When I built my virtual practice, the economic crisis of 2007-2008 had just begun. Sounds like a recipe for disaster, right? How could I build a new business during a time when the nation’s economic foundation was crumbling like dust? 

Believe it or not, my brand new virtual practice thrived despite the economy’s downturn, thanks largely to the strategies I used to “future-proof” my business. These future-proof strategies became more relevant than ever in 2020, as a pandemic and flood of other crises proved that we’re living in unprecedented and uncertain times. 

Fortunately, it’s possible to strengthen your practice through any type of uncertainty. It’s just a matter of positioning yourself as the type of business with the tools to grow through hardship. 

How to Future-Proof Your Virtual Practice

My team and I have developed and discovered numerous “future-proof” techniques and solutions while pioneering the virtual practice space and helping to create six, seven, and even eight-figure virtual practices. 

That’s exactly why I’m here today to help you future-proof your virtual practice for bulletproof success. 

Work With Technology, Not Against It 

It’s difficult to imagine that even into the 1990s, most medical practices didn’t use technology for anything more than record keeping. Technology didn’t become a core component of medical operations until the rise of the internet made it widely accessible and, ultimately, unavoidable.

Today, technology offers infinite opportunities to not just help your medical practice operate, but to help it grow! Yet the majority of doctors aren’t leveraging the free organic outreach strategies available through social media. 

If you’re serious about building a future-proof practice, work with technology to bolster your foundation. Maximize your social media output and implement strategies to extend your reach to thousands of people at a time. 

The possibilities here are so exciting! You don’t need to rent an expensive conference room or purchase overpriced food and beverages to engage clients with your practice; you just need to spend some time on the right social media platforms. 

Consider Building a Virtual Side to Your Brick-and-Mortar Practice

If you’re still operating under a strictly brick-and-mortar structure, it’s time to consider supplementing your practice with a virtual element. 

The COVID-19 pandemic served a major gut punch to so many industries, but it also proved the true power of online medicine to reach patients during unprecedented or unexpected situations. 

Virtual practices can take advantage of outreach and revenue opportunities that don’t exist under the brick-and-mortar model. This is exactly why doctors who hedged in virtual medicine with at least one foot have become so successful in recent years. During 2020 in particular, virtual doctors generated massive growth. 

Your foray into the virtual world doesn’t have to be overwhelming. Simply begin a conversation online with your patients and targeted audience. Then use our guidance to gradually generate the type of automation and freedom that come with a future-proofed business.

Build a Waiting List

A real, honest-to-goodness waiting list isn’t a cliche or pipe dream. It’s a legitimate goal made possible through virtual strategies. 

Your waiting list begins as an email list. Patients, prospects, and curious readers join your email list to learn more about the products, services, and information you have to offer. As you nurture this email list with thoughtful communication, it gradually morphs into a waiting list for eager new clients. 

Even if the unexpected happens and steals 10 percent of your clients, that waiting list is the secret to protecting your practice from disaster. 

Subsidize Your Practice Revenue

Many doctors overlook this simple and powerful trick to more revenue: use a high-ticket item, such as a one-on-one consulting package, group experience, or exclusive DIY program, to subsidize your practice revenue with a passive revenue stream. 

This doesn’t require you to do anything out of your wheelhouse; it simply employs automated strategies to create more revenue while improving the well-being of your customers. 

Group events, one-on-one sessions, and DIY packages all offer their own benefits. Whatever you choose, when done right, creates income and freedom to future-proof your business. 

Consider an eCommerce Platform 

You’re a medical professional, but that doesn’t mean you’re limited to working within the confines of an exam room or practice office. Selling your functional health products on an eCommerce platform is a lucrative way to enjoy residual income. 

Most people I talk to are shocked to learn I’ve earned more than $500,000 in residual income from supplement sales. They don’t realize how easy it is! You don’t need to build anything or reinvent the wheel; just create your eCommerce store to sell the items your target audience seeks. 

Build Your Team with A-Players 

It’s not always about what you need, but rather who you need. Finding the right person for the job often resolves the “what” and the “how” immediately. 

I like to use the Kolbe analysis to build my A-Team. The Kolbe analysis is a powerful personality assessment that identifies an individual’s strengths and behavior patterns. This test places potential employees into specific categories:

• Factfinder
• Follow-through
• Quick start
• Implementer

When I hire, for example, I know I need to find team members strong in follow-through and implementation, because I’m the “quick start” energy that gets the ball rolling. I need people I know I can trust to pass off the baton and keep running full speed ahead. 

By surrounding myself with a team that complements my own strengths, I’ve future-proofed my business the same way I hope to future-proof yours!

Cast a Vision and Pursue It

Nobody wants to run a business that’s hobbling along, barely surviving. Going virtual gives you the tools, strategies, and inspiration you need to protect your business against unexpected problems in the future- and continue thriving, regardless of what the world throws at you. 

So now it’s time to cultivate a clear vision of what you want to create and implement the strategies to get there. If you need guidance along the way, my programs and Masterminds are here to help you shortcut your success.