We’ve all had uncomfortable interactions with pushy, aggressive salespeople. As a doctor, you don’t want to make your patients feel like they’re talking to a greedy car salesman. 

Instead, you want to empower your patients to raise their hands and make the choice to actively seek your care. Yes, it’s possible to achieve a strong, loyal following without slimy sales tactics. 

During my first few years as a practice owner, I worked tirelessly to attract new patients and earn referrals. And you know what I noticed? All of my competitors shamelessly used questionable sales techniques to capture more patients. 

I refused to accept the idea that I could only successfully market my medical practice if I compromised my morals and principles. So I did the only thing I could: I developed my own method of sales that allows the patient and practitioner to collaborate as partners in the patient’s unique health journey. 

Today, as the founder of the Health Experts Alliance, the global leader in virtual practice education, I want to share all of my tips and secrets with you so that you can attract more patients without being pushy, slimy, or salesy. 

Why Do Practice Owners Struggle to Find More Patients?

If you feel frustrated or defeated by the quest to find more patients, you’re not alone. I talk to doctors every single day who share the same concerns. Some are doctors who are just starting out and building their practices from scratch, but others have six- or seven-figure practices and don’t know how to scale further. 

Setting aside differences in experience, training, and revenue, I tend to observe one common theme across the board: doctors have limiting beliefs of their own value, time, and worth. Doctors who don’t know their value tend to attract the types of patients they don’t want, while simultaneously putting their most valued customers on the backburner. This inevitably drives lackluster results and hinders your growth. 

When you know your full value, you tackle each conversation with just a hint of swagger, that sense of confidence that helps patients trust that they’re in the right hands. It’s hard to overstate the importance of patient trust; once you earn a patient’s trust, you earn her loyalty and possibly her referrals as well. 

You don’t need sales training or natural sales talent to attract more patients; you just need to believe in your mission!

The Mindset Shift You Need To Grow Your Practice

The journey to expanding your practice and earning loyal patients is all about your mindset. 

That mindset needs to stem from a sense of urgency. The work you do is vital and your patients need to know that!

Think of it this way: if health was a home, then termites would be the disease eating away at the baes of the home. Yet all of the people inside can’t see or identify the damage; they’re going about their normal routines without realizing the termites will eventually destroy their house. 

This is how it goes for most patients who rely on the traditional healthcare system. The existing model fails to address underlying issues, prevent future problems, or nurture long-term results. Instead, the traditional model addresses symptoms on the surface by prescribing drugs and treatments. This keeps the pharmaceutical companies wealthy but deprives patients of the opportunity to enjoy a long and healthy life. 

Use this to build a sense of urgency with your patients. Help them understand why the services you offer really matter to them! Their health is on fire, and you offer a bigger, better fire extinguisher than everybody else. Not only can you reduce symptoms of poor health, but you can also help your patients dramatically improve their foundational health to enhance their quality of life. 

When you embrace and embody this mindset, you won’t need to actively sell your practice; it will sell itself. It’s hard to put a price tag on the value of living an energized, revitalized, pain-free life, and your patients know that. 

How to Build Something You Truly Believe In

As soon as your business model falls into place, you don’t need to fear the sales process. Why? Because you’re selling a concept that you know, understand, and appreciate, inside and out. 

It’s okay if you don’t have every single detail hammered out. After working with doctors for so many years, I know that most medical professionals don’t want to take Step 1 until the entire process is defined and polished, but you can move forward without knowing all of the answers.

After all, isn’t that what you did when you started in your brick-and-mortar practice? You just didn’t know what you didn’t know, which gave you the blind confidence to attract new patients and drive results. Now, whether it’s been five years or 25 years since you started in brick and mortar, you know that you don’t know it all. 

But that’s okay! Start with imperfect action and learn as you go. Always remember that you’re selling a brighter future. You’re selling a longer life. You’re selling your patients not becoming a statistic. That’s all you need to know to move forward with momentum. 

Deliver World-Class Fulfillment Online

You’re a doctor, not a master of sales. By embracing your passion for healthcare and desire to improve the lives of your patients, you create world-class healthcare delivery that sells itself. No slimy sales pitches or exhaustive sales structures needed!

This is exactly how we help doctors embrace, rather than fear, sales in our Virtual Practice Accelerator. Our doctors learn how to ask powerful questions and use the Socratic method to hold aligned conversations with patients. This method cultivates impactful discoveries that encourage patients to commit to a better life by working with your virtual practice.