Some ‘key’ mistakes while developing your practice plan can cause your new clinic to fail; lack of research and lack of preparedness. Avoid becoming another failed clinic by making sure you don’t commit to those mistakes and the following:

Underestimating the competition

To help you avoid underestimating and consequently losing patients to your competition, here are 6 tips on how to prepare more effectively.

1) Follow your competing local practices on social media.
Read what competitors are saying/posting on Facebook. Are there any hints of changes in approach? Is there information you can use in positioning and messaging? Have they launched a new service to treat patients that you do not have? Hired a new clinician? All of these may indicate a change in their approach.

2) Set up competitor alerts.
Use Google alerts or another alert system to push information to you via email. Follow what is being said about your competitors in media placements, articles, blog posts, etc.

3) Leverage LinkedIn connections.
See if competitors have recently connected with your client contacts, or if your contacts are following a competitor’s site or group on LinkedIn. Look at open positions your competitor is hiring for, as this may also provide insight into a directional shift.

4) Talk to your clinic team.
Don’t forget to talk to your own team as they probably know staff who are working for some of your competitors.

5) Sign up for competitor’s blogs and newsletters.
It never hurts to sign up for a competitor’s blogs or newsletters to keep tabs on what they’re saying. Trust they are signed up for yours.

6) Download and review material from competitor websites.
Don’t forget to visit competitors’ websites. You can often find new information, featured services or products, or research on their sites that may show a shift in an approach.

We operate in an ultra-competitive world when it comes to healthcare in Australia. To be successful and avoid underestimating your competition, you must be prepared, strive to differentiate your patient services (& products if you sell any), and provide extraordinary value to prospective new patients and your current patients.