LAS VEGAS – Do your receptionists, patient coordinators, and other staff members represent you and your practice well? If not, it might be time for you to remind them that their role comes down to supporting you.

"Not knowing who’s on your team is a common marketing mistake," Catherine Maley said at the annual meeting of the American Academy of Cosmetic Surgery. "Nothing is more important in a cosmetic dermatology practice than having the right team in place. Your team is going to make or break your practice, because they are going to spend more time with your patients than you are."

Your staff must represent and promote you as the best choice, Ms. Maley said. "They have to embrace aesthetics," she emphasized. "I’ve been in offices where I’ve heard the receptionist say, ‘I would never get Botox.’ I have also heard a patient care coordinator say, ‘Just so you know, that’s not his best procedure. I would probably go somewhere else for that.’ "

Ms. Maley, a marketing strategist with Sausalito, Calif.–based Cosmetic Image Marketing, said that clinicians can find out which of their staff are true team players by staging a "refer a friend" contest in January or September, which are traditionally slow months for cosmetic dermatology practices. For the contest, employees have 30 days to distribute referral cards to family, friends, and other people in their social network. "At the end of 30 days, have a party and the employee who brings in the most referrals wins a prize – maybe an iPad or cash," Ms. Maley said. "Those who gave you the most referrals you know are on your team. Those who never participated aren’t."

Ms. Maley noted several other common mistakes clinicians make in marketing their practices, including:

• Ignoring your patients. Indifference "costs you, and it allows the gate to be open for your competitors," said Ms. Maley, who is also author of the book "Your Aesthetic Practice: What Your Patients Are Saying" (Sausalito: Cosmetic Imaging Marketing, 2011). "You have a captive market of aging baby boomers, so you want to keep them," she said. "For example, let’s say a patient shows up for a simple peel procedure or to buy a product. If they like what they got, they’re likely to start working their way up to injectables, laser procedures, or skin-tightening procedures. Keep them coming with messages by direct mail, e-mail, and social media," she said.

Although the Internet is fast and easy, don’t put all your eggs in that basket, Ms. Maley added. "You are missing out on half the patients who aren’t reading their e-mail and who can’t get past a computer firewall at work." Direct mail, she continued, offers an opportunity for one-on-one communication with the patient, "which is golden." Face time also builds trust. "The more face time you have with patients, the more they feel like they know you," she said.

• Assuming your patients will refer. Ms. Maley estimated that almost everyone knows about 150 people in their general geographic area, including service providers, family, friends, colleagues, and neighbors. "What if each patient referred one person to you?" she asked. "That could double your patient database. It’s worth asking patients who know you, like you, and trust you to refer at least one person to you."

While asking for referrals may seem awkward for some, she recommended displaying a sign in your waiting room that reads: "We love you as a patient. We would love to have more patients just like you." Another positive gesture is to hand patients before and after photos on a card following their treatment sessions, along with a handwritten note from you that says, "Thank you for your trust."

Patient surveys also can help you gauge how you’re doing, but keep them short, such as, "What’s one thing we could have done to improve your experience today?"

• Taking a "one-size-fits-all" approach. Gone are the days when an advertisement in your local newspaper with a menu of services is considered sufficient. Instead, "create one message to a specific market using the one media channel they are most likely in," Ms. Maley said. "For example, a woman in her 60s who is considering a facelift is more likely to respond to a one-on-one phone call or direct mail. Her daughter who is considering blepharoplasty is likely to research the procedure on the Internet."

• Having no marketing plan. Ms. Maley recommended carving out dedicated time with staff and perhaps a marketing consultant to devise a strategy for attracting high-value patients. "First, you have to attract them," she said. "Then, you have to qualify them to make sure they have the financial and emotional wherewithal to want what you offer. Then, you have to convert them to procedures, retain them for a lifetime, obtain testimonials and reviews, and encourage referrals. If you can set up a system that works just like protocols for surgery, it becomes an automatic system," she noted.

Ms. Maley said she had no relevant financial disclosures.

d.brunk@elsevier.com

Don't make these mistakes when marketing your practice