My oldest son is 8. Which is a fun age because we can start doing more “guy” things together.
We can actually play catch with a baseball or football. He’s helpful when we do projects around the house. And we can watch certain “non-kid” movies together.
Last night, I showed him Rocky III. It’s the one where Rocky fights Clubber Lang, played by Mr. T (beastmode!).
Rocky III is a great example of what happens when someone gets fame and fortune… then gets distracted and loses his edge.
(In case you haven’t seen it or just don’t remember the plot – the now world-famous champion boxer Rocky is challenged to a title fight by the hungry and ultra-focused up-and-comer Clubber Lang, who hands Rocky a knock-out in just 2 rounds).
There’s a training montage that shows the juxtaposition between each boxers’ training camp. Rocky doing photo shoots, signing autographs, enjoying the fanfare. Clubber working away in a dark gym, alone, focused, putting 100% effort into his workouts.
Seeing that, it’s no wonder Rocky gets stomped.
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As I was watching this amazing cinematic masterpiece, I couldn’t help but think about how the LASIK industry is ripe for a Rocky III disruption.
Every market has a heavyweight champ. Every market has its challengers.
And in 15 years of doing this, I’ve seen “champs” who get a little like Rocky. They dominate their markets, do strong volume, and start to feel invincible. And they get a little comfortable.
There’s nothing inherently wrong with heavyweight champs enjoying the spoils of their long, hard battle to win the championship belt. Goodness knows they’ve worked hard for it.
The scary part is how easy it is for a challenger to come in a dethrone the champ.
20 years ago, this was a near-impossible task. To overtake the champ back then, it took literally millions of dollars in marketing, and a massive reputation built brick by brick over many years.
The “barriers to entry” aren’t anywhere near as high as they were when I started in this industry. Think about it:
A practice with a strong review-getting strategy can build a massive 5-star online reputation (where it matters most) in a short period of time.
A practice with a dialed-in digital marketing strategy can generate hundreds of quality leads for pennies on the dollar compared to the massive marketing budgets that were required in years past.
A practice with a properly trained sales team can take those leads and convert the vast majority of them into consults.
And when a practice comes into the market with extreme focus on incredible patient experiences, word of mouth can travel faster and farther than ever thanks to social media.
I’m not talking theory here. In recent years, I’ve implemented these strategies for practices that were brand new to a market. And within 24 months, they became the highest volume – and highest priced – refractive practice in their region.
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And now, post-COVID, the opportunity for disruption is bigger than ever. Because the general population has been groomed to enjoy a home-centric and phone-centric lifestyle.
The practices that recognize this and pivot to a hybrid model of patient engagement (traditional in-office consults combined with virtual consults) are seeing huge gains in their refractive surgery numbers. I’m talking 30-50% growth in surgery eyes (and correlating revenue).
Could a younger practice challenge the “heavyweight champion” in their market and take their market share? With the right strategies – and a Clubber Lang-level of focus – it’s certainly possible.
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All it takes is extreme focus and the right strategy. We can’t “make” you focus (though I can tell you what to focus on). But we can give you the new strategy – along with the proven assets, processes and even generate the new patient opportunities for you.
Rocky needed a new strategy too.
When it was time for Rocky’s rematch with Clubber, he paired up with former heavyweight champ Apollo Creed. Apollo coached him on a new boxing strategy. Rocky used his new strategy to come back and regain his heavyweight title from Clubber.
I don’t know where you consider yourself in your market – if you’re the reigning champ, a former champ or a challenger.
If you’re the reigning champ – watch your back. What got you here won’t get you there (at least not without some pivots and modifications). It’s time to go hybrid. Now.
If you’re a former champ who has lost the title to someone else in your market… don’t worry. You can get back on top with a fresh strategy, just like Rocky did.
And if you’re the challenger – congratulations. There’s never been a better time to be a refractive surgeon. Consumer interest is high, and you have a massive opportunity to disrupt your local market and dominate like never before.
But you have to get focused, get the right strategy, and take action.
Hear that? They just rang the bell. The fight is on… 👊
- Troy “DesTROYer” Cole