Dan

“I’ve got an opportunity to buy some patient files from another chiropractor, but I think the price is high. How do I know how much to pay?” Good question. Let’s assume for the moment that buying files in general is a good idea. (I think it is.) Valuing a practice – or any business – […]

No “Islands” – A Patient Booking Strategy for Your Alternative Health Practice

On March 21, 2006, in office management, by Dan

Here’s the dilemma, as submitted by a CAM doc: “I had a new patient call looking for an appointment as soon as possible. My new patient visits are an hour long, and even though I wasn’t even close to fully booked that week, I couldn’t see the patient until the following week. My book was […]

Choosing Office Hours for your CAM Practice

On March 20, 2006, in office management, work-life balance, by Dan

A doctor once told me this great piece of wisdom: “Don’t set any office hours you don’t want to keep forever.” It’s tempting when you start up to open weekends, nights, early mornings – anything that will get new patients in the door. Although offering this flexibility to your clients seems like a good idea, […]

Accepting Credit and Debit Cards In Your Practice

On March 18, 2006, in office management, by Dan

It’s very common for alternative health care practitioners to work on a “cash or check” only basis. There are several compelling reasons to consider other options. The usual resistance to accepting Visa, Mastercard and the like is the cost. You pay a monthly fee for the account, plus a percentage of the transaction. For the […]

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