By Terri Ross, Terri Ross Consulting

When I first started my business, I was well aware of the positive impact I would make; however, the outcomes have far exceeded my expectations. Providing growth strategies is my passion, and I want you to dive into reading some of the ways I'e helped businesses get to where they are today. This is for business owners who want to make their businesses stand out and shine, and want to stay ahead of the industry.

In this post, I will take you through some of the criteria that every practice needs to consider when entering the aesthetic market, and continue to monitor and evaluate for continuous success.

In the world of medical aesthetic offices, competition is fierce—and steadily increasing. In order to succeed and stand out against the sea of competitors, your office must exceed expectations. This means every aspect of your office—from the infrastructure, processes, systems and staff to location and marketing strategies—must be carefully planned out and executed. Knowing where you are by the numbers is one critical part of managing growth and optimizing your processes. Read more about key numbers you should know here.

A knowledgeable and engaging front office staff, informed marketing strategies, state-of-the-art technology, trained clinical providers who are able to perform a successful patient consultation, and, more importantly, systems and processes are all integral parts of a top performing medical office. In my eight years of experience transforming new or average-performing medical aesthetic offices into top-performing practices, I'e developed a list of six key components that differentiate highly successful medical spas or practices.

Well-Trained Front-Office Staff

Your front-office staff is the face of your office. It is critical that all members of the front office are well trained, knowledgeable, informed and engaging.

The job of the front-office staff is two-fold:

• To engage, listen and inform prospective patients of the high-quality care your office offers; and
• To continue to offer the highest quality of service to current patients, which relates directly to your patient retention.

When a prospective patient calls your office, the front office staff must quickly and effectively convey the message that your office offers the highest-quality care, technology and expertise in the market. Therefore, it is critical that all members of your staff are knowledgeable—that they know the details of every procedure and treatment you offer. Further, it is imperative that they know how the treatments and services offered in your office compare to those of competitors and are able to relay that information clearly and concisely to potential patients. By listening, engaging and responding, your front-office staff will consistently convert prospective patients into long-term patients and ensure current patients are satisfied and return. Click here to read more about the LAER model I developed for effectively training your front-office staff.

Passion

To start and maintain a top-performing office, you will undoubtedly need passion for patient care and business. Aside from developing the initial expertise required to start your office, you will need to stay informed about and ahead of new technologies, and successfully incorporate these into your practice on a regular basis. This takes passion and drive. Also, you'll need passion for business. Know your office by the numbers: potential ROI on equipment and marketing strategies, new patient rates and room revenue assumptions, to name a few. Read more about critical numbers you should know here.

Plan for the future. Consistently and creatively think of new ways to expand your business and implement the necessary changes for future growth. New marketing strategies, processes and protocols, as well as staff training are included in a comprehensive plan for office growth and optimization. To lead both the medical and business sides of your office, you certainly will need passion and a keen sense of determination.

Marketing Strategies

Marketing strategies are critical in the world of medical aesthetic offices. You need to stand out among the sea of competitors, and the most direct way to do this is to be known. Make sure potential patients know you exist. And, further, make sure they know key elements that make your office unique: state-of-the-art equipment, the highest quality of service, personalized treatment plans, etc. In other words, brand your office.

Making specific goals and implementing strategies to get there are other important aspects of effective marketing. If your goal is to increase new patient leads by 50%, implement fresh and innovative advertising and/or offer new promotions to attract potential patients. Measure your progress and keep track of your marketing ROI. Read more about how to build a successful marketing plan in this article from the Huffington Post.

Location

Choosing the right location for your medical aesthetic office is key. The right location takes a number of factors into consideration:

• Where your prospective patients live, accessibility and convenience;
• If your office is centrally located and convenient to a broad base of customers;
• Your office's visibility; and
• Your office, the physical structure, the sign and the parking lot are central parts of your marketing strategy.

A well-located office attracts new patients and helps to ensure current patients return.

State-of-the-Art Technology

Treatment and procedure options in the world of medical aesthetic offices are constantly evolving, as new research emerges and new products become available. To offer the best possible service to your patients, you will need the best tools. This means that in addition to staying on top of emerging research trends, you will need to assess, budget for and acquire new equipment for your office.

This requires careful research and calculations:

• Initial cost, maintenance costs, training and treatment pricing all go into calculating the potential ROI for a new piece of equipment; and
• Consider your competitors when choosing which equipment to acquire. Do you offer new and/or different technology compared to your top competitors? How will you differentiate your office?

New technology goes hand inhand with staying on trend with the newest medical aesthetic treatments. You want to make sure you have the proper tools to offer the best service.

Staying On Trend

It is imperative that you stay ahead of new technologies and treatment options. This requires knowing the research and implementing changes ahead of time to acquire new equipment and the expertise to use it. This also requires that your office staff and clinical medical providers are continually learning the technology and portraying this information clearly to prospective patients. In this industry, prospective patients often know what they want, and they are seeking out the right office to offer that service. Make sure your staff is informed and knowledgeable of the technology you offer. State-of-the-art technology, a well trained staff and creative marketing strategies will ensure that you consistently land and retain patients seeking the newest available procedures.

In conclusion, comprehensive and consistent setup of your practice requires constant fine-tuning, and it is helpful to engage the help of a professional who can look at your practice with fresh eyes. As a busy doctor or business owner, your focus is on treating your patients, but the same care is required to build the business.

Click here to learn more about training with Terri Ross.

Terri Ross brings more than 20 years of sales and management experience to the field, having worked with leading-edge medical device companies such as Zeltiq, Medicis, EMD Serono, Merck Schering Plough and Indigo Medical; a surgical division of Johnson.

Ross' vast knowledge and experience as a sales director managing upwards of $20M in revenue and successful teams has allowed her to become a renowned plastic surgery management consultant helping aesthetic practices thrive.

To optimize revenues and business performance, Ross' practice management consulting services help physicians evaluate practice processes including, but not limited to, overall-operating efficiencies, staff skill assessment, customer service and operating efficiency strategies. The goal is to develop a comprehensive plan of action to improve productivity, quality, efficiency and return on investment.