Who Else Wants To Get Paid What They Are Really Worth? “How To Easily Raise Your Fees Without A Patient Mutiny!” Waterford Chiropractic Office Dr. G.E. Nielsen * email: [email protected] Ph: (262) 534-3767 * Fax: (262) 534-2363 Internet Web site: www.docnielsen.com 505 Aber Drive * P.O. Box 86 Waterford, WI 53185 –0086 Copyright © 2005 – Dr. G.E. Nielsen How To Easily Raise Your Fees Without A Patient Mutiny In this special report I want to talk about five of the most common ways to raise your office fees. While there is one strategy that works very well for me, you may find one of the other strategies best for your office. In any event, you have to remember that your patients expect periodic fee increases from your office …so… let’s do it without a full-scale patient mutiny. Strategy #1: Send Your Patients A Notice The first strategy is to send your current patients a letter or a postcard announcing that you will be raising your fees on a certain date. It could be as simple as writing: Dear Friend: On January 01, 2004 we will be raising our routine office visit fee from $40 to $45. Thank you. 1 The purpose of sending a letter or postcard to your patients 30 to 60 days before your fee increase is to avoid any upsets at the front desk when your staff asks for the increased fee. This is a great strategy for the doctor who has a “low confront” level. Meaning, he doesn’t want to hear all the “static” from his patients when he raises his fees. All the doctor has to do is tell the staff to send out a “fee increase notice” to all of his (or her) patients, and it’s done. Strategy #2: Surprise Your Patients Of all the strategies I’ve seen in the past 20 years, this has to be absolute worst. Here’s how it works: Your patient comes in on Monday for an office visit. He gets adjusted, and when he stops at the front desk to reschedule for his next visit, he is told the fee is no longer $40 …it’s now… $45 today. No warning at all. Just a BIG surprise. Sit back for a minute and close your eyes. Just imagine your poor staff member facing this guy who only brought in two 2 $20 dollar bills today …because… he thought his office visit was going to be $40. Would you really want to be the front desk person who has to deal with this all day long with every patient? Then again, maybe you like to see your staff members squirm. Strategy #3: Place A Notice On The Front Desk Did you know that many practice consultants recommend placing a “Fee Increase Notice” on your front desk? They recommend the following notice: “As of January 01, 2004 Our Routine Office Visit Will Be $45” While it is the cheapest way to let your current patients know of your upcoming rate hike, it doesn’t let your inactive patients know. And when the inactive patients come in for their next visit, the front desk staff member has to deal with all their whining. You know, I bow to the front desk staff. They are super-human. 3 Strategy #4: The First-Class Postage Stamp Gambit Here’s a nifty strategy that I invented and taught to many doctors who didn’t know when to raise their fees. All the doctor has to do is tell their patients that his fee is tied to the cost of a first-class stamp. If the current cost of a first-class stamp is 37¢, then the office visit is $37. I first thought of this strategy when the stamps were 20¢ and I recommended charging $20 for an office visit. Over time, the cost of stamps will go up and so will the price of the doctor’s office visit. It’s amazing how closely the cost of first-class stamps have matched our fees. If you look around the country, $37 is probably an average office visit today. I really like this strategy because it’s a “no-brainer” for the doctor who is afraid to raise his fees. Yep, just wait for the Post Office to raise their fees, and then follow them. 4 Strategy #5: Let Your Patients Pre-Pay This is the strategy that has worked the best for my office for as long as I can remember. All you have to do is have your front desk person tell each person as they come in that the fees will be going up on a certain date, however, the patient can buy ALL the visits they want at the old price right now. There is no limit. All they have to do is pre-pay today, or on their next visit. This is a great “cash surge” strategy…especially in January. And there is no reason for any upsets at the front desk. Your patients have the opportunity to pay your old fee today, and if they choose not to buy any additional visits today, they simply pay the new fee on their next visit. No surprises. Now, we will make this offer for six months after we raise our fees. This means that if someone is inactive, they will be offered this same deal anytime they come in within the next six months after we raise our fees. 5 As you can see, there is no reason for any upsets at the front desk by raising your fees with this strategy. If the patient doesn’t like your new fee, simply tell them to buy a bunch of office visits at the old price. Let it be their choice. And here’s the secret that has been kept from you since you opened your chiropractic office: Let your staff know that they can get a raise ONLY if you raise your fees. Now, I have had staff members tell me they didn’t want me to raise my fees because they didn’t want the hassle at the front desk …however…I’ve NEVER had any staff member tell me they didn’t want a raise. This strategy works every time! This all gets back to the “what’s in it for me?” thing. If your staff sees their pay go up when you raise your fees, they will be behind you all the way. And that is a good thing. 6 Summary If I had to summarize strategy #5, I would tell you to meet with your staff and tell them they can all get a raise as soon as you raise your fees. Then, let your patients buy ALL the visits they want at your old fees (these visits are pre-paid, of course). If you are smart, you’ll put a time limit on the visits. A while back, I had a guy come back for treatment and he wanted to use his 6 visits that he bought at $15…over 18 years ago! Ok, now pick your favorite strategy and take the necessary action step today. Your goal is to raise your fees as soon as possible without a bloody patient (or staff) mutiny! ### 7