Very often, clinic owners want to know how to get their team to help increase revenues. So, we talk about how to get their clinicians and support teams involved in sales to establish a sales culture within the practice.

This is no easy task and the chances of success are very much tied up with the attitudes, behaviors and values of the team. For example, if some of the team feel this is not their role or that ‘sales’ is an offensive term in a professional environment, they will simply sabotage their own and, worse, everybody else’s efforts.

Providing team members are all willing to put their collective efforts into improving the performance of their clinic, there are some simple things the clinic owner and the team can do to help create a sales culture.

Here are my top seven:

1. The leader takes responsibility for maintaining the energy and positive vibe in the practice (and when they are away, someone else steps into their shoes to do this), so the practice has an upbeat atmosphere. No complaining, no sour faces… The leader is present, visible, focused and energetic.
2. The leader sets out the practice values. These might include: Always doing the right thing for patients, always keeping patients informed on choices and fees, running on time, providing high quality treatments, always seeing patients who are in pain.
3. The team shares clear sales targets. These will include: average daily yield, average treatment plan value and conversion, inquiry conversions. The team clearly understands the value of follow-through and follow-up.
4. There is a reward structure in place that rewards the whole team for the practice’s success.
5. There is a data stream that allows everyone to understand how well the practice is doing in real time and where the roadblocks are. The practice team is always learning from this data.
6. The customer service is exemplary and driven by established processes. Team members have permission to go above and beyond process and offer remarkable service, so that patients are truly delighted with their experience.
7. There is no sales prevention going on such as: unanswered telephone calls and emails, patients not knowing the cost of the planned treatment, treatment plans posted weeks after the consultation, a radio at reception playing Heart FM, faded blue-tacked messages throughout the practice telling patients off…

And an extra one:

All the team (including the owner) have fantastic posture, modeling what they teach, and dress in a smart professional way.

If you would like some help building a sales culture in your practice please get in touch with Erika Trimble at www.prosperousphysicaltherapy.com