Steps to Becoming the Preferred Weight Loss Practice in Your Area - Part 2

What can you do to become the preferred weight loss practice in and around your area?  How can you be seen as the ‘obvious choice’ when it comes to weight loss in your region?  How do you become the ‘chosen one’ amidst everyone and everything else bombarding those you are best equipped to serve? Last week I talked about Trust & Clarity. Today I will conclude the discussion and share the next 3 steps. 

TRUST – Consistency

No one trusts a one hit wonder.  They also don’t trust someone who talks about themselves all the time.  Thus, you need to show up consistently and serve your ideal patients.  You need to show up in a variety of ways, on a variety of platforms and identify with your ideal patients by serving them what they want to know and what they need to know about what is causing them the most pain, how you are uniquely qualified to help them, and how to get started. As an important differentiator, what they want to know and what they need to know are not necessarily the same thing.

While I don’t recommend tackling all of these all at once, I do recommend becoming proficient at one and then adding on the others.  Over time, it will become second nature to you and before you know it, you will find your patients reaching out to you with little/no advertising necessary because you really understand them, their primary problems and have the best solution to help them attain success. 

At the end of the day, with each message you send in order to reach your patients (online, offline & onsite), you need to ask yourself if your message is true?  And will it help them today?  When you come from a sincere ‘serving’ attitude, you will reach those that need you most and not feel as if you are ‘selling’ your services or products.

Below are a few examples:

Platforms:

• Articles
• Print Advertising
• Books
• Social Media (i.e. Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Pinterest, LinkedIn, YouTube)
• Podcast
• Blogs
• Online Webinars
• Onsite Seminars
• Local Presentations
• Paid Advertising (i.e. print, radio, TV, Online)
• Other
• Combination

Examples of what they may want to know:

• How to lose weight fast.
• What diet plan is best for me?
• What is carbohydrate sensitivity and insulin resistance and why is it important?
• Why am I gaining weight during menopause?
• What is intermittent fasting?
• What is the best appetite suppressant for me?
• Am I candidate for weight loss surgery?
• Does insurance cover weight loss?
• Does insurance cover weight loss surgery?

Examples of what they may need to know:

• How do I find a reputable medical weight loss program?
• What are my weight loss surgery options and which is best for me?
• What should I know about appetite suppressants?
• What weight loss program is right for me?
• What should I look for in a medical weight loss program?
• What should I look for in a surgical weight loss program?

How you can help them:

• Highlight your weight loss services and products.
• Clearly define how you are different.

How to get started:

• Clearly communicate their next step to getting started with YOU (webinar, seminar, phone call, e-mail, text etc.)

You would be amazed at how complicated so many weight loss physicians and programs make this process. You simply need to know exactly who your ideal patient is, where they hang out, what their pain points are and how you are uniquely able to help them attain success and the easiest way to get started.  Of course, there is more to it than that, but if you focus on these aspects and build your communication around these areas, you will be way ahead of your competition.

TRUST – Celebrity Display

My goal here is not to turn in you into a TV celebrity, but it is to make you the trustworthy celebrity that you are in your field and effectively put you in front of your ideal patients.  What I am referring to when I say Celebrity Display is how you put you and your practice ‘out there’ in a congruent, simple and effective way so you can do the most good and help others not only find YOU in your area but understand why you are different and how they can work with you.

The truth is that you can and will become somewhat of a celebrity in your area if you take the time to answer the questions your patients are asking and put your expertise on display with information that resonates with them and paves a clear path to you and your door (online or onsite).  Before you know it, these ideal patients are sharing YOU with others – it is one of the best compliments you can receive.

You can effectively do this through seminars, online webinars, public presentations, online live presentations, guest presentations for local groups, your blog, your book(s) and your podcast (if you choose to go that route).

Don’t let technology hold you back.  It has never been easier than it is today to reach your ideal patients, answer their questions, create excitement, create anticipation, create trust and provide your services in a convenient, impactful, and cost-effective manner.  Your podcast, blog, online webinar, YouTube Channel and more could be up and running within a week.  I do this all the time with/for physicians.  Once established, it is a matter of creating helpful, pertinent content and doing so in a consistent manner as mentioned earlier.  And, it is much easier than you may think!

TRUST – Case Studies

The fourth step in this TRUST equation is to share the success of your patients in the form of case studies, testimonials and social sharing.  I help physicians create easy to use templates for written and video testimonials.  It is all about having a system and then – you guessed it – consistently sharing results.  This type of social proof is sincere and so very exciting.  Once the testimonial is created, you can use it on every platform, in your office, as online reviews and so much more.  Simply having your team and the patient share it on their social media platforms as well can exponentially increase the likelihood of others seeing your patient’s success.  When these stories of success are communicated well, it creates ongoing inbound referrals.  It is a beautiful thing and further demonstrates why YOU are the Preferred Weight Loss Provider in and around your area.  Exactly why YOU are the CHOSEN ONE for those seeking the services and products you provide.

Reach out to me if you have specific questions or want to discuss this topic at  [email protected]  Also, an easy (no brainer) to work with me directly and access many daily, weekly and monthly resources is through www.BariatricBusinessAccelerator.com  membership.  I can’t wait to learn about what you are up to in your practice as well as your goals.