From the Desk of Dr. Patrick Gentempo, Jr.
Brief Against Retreat: Chiropractic Actions in a Tough Economy
In my 25 years as a chiropractor, business consultant to chiropractors, and CEO of Chiropractic Leadership Alliance (CLA), I have seen many challenges dealt to the field of chiropractic and have been very accurate in strategic recommendations that have helped DC’s face these challenges and thrive. In order to figure out what to ‘do’, we have to understand what is happening. Let’s talk about the economy…
The headlines are speaking of economic doom and disaster. The stock market has pulled way back. The housing crisis is expanding. Our financial institutions are going bankrupt. We sit and wait for the next domino to fall. We have uncertainty in a very contentious political race. Prevailing wisdom says hunker down, tighten your belts, squeeze tight, play defense and hope for the best…ride the storm out – right? Wrong. Dead wrong!
What’s really happening?
The subprime lending crisis has initiated a sequence of events that are economically disastrous and the blows are not over. The banking industry went on a lending binge where they financed overvalued properties to under qualified borrowers. These mortgages were bundled up into very large packages and sold off. As they were traded in the marketplace a sense of reality was lost until these ill-qualified people who got non-income verification loans using adjustable rate mortgages that had low initial payments started defaulting on these loans. This hit a tipping point and suddenly property values start to drop, more loans go into default, property owners no longer want to make payments on these property whose value was ‘under water’ compared to the outstanding mortgage (negative equity position) and financial institutions were sitting with portfolios full of mortgages on property of indeterminate value whose owners were not in a financial or emotional mindset to pay. Next thing you know – Bear Stearns – whose large glass skyscraper was full of employees and bustling with activity (I have been there personally as I was meeting with them to help them design a wellness program for their 8000 employees – until they went belly-up) is no longer.
Unimaginable.
Then Fannie Mae and the rest all followed…a bad dream that dominates the collective psyche of a nation who doesn’t really grasp the nature of what is happening. They just understand that it is “bad.” I realize that I have simplified and generalized my characterization of what is happening to our banking industry and economy, but for the purposes of this document, it suffices.
Some are comparing today’s events to the ‘Great Depression.’ Know this – we live in a different world today that follows different economic rules than the 1930’s. Our economy is much more diversified, hence, less prone to an across the board recession or depression. This is not to say that there isn’t economic pain and the effects of what is happening are not far reaching – I am suggesting that it won’t affect all industries and households the same way or to the same degree and that recovery may be faster than some think. Bottom line? There is still an enormous amount of wealth in the households of this nation and every day some of it will be spent somewhere. There will still be around $2.5 trillion spent in the USA alone on what is referred to as healthcare. There is still a lot of ‘economy’ for what you do. My objective is to have as much spent as possible in chiropractic offices because in stressful times, people need chiropractic even more.
So, what are the choices to the DC in these troubled times? Either retrograde retreat and hold on for dear life – or – get very aggressive and go after profitable growth. I obviously advocate the latter. There is opportunity in all crises. Today is no exception. Shrinking is a bad idea. You can’t score points on defense. Time for a gut check.
Most of CLA’s clients are thriving right now. They have positioned themselves to attract people to their services because these services help the consumer cope with the stress they are experiencing. They have made themselves “market-ready” and are going after the market and capturing more of it every day. What is critical for every DC to understand is what it means to be ‘market-ready.’ In tough economic climates, mediocre practices just die. So, what does it mean to be market-ready?
First, it means crystal clarity of the objective. In other words, what is the clear purpose of your practice? What is the clear goal you have for every patient that comes through your doors? Where do you want you practice to be in 5 years? Have you set up practice procedures that are consistent with these clear goals and objectives? What do you do day 1 and day 2 with new patients? What is your marketing plan? How do you budget it? How do you measure its results? What are your patient education strategies? How robust are all these systems and considerations? I could go on, but I think you get the idea. Succeeding in businesses, like a chiropractic practice, is very tough. Being in the market place today without being market-ready is close to business suicide.
In light of all this, CLA has put together some very powerful, new packages that not only get a practice technologically equipped for today’s market, but also are extremely comprehensive so as to shift a practice to market readiness in today’s environment. With over 8,000 clients, I have learned a whole lot about what the needs of the field are. Minimally, all the practices need:
1. A DC who has a high degree of confidence, certainty, and credibility.
2. A system of marketing that is creative, gets results, and is cost effective.
3. A system of education that shifts a patient to new understandings about the nature of where health comes from and how to keep and expand one’s true health. This education system must also speak to the virtue of the whole family, including kids, getting adjusted.
4. A system of procedures that are efficient and reflect the values and purpose of the practice. This starts with how a phone is answered and ends with an experience for the patient that makes the trip to your office the best part of their day, every day they come!
CLA now has three brand new packages that address all the issues I raise above and bring to the chiropractic field that aggressive bold step needed to overcome today’s economic challenges. Each package contains the Insight diagnostic technology platform which may have up to five different powerful assessment technologies on it. The biggest problem facing DC’s is that they are selling a product they are not sure they are delivering. They are selling a benefit called better health through a better functioning nervous system but offer no valid, objective measures that demonstrate these benefits in a compelling way. The Insight is Space Certified by the Space Foundation – a non-profit organization co-founded by NASA. It received this certification because it has been used in NASA’s space program. It is also used in the locker rooms of world champion sports teams. All this to say – item 1 above - the need for a high degree of confidence, certainty and credibility - are very well handled by the Insight technology. Just ask some of our many thousands of chiropractic clients. They won’t be shy about affirming this effect.
Addressing item 2 – marketing – CLA has just released something huge…the Mega Marketing Tool Kit. The list of things in this kit is so vast it would make your head spin. I would be happy to give you a complete list of the dozens of items in it upon request. For now, suffice it to say that these marketing tools and systems more than cover everything you need to go to your community and market like never before. We want you to have more new patients…a lot more!
Item 3 above calls for comprehensive, effective, patient education. We have many items in our package that address this better than anything else in the profession. Center stage on this is our CLA Health CLAss. This is a series of seven PowerPoint classes that you use in your office and in your community. They are edgy, powerful, and simple to master and deliver. Matched with our patient ed brochures, Insight reports and other materials, you will be beyond effective in educating your patients and community on the benefits of your services.
Item 4 states that you need practice systems and procedures. Every one of our packages includes our legendary Total Solution program (a 4-day practice transformation boot camp). We have had over 6,000 DC’s come through. Their testimonials are shocking they are so good. Putting it all together in 4 days is life-changing. Nothing in the industry comes close to what CLA provides at Total Solution. Further, we have a new product that we have just released entitled: “Insights to the New Patient.” In this DVD we give you step-by-step instructions regarding day 1 and day 2 procedures. We cover everything from how to answer your phone, how a CA should greet a new patient, your consultation, exam, report of findings, etc. We also role play it for you so you can see it in action with a patient! These procedures are vital to your success.
There are 3 new packages that CLA offers that contain some or all of these vital components. They are called:
1. The Discovery Package
2. The Premier Package
3. The Ultimate Package
These packages start at a little over $300 per month. They are affordable to any practice and the return on investment is stunning. Also, our track record is so strong and our confidence is so high, we offer an almost risk-free Buyers’ Assurance Program (with simple terms and conditions that I am happy to share under separate cover).
A final thought…there is a reason our company is called Chiropractic Leadership Alliance. Most companies name their company by the product they sell. Even though we offer cutting edge clinical technology and powerful practice development tools, we realize it is not a machine or a product that in and of itself gets a result. It is the person using it that gets the result. We are an alliance of leaders that have created a culture that our clients like to call their chiropractic home. In tough times, you don’t want to be alone. Join us, the thousands that make up Chiropractic Leadership Alliance. Be a part of our vision and culture. Succeed to higher levels in practice and be an example for others to follow. Help more people in your community who desperately need it. We’re smart – very smart. We’re ready, willing, and able to help you.
Click the link below to get more information or set up a web demo with one of our CLA Achievement Specialists. By doing so, I’ll give you a gift that can really help focus you in these tough economic times…my signature CD: “The 5 P’s to Prosperity.” Just my way of saying thank you and wanting to help my colleagues.
http://www.claregistration.com/WebTour/RegistrationForm.aspx
Sincerely,
Patrick Gentempo, Jr., D.C.
CEO
Chiropractic Leadership Alliance
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