Avery Chen
Did you know that you’re LOSING new patients?
It’s true. Most physical therapy, chiropractic, and rehab clinics are losing hundreds of potential patients each month! If you’re like most private practice owners, your website & marketing systems are like a leaky bucket. You are leaking out patients and missing opportunities.
But guess what? You can patch those holes and stop losing out on new patients. Here are 7 scary ways that you’re LOSING patients…and how to fix them:
1. Physical therapy patients don’t find your clinic on Google.
Here’s a scary statistic: 86% of clicks on Google Organic go to the top 10 search results. That means if you’re not in the top ten, you are missing out on 86% of patients looking for help on organic search!
Source: Backlinko.com
And it gets worse.
Let’s say you rank #7 in your area for “chiropractic clinic in [city,state].” You might think you’re doing okay.
But you’d be wrong.
That’s because the top 3 Google search results get 54.4% of all clicks! If you aren’t in the top 3 on Google, you are missing OVER HALF of patients searching for help!
Source: Backlinko.com
Key Takeaway: If you aren’t in the top 3 on Google, you are losing out on the majority of patients searching for your services. And instead…your competitors get those patients.
To increase your Google ranking and stop losing patients online, check out our SEO services: https://practicepromotions.net/services/physical-therapy-digital-marketing/
2. Patients leak out of your PT, Chiro, or Rehab website.
Unless you are in the top tier of private practice owners, over 98% of patients who visit your site FALL OFF without scheduling an appointment! That’s called a “website conversion rate” of 2% or less.
In other words, your website is leaking patients out the bottom. A leaky website is caused by…
- Not calling patients to action with a clear “Request Appointment” or “Call Now” button
- Not making your website look good (or even work!) on mobile phones
- Bad design that looks unprofessional
But at Practice Promotions, our clients’ websites convert 8.1% of visitors into patients.
- Most sites: 100 Website Visitors – Lose 98 = 2 New Patients
- Practice Promotions sites: 100 Website Visitors – Only lose 92 = 8 New Patients
Key Takeaway: When you fix your leaky website, you will immediately stop losing patients from your website!
To fix your leaky website and stop losing patients, check out our website services: https://practicepromotions.net/services/website-design/
3. You aren’t talking about conditions and symptoms.
If you had to guess the percentage of people who search for their symptoms on Google before they talk to a doctor, what would your guess be? 40%? 50%? 60%?
How about a staggering 89%? That’s according to a news report on WECT.
So, if you aren’t focused on condition-based marketing, you are going to MISS OUT on those 89% of people searching for their symptoms!
You need separate pages on your website for conditions like…
- Back pain
- Neck pain
- Sciatica
- Whiplash
- Rotator cuff injuries
- And many more…
Key Takeaway: When you forget to talk about conditions on your website, blog, emails, and any other marketing, you will LOSE OUT on a tremendous amount of new patients.
To stop missing out on condition-based searches, read this blog: https://practicepromotions.net/seo-keywords-physical-therapy-websites/
4. Past physical therapy, chiropractic, or occupational therapy customers forget about you.
You may think that your quality of care makes you unforgettable.
But guess what?
You. Are. Forgettable.
You may have helped Mrs. Li with her knee last year. But life is busy. Unless you keep in touch with her, she will forget about you. Then, when her husband pulls his back, they will likely do a NEW Google search…and go to your competitor.
So how do you make sure you’re not forgotten?
You have to constantly market to your past patient list. Two of the top ways are via email marketing + sending custom patient newsletters! Our customers reactivate multiple past customers every month.
Key Takeaway: If you don’t market to your past customer list, they will forget you. But if you market to them consistently with email and direct mail, you will be remembered and they’ll come back in for care.
To go from “forgotten” to “remembered”, learn how to market to your past customer list: https://practicepromotions.net/best-practices-for-reactivating-patients/
5. Patients don’t complete their plan of care.
You might be losing HALF YOUR REVENUE when a patient doesn’t complete their plan of care.
For example…
Let’s say you get $75 from insurance per patient visit. If you plan for a patient to come in 10 times, that patient value will be $75 x 10 visits = $750 value per patient.
But what if that patient drops out after 5 visits? Then you just LOST $375.
And why do patients drop out?
Because you aren’t communicating the value of your services. Marketing does not stop when a patient gets on your schedule. You need to market to them with professional in-clinic materials, valuable emails and blogs, and patient newsletters. That way, they’ll see your services as too valuable to leave.
Key Takeaway: When patients don’t complete their plan of care, you LOSE at least $100 per lost visit. Once you factor in what it cost to attract that patient with marketing, you lose even MORE.
To make sure patients complete their plan of care, download this Automated Patient Welcome Series email cheat sheet: https://practicepromotions.net/downloads/
6. Your front desk does not convert calls into patients.
Oh boy. This one hurts.
You invest in your website. You invest in Google Ads. And suddenly, your phone is ringing off the hook.
But when you look at your schedule…your schedule is still full of gaps.
Why? It’s not because of your marketing.
It’s because your front desk is not converting calls into patients. And that means you are losing patients every single day.
Your front desk is really the “sales” function in your clinic. Marketing brings in patient calls and appointment requests. But it’s your front desk that “closes the sale” and puts people on the schedule.
Key Takeaway: If your front desk isn’t converting calls into patients, you are losing patients who need your help. And that’s just wrong.
To fix your front desk & stop losing patients, click here: https://physicaltherapymarketing.com/how-to-overcome-patient-objections-this-holiday-season/
7. You’re not thinking like a business owner.
The most money you’ll ever LOSE is money you never make. If you never think like a business owner, but always think like a money-conscious Physical Therapist or Chiropractor…you will lose out on hundreds of new patients.
For example, let’s say you have an opportunity to invest in Google Ads. It will cost you $1000 / month…but you understand that you’ll gain 8 new patients and make $8000 in patient value.
If you still have a practitioner mindset, you might say, “Nah, $1000 is too expensive. I can’t afford it.” Then you lose those 8 new patients that you COULD HAVE had.
But with a business owner mindset, you say: “I would love to spend $1k to make $8000.” And you do it. Then you get those 8 patients. You don’t lose them. And you make $7000 in profit.
Our star client Raj Suppiah, puts it this way:
Key Takeaway: If you don’t think like a business owner, you lose dozens of new patients every month.
To start thinking like a business owner, read this blog on investments vs expenses: https://practicepromotions.net/investments-expenses-physical-therapy-clinic/
Stop Losing Physical Therapy, Rehab, and Chiropractic Patients
You may think that you’re doing okay.
But you’re actually losing patients every single day! You’re losing them from…
- Your weak online presence – losing 54.4% of searches if you’re not in the top 3
- Your leaky website – losing 98% of web visitors
- Your untrained front desk – losing half or MORE of valuable patient calls
- Your own mindset – limiting your own growth by not investing in marketing
Once you add all those together…you are losing the vast majority of patients who are looking for help. They are bouncing off your website. Leaking from your “request appointment” page. Falling off your schedule. And past customers are slipping away.
But it doesn’t have to be that way.
When you fix these problems, you can STOP losing patients and START gaining patients the way you should be.
At Practice Promotions, we help practice owners fix the holes in their marketing with powerful marketing services. We’ve got a 5-step map to growth that has worked for hundreds of practice owners like you.
Request a Practice Marketing Sample Kit today & see how our services help you STOP losing patients.
