As a chiropractor you face a dilemma.
- On the one hand, you became a chiropractor because you genuinely want to help people get out of their pain.
- On the other hand, to make a living, you also need to have a successful business.
Ever-increasing rates of inflation, declining rates of reimbursement from insurance companies, and hiring struggles make it feel impossible to achieve both goals!
The good news is, there are many chiropractic marketing ideas that allow your business to ethically make more money and better serve your patients at the same time. Here are four of them.
Chiropractic Marketing Ideas Tip No. 1: Market to Past Patients
There’s no two ways around it. Your past patients are your own personal gold mine, metaphorically and literally.
Think of it this way. You own a gold mine that has already given you millions of dollars. And you know from having the mine checked out by engineers that it has the potential to earn you several million more. Which of the following options will you take?
- Go back to the mine to get more gold
- Go panning for gold in the river in a spot that hasn’t been proven to produce results
It’s likely that you chose option No. 1. Statistically and logically speaking, you’re going to get more gold from your established mine than you will from panning in the river. The same can be said of your past clients.
According to Business 2 Community, your likelihood of selling
- to an existing customer is 70%
- to a new customer is 20% or less
How to Market to Your Existing Chiropractic Patients
Marketing to your past patients should be a consistent part of your chiropractic marketing plan. Here are some chiropractic marketing ideas you can use to bring past clients back in the door.
- Send them monthly postcards and newsletters announcing specials, New Year, New You treatments, or refer-a-friend, get a discount option.
- Email clients about workshops you’re having around town or to announce new services (see below).
- Use social media to answer customer questions in real time, to announce special services or pricing, and to invite past customers to any VIP programs you have for long-time members.
Practice Promotions helps chiropractors get more new patients with a Chiropractic Website, Advanced SEO Services, Google Ads PPC, and Past Patient Newsletters. Request samples to see how we can help you get more past patients back in the clinic!
Chiropractic Marketing Ideas Tip No. 2: Build Recurring Revenue With an Online Store
Here’s the thing about trading your time for dollars. Your time is limited. Opening an online store that sells items, like exercise equipment or kinesio tape, is a great way to supplement your monthly revenue. This online store should be linked to your chiropractic website.
An online store can provide you with a passive income that isn’t dependent on you trading your labor for money!
For example, let’s say that you charge your patients $100 per visit. Let’s also say that you sell 10 items in your store for $10. You make the same amount but you don’t have to trade your time for money.
Over the course of time, this can become a recurring source of revenue for you that doesn’t depend on you giving treatments to patients. In recent years, the pandemic exposed the vulnerability in the system. In other words, if you can’t see patients in person, you lose that income. Having an online store helps you offset some of those costs.
But there is another advantage to doing this. It’s a legitimate way to continue to work with your past clients even if they’re not actively seeing you for treatment right now. This is a more holistic way to continue their care because you are serving them in the office and outside of it.
But wait– is offering an online store even ethical?
Just think about it. Do you think your patients are taking supplements, buying kinesio tape, or buying foam rollers?
Absolutely they are! They’re just buying it from someone else! Why not you?
Having an online store benefits your patients. Here’s how…
- Patients don’t have to waste time and money trying products that don’t work.
- Instead, they can easily buy a product recommended by someone they trust – YOU!
- You make sure patients aren’t buying useless or even harmful products
- Patients benefit from your medical knowledge and experience!
In short – having an online store is completely ethical. It’s good for patients, and it’s good for you. You can easily set up an Amazon storefront and get a cut of the sales from that–today!
Items to Include in Your Online Store
Here are some of the items you might want to sell in your store. If you have some concerns about how to do this ethically, make a point to only sell items that you genuinely use.
- Nutritional supplements
- Exercise equipment
- Kinesio tape
- Books and DVDs related to nutrition
- Yoga clothes
- Etc.
If you work with companies that allow for commission sales or affiliate marketing, you can make between 15% and 75% in commissions per sale on average.
Chiropractic Marketing Ideas Tip No. 3: Figure Out Which Treatments Are the Most Profitable
There is a concept in marketing — add-ons and up-sells — that is worth talking about in relation to making your practice more profitable. Here’s the gist of it.
Let’s assume that the most basic, core part of your services is chiropractic adjustment on the adjustment table. Any other service that you do in addition to that, like laser services for pain management, are considered an additional treatment.
This means that any patient you’re seeing is definitely going to get an adjustment. However, if you can also recommend adding laser treatment to the original treatment option, you’re going to make more money with this patient.
Here’s the financial breakdown:
- The cost of the basic adjustment is $65.
- The cost for the laser treatment is $200.
New total cost for the treatment equals $265. (Remember, this is just hypothetical.)
You make more money per patient, but without adding extra visits to the mix, you’ll work more effectively for the same amount of time worked, and more likely, give your patient more relief, too, given that laser treatments are becoming more common in the treatment of pain.
In short: figure out which treatment / codes have the highest reimbursement rate, and be sure to offer those services when it’s appropriate and beneficial for the patient. You can even consider dropping specific services that don’t lead to a high enough reimbursement!
Marketing, Insurance, and Chiropractic Care
All of this was important to point out, because when it comes to insurance, insurance companies will pay more for certain services / codes than others, and some services, they may not pay for at all.
In any event, if you know that the insurance companies you work with are willing to pay more for the services we talked about above, it makes sense to offer those services to your patients as a part of care.
This allows you to make more per patient in a single visit. It also allows you to give your patients more in-depth specialized care to help them treat their pain. It’s a win-win all around.
Chiropractic Marketing Ideas No. 4: Don’t Be Afraid to Call Out the Types of Payments You Want
In many respects, this is an extension of the advice above, except you’re concentrating almost exclusively on the patient side versus the insurance side. Here are some steps you can take that will help your patients better navigate the costs of care and help you make more money in the process.
Call Out Insurance Companies on Your Chiropractic Website
If you’ve been around the block a few times, then you know that some insurance companies pay more for chiropractic treatments than others. It’s also the case that some insurance companies cover little, if any, treatment at all.
If your experience tells you that AARP or Anthem pays the most per visit, then put that information on your website. This will encourage patients who use these insurance companies to book with you. It may also encourage those insurance companies to give you a shoutout on social media and in other arenas.
Consider Cash Pay Services
Here’s the thing about insurance. It takes time to get reimbursed. If you’re already struggling with cash flow challenges, this is not good news.
One solution for this is to adopt some cash pay policies. The cash pay services model has many iterations, from subscriptions to pay-less-for-paying cash set-ups.
Setting up cash pay services means that you don’t have to wait for the insurance to come through to get paid. The reason this type of payment arrangement works is because it provides extra value for the patient, and that’s something that people are willing to pay for.
Here’s a quick example.
- The individual charge for a chiropractic treatment is $100.
- The cash pay option for paying for chiropractics is 6 treatments for $540.
- The patient saves $60
In theory, this arrangement could save your clients hundreds of dollars a year and ensure that you have a more normal cash flow in the process.
Have a FAQ Page for Patients
Because insurance coverage for chiropractic care varies, it would be helpful for you to create a FAQ page for your patients. You can go into more depth about each type of payment option. If there are certain insurance companies that offer a better deal to patients, put this in the FAQ. If you have a cash pay or subscription option, include that information, too.
Often, people avoid chiropractic care because they assume it will be too expensive and that their insurance company won’t cover it, or they assume that they can’t afford out-of-pocket costs. A well-written FAQ page alleviates these fears, and breaks down some of the barriers that make potential clients hesitate come appointment-making time.
Final Thoughts on Chiropractic Marketing Ideas
If you’d like to learn more about marketing your chiropractic clinic, reach out to us. At Practice Promotions, we help you attract more new patients with a Chiropractic Website, Advanced SEO Services, Google Ads, and Past Patient Marketing. Schedule a demo of our chiropractic marketing services here!