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I’m currently en route to the Deep East Texas Pineywoods for Thanksgiving at the ranch where I grew up.

(Fun fact: we raised miniature donkeys. Yes, I used to show them. But that’s a story for another day…)

But I wanted to send you a quick message re: 2021 planning today.

This is a hot topic right now with practices… and with the media reps who want your money.

OOOOOH the media reps. They slither out of their caves and start creeping into our inboxes, don’t they? “Hey doc! Don’t ya wanna give us a spin in 2021? C’mon…”

(I know plenty of media folks who are good people. Regardless, they must own this. Because they know it’s true.)

Here’s the issue:

Many people look at annual planning like building a roadmap. Which is severely limiting at best, and destructive at worst.

So they might say, “For this year… Here’s what we’re gonna say, and here are the ways we’re gonna market, and here’s the path we’re gonna take to the end goal.”

And that sounds good in theory. You get your media lined up, do all you buys, pre-plan all your campaigns, and you’re ready to rock. Right?

In a perfect world… with no variables and completely predictable human behavior…

Then a roadmap is the perfect tool for your annual planning.

But what happens when like, I dunno… a Global Pandemic hits? And all of a sudden a volcano has erupted and there’s lava all over the highway that your “Road Map” told you to take?

That’s why it’s more useful to look at annual planning more like a playbook than a roadmap.

– You know the goal – to win the game.

– You have an idea of what you need to do to win the game, so you start there.

– But if that plan doesn’t work, you have other plays you can go to.

You need to have a bunch of plays in your playbook – the in-person consultation play, the virtual consultation play, the Co-Management referral play, the 5-star review play, the patient referral play, the webinar-to-consult play, etc.

Think about it like a football game. “Their secondary is all over our receivers, and we can’t get our pass plays to work. So we’re going to try running the ball with some rushing plays.”

Sounds a lot like you back in April… “Our ‘in-person evaluation’ play isn’t working right now because the government shut us down. Time to run the ‘virtual consultation’ play.”

Or on the flip side – “This play is working well. We have an advantage with this play. How do we run more of it?”

Plenty more examples of this concept, but you get the idea. I wanted to put this out there to help you with your thinking as you look to finish the year strong and make 2021 epic.

Enjoy your Tuesday,

Troy “Playmaker” Cole

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PS – You can have a great playbook, but it’s worthless unless you have excellent players to execute the plays.

Don’t get distracted by the glitz and glam of a Super Bowl ring… and overlook the team that’s taking you to the championship.

Executing plays, gaining yards, scoring and ultimately winning – require preparation.

For example – when was the last time your phone team had a legit, honest-to-goodness lesson on how to identify and convert leads into consults? For most practices, the answer is “never.”

That’s like Ezekiel Elliott never practicing, never watching game film, never working with trainers… and then going out on the field and trying to score touchdowns for the Cowboys.

Makes no sense. It’s a set-up for failure. Yet that’s standard for most elective practices.

If you wanna execute the right plays, move the ball down the field and SCORE…

Fix your phone game first. Reply to this email and I’ll tell you exactly how to do it.

I recorded a short Thursday Thunder video for you, on my way home from the gym this morning.

I’m hearing way too many practices who sound like they are in the funeral business, when you’re supposed to be in the wedding business.

(I explain what I mean in this 4-minute video)

It’s costing you new consults, and it’s handicapping your patient journey.

Which means I guarantee you’re losing surgeries over it too.

2 quick things –

1. Give it a watch.

2. Forward this to a Physician CEO or fellow admin along with anyone on your team who needs to hear this…

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Had a call last week with a practice that was thinking about raising their prices.

“We’ve tried to stay a few hundred dollars less than our competitors, but we’re thinking about increasing for the first time in a while.”

I had a lot to say about that, and I wanted to share my comments with you.

We could go deep on price and pricing psychology, but I want to keep this brief today.

A few notes:

1. There’s no advantage to being in the middle of the pricing pack.

Renowned business coach Dan Kennedy talks about how “Offering the second-lowest price has no advantages.”

He’s right. Because if someone is price shopping, they are just going to go with the cheapest. Period.

And there are people like that in every market. Some more so in the market for groceries vs. healthcare.

But some people – as ridiculous as it is – price-shop for elective procedures too.

Thing is, they’re not your clientele. Those people don’t make good patients. And you already know this.

So if you’re going to try to compete by being cheaper, you’ve gotta be the cheapest.

(As you probably guess, I don’t recommend this)

2. Higher prices attractive higher quality buyers

You don’t want Cheapy McPricematch in your surgery suite. One way to ensure that doesn’t happen is to charge a premium price.

You’ll attract a higher quality patient who appreciates the value you provide vs. the corners you cut to keep your prices low.

3. Higher prices inherently convey value

If someone said, “Hey, I’ll sell you this brand new Porsche 911 Turbo for $12,000.” Your first question would be something like…

“Sooooo what’s wrong with it?”

Low price isn’t always better. Sometimes it actually draws suspicion.

Something that is expensive must have some special value – otherwise, why would it be priced so high?

The key: you have to be able to communicate that value.

4. High price is a differentiator

“Why do you guys charge so much more than the practice down the street?”

On it’s face, this sounds like an negative comment. Most phone specialists and patient counselors see it as such.

But in reality, it’s a great opportunity for you to agree and explain exactly WHY you are priced where you are.

So you can spend more time with each patient. So you can invest in the best technology. So you can pay your team members well and keep them around for years. So you don’t have to cram your waiting room full of people, with hour-long wait times.

Price is only an issue in the absence of value.

Make sure you can build value in what you offer, and price becomes a peripheral issue.

But before you raise your prices, there’s one thing you *must* doe:

Get your team to buy in to the extreme value you provide. This is actually the hardest part.

Your salespeople will tell you, “We have patients that we don’t convert at our current price. There’s no way we can book folks if we increase our prices by $1,000.”

This is a limiting belief. And that limiting belief needs to be replaced with an empowering belief around the value you bring to the marketplace.

If your team doesn’t BELIEVE in the value you provide… they’ll never be able to convey your new price with conviction.

(And if that’s the case – they aren’t able to convey your current price with conviction either. So you have a problem either way).

When we work with our clients, we spend an inordinate amount of time focusing on beliefs and value.

Tactics are great. But you’re far better off having rock-solid beliefs and minimal tactics vs. a book-full of tactics and a lack of empowering beliefs.

(We help clients with both so they have a 1-2 punch)

The result is that when you visit our clients’ offices, everyone on their teams believe beyond a shadow of a doubt that they are:

A. The best practice in the state

B. Provide the best outcomes

C. Take care of their patients in ways no other practice would

D. They know they are worth EVERY SINGLE PENNY they charge for their procedures.

Get your team to that place, and you can charge what you want.

Like I said, lots more we could talk about pricing, but this should be enough to get your wheels spinning.

Have a great day.

 

– Troy “Premium Price” Cole

So much happening in the last week with the election. And it doesn’t look like the end is in sight.

Stack that on top of COVID, which went from “two weeks to slow the spread” to “8 months of who-knows-what is happening.”

Which serve as a short-and-sweet reminder of what it takes to dominate and get to the next level…

In times like these – COVID, Government shut-downs, elections with interesting and disputed outcomes – we are inclined to give our attention to things we can’t control.

(And let’s be real: Even when there’s not a bunch of BIG NEWS happening, we still have this tendency.)

We want to know what’s going on. So we watch the news, follow our favorite pundits on social media, and banter with strangers on our friends’ Facebook walls.

Why? Because we trick ourselves into thinking we have some sort of control over a thing if we pay attention to it.

But you can’t control COVID numbers. You can’t control what your government does. You can’t control election outcomes.

You could have researched all the details of every possible path to victory for the president… and you affect the outcome just as much as your ignorant neighbor who doesn’t have a clue about politics.

Yeah, it’s good to have a pulse on what’s going on. But do we really need to be dialed in to every little piece of commentary, round the clock?

I saw a tweet last Weds (the morning after the election) that summed this up nicely:

“You could wake up right now, look at the TV for 15 seconds, and be in the exact same place as everyone who watched every second all night long.”

And isn’t that the truth for so many things? We can stay informed, but spend a lot less time and energy doing it.

Maybe you don’t watch much news or go to the news websites, or the election is of zero interest to you.

Even so, your newsfeed on FB, Insta, Twitter, is filled with junk that is designed to distract you. These “attention robbers” employ teams of psychologists to come up with new ways to keep you sucked into their platforms.

SO – the first step to leveling up your practice:

Give your attention to the things you can control, and cut out the rest.

Can’t control the inflammatory comments Karen posts on Facebook. But you can control if you follow her or not.

Can’t control what the pundits are saying on the news. But you can turn off the TV.

Can’t control what everyone else is saying or doing. But you can control what you let into your personal ecosystem.

(BTW this message is as much a reminder for me as for anyone else who might find it useful.)

No one is immune to the distractions. And it takes constant, conscience choices to cut distractions from our lives.

No matter what happens – who gets elected, how soon a COVID vaccine comes out, or what the media says to stir you up – you still have a job to do.

You have patients to serve. They need you to choose to focus on the things you can control:

Choose to be positive. Choose to lead your team well. Choose to develop and train your sales people. Choose to create a welcoming environment for your patients.

Not just today. Not just during this election cycle. Not just until COVID is “under control.” Every. Single. Day.

Because if you don’t make the conscious choice of how to allocate your time, energy and attention…

Someone else is going to choose for you.

That’s all I got for you today. Make it a great, focused week.

– Troy “Focus Factor” Cole

​In the last message, we talked about the “limiting beliefs” around money, and how those show up as roadblocks when booking high-ticket patients.

We’re gonna wrap up talking about projection.

So what is projection anyway?

When I started writing this piece, the first thing that came to mind was…

Talladega Nights. The cinematic masterpiece starring Will Farrell as a NASCAR driver struggling to stay on top.

Specifically, the scene where Ricky’s in the hospital, freaking out with an injury, arguing with his manager, Lucius, who tells him:

“Don’t put that evil on me, Ricky Bobby!”

That’s similar to what we’re talking about today. Except it’s “Don’t put that evil on your patients.”

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​PROJECTION – Humans tend to see other people’s situations through the lens of our own experiences.

A few examples:

My buddy Zach was recently telling me about his training for an ultra-marathon. I think, “Geez, that sounds hard!”

OK but why? Why do I think that? Because it would be hard to me.

That’s projection.

Zach has a different perspective. Basically – “I love doing this. It’s not like it’s hard or some big sacrifice. It’s just what I do.”

Another:

I’ve talked to people about our strict-ish eating plan – how Susan and I do meal prep, weigh our portions, etc. They say, “Man, that sound so difficult. I could never do it.”

That’s projection.

And I’m thinking, “It’s actually way easier to do this than to not have a plan, try to figure out food at meal time, eat the wrong things and get frustrated with myself.”

The same thing happens with your sales people and your patients.

You have a $5k, $10k, $15k surgery. Yes, that’s a decent chunk of money for most people. Including your sales team.

So picture yourself, 28 years old, making $60,000 a year, sitting across from someone and asking them to give you the equivalent of 2-3 months salary.

Feels kinda difficult, right? And that’s what a lot of your counselors face.

If they’re thinking, “That’s a lot of money to me. So it’s a lot of money, period.” Then that feeling comes across to the patient.

And the conversation will have a vibe that’s like, “Alright, let’s have that uncomfortable conversation about how expensive this is.”

And you definitely don’t want that.

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​So how do you kill projection?

A few ways:

1. Your salespeople need to understand how someone on a $70,000 salary can afford a $12,000 treatment.

So break that down. Talk about it. Talk about the payment options.

Yes, your counselors do that with your patients every day. So this may sound obvious like “Troy, my people already know this stuff.”

Knowing it for someone else and understanding it for yourself are two different things.

2. Reframe your procedures in the minds of your counselors.

If they see your treatments as a luxury, then your treatments will always seem a bit expensive or excessive or both.

Your procedures may be elective, but they aren’t a luxury. Because you’re solving a major problem for your patients.

That problem might be a lifestyle problem. Or a financial problem. Or a self-confidence problem.

Whatever the problem is, it’s big enough for them to take time off work, come into your office, and find out if you could help them. That’s a pretty darn big problem.

Compare it to your car. Doesn’t matter what kind of car you have, it costs thousands of dollars like your treatments do. (Usually a car is much more expensive)

Your car is not a luxury. It’s a need. It solves a problem.

Maybe it’s important to you to take your kids to school or practice. Or to get you to work. Or to take your family on a road trip. Or to go off-roading with your friends.

That car fills a need. Just like your procedures fill a need for the patient.

Get away from the idea of “elective” and “luxury” and reframe your procedures as a vital necessity. This will help your sales team and your patients.

3. Lastly, you gotta have empathy.

I mentioned my wife, Susan, who partners with me at LogiCole Consulting. She’s an awesome sales trainer, and part of her background is that she was a refractive counselor, booking thousands of procedures at 85 – 92% close rate.

Susan has always had 20/20 vision. She doesn’t need LASIK. She doesn’t personally understand the pain and frustration that comes with bad vision.

She said, “Truthfully, I can’t see myself spending $12,000 on my eyes. But I had to fake myself out with empathy.”

A lack of empathy creates a vacuum, and judgement fills the space.

When you don’t empathize individually, you judge categorically.

“Old people usually don’t have the money to spend on these kinds of procedures. Even if they do, they don’t want to spend it.”

“This person isn’t dressed particularly well, so I bet they are poor and can’t afford what we have.”

“This millennial probably isn’t very mature and won’t understand the value of what we offer.”

None of these broad-brush judgements are inherently true of any individual person coming into your office.

This is why empathy is so vital. Because it’s the superpower you use to override judgement.

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​In summary, here’s how to kill projection in one sentence:

Be patient-centric, not self-centric.

Practically, that means we can’t say, “This is a lot of money to me.”

(Don’t put that evil on your patients, Ricky Bobby!)

We have to say, “Wow, this is a really big problem to them… So how can I serve this patient?”

That’s enough for today. Have an amazing week.

– Troy “Shake n Bake” Cole

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PS – Shake n Bake is also from Talladega Nights. In case you didn’t catch that reference in my sign-off…