Where to Find Your People - Coaching with Tea Webinar Replay

Dr. Tea  0:01  
Owners of a direct care practice are more likely to experience higher job satisfaction than the insurance based practice. And it's no wonder why direct care is independent of insurance. Patients pay the doctor directly for their expertise. The doctor gets full autonomy in how they care for patients and how they get paid. We've chosen this path for the love of medicine. This is the direct care way. 

By listening to this podcast, you may even start to believe you too can have a successful direct care practice. Come listen with an open mind. As I share my personal journey on how I pivoted from an insurance based practice to direct care, right in the middle of a pandemic. And the valuable lessons along the way. This podcast may be the very thing you need to revitalize your medical practice. I'm your host owner of a direct care podiatry practice, Dr. Tea Nguyen.

Hey there, this is a special episode. So if you've been in my coaching with T Facebook group, then you know I've been putting together weekly webinars to discuss your specific questions and how to get your direct care practice started. I am really enjoying this series because lots of questions are coming in. And I'm trying to be very concise, so that you can have information right at your fingertips to make the decision on whether or not you want to have a hybrid practice or go all in to having a cash practice that's independent of insurance. I kind of hesitated on sharing these webinars in this podcast because I wanted it to be exclusive for the members. But I decided that it was good enough to share here on the podcast. So it's here for you. And yes, at the end of the webinar, I am promoting my brand new coaching practice that I will be starting in August. 

This is a group coaching program intended for the serious business owner, the woman podiatrist who wants to start opting out, there is a sensible way to have a direct care path. And I don't want you to do this alone, because I've made some serious mistakes. And if I can share that with you and help somebody else from having those mistakes, then that would make me feel pretty good. So the opportunity to work with me is there. I had that opportunity for me when I started opting out. And I find it to be exceptionally powerful to have someone else who is already doing what you want to do. And of course, along the way, you're going to be able to find the right type of practice that is designed just for you designed by you. And I want to help you build that foundation. I'm so excited to share the doer Caraway with you. I truly believe this is the balanced life that we are all seeking for having a profitable practice and having a life outside of clinical practice. 

So you can do whatever it is that you enjoy. guilt free. Here you go. There's nothing like technical difficulties. Anyway, so I recorded a really awesome 30 minutes for you. And it was not recorded, or at least the audio didn't work. So anyway, I hope this one works. Got a little bit more time so I can repeat myself. No problem. Life goes on. If we haven't met. I'm Dr. T. I mean, the owner of a podiatry practice in Santa Cruz, California, I opened my practice and 2018 Insurance space model quickly sank into despair. I had a split I had to spend so much money, so much money chasing money owed to me it was ridiculous. And I got consultant after consultant who all told me the same thing. They said just see more patients. Okay, yeah, no, I was tired. There's only 24 hours in a day and I had a newborn. And I think it was a year in that I was like I need something more sustainable. Because doing this insurance based stuff, wasn't it? I had to hire somebody to just deal with insurance verification. 

Collecting co pays understanding coinsurance understanding when deductibles reset, was it calendar year or was it like some other odd number? So you know, you can imagine a lot of confusion happens. And a lot of practices make this work, but it took some time and there was a learning curve involved and so they hire on more and more people which added to overhead expenses. And then at the end of the day are the accounts receivable is like it was painful to watch money that's owed to not actually being deposited in the bank account? Because I had all these bills to pay for, after all. And then I got to a point where I was like, Do I really think this is sustainable? Is it really appropriate that this is just the way we practice medicine, we deliver the service, and then we get paid 30 days later, or even a year. So often, I've gotten paid, you know, months after a service was rendered, I find that horrendous that we find that to be acceptable. So then I started to opt out. Because I wanted a life outside of clinic, I didn't want to be buried in charting or learning another modifier, or having to be on a phone with another peer to peer call, I just couldn't do it anymore. 

So I hit a breaking point. In 2020, I opted out slowly but surely, one by one and 2022. Happier than ever. Now, it's not a perfect model. It's not for everybody. But if you're considering it, I'm glad you're here, because I want to share with you a really common question that everyone's asking, How do I find my patients? How do I find my people that will pay for a medical services typically covered by insurance? Like how, where are these people? Who are they? Are they rich? Or the poor? Like, who do I serve? So that's what I want to share with you today, there, there's actually five places that people can find you. And I'll share with you how I built my practice that way. So first of all, if you come from an insurance based practice, and you have a reliable referral source, I just want to let you know and be completely transparent. That if your primary referral source was through a PCP who was insurance based, you might lose that referral. And you need to be okay with this. Here's why. Oftentimes, if we are giving the same service that is covered by insurance, of course, they're gonna want to refer to somebody who's in network. In some networks, if it's HMO, everybody benefits if you keep the patient within the network. So there really is no incentive to refer out I've had a case where a patient, switched her insurance and then wanted to continue to see me but she had a request from her insurance, the reason for going out of network. So it's that in itself was a process that was meant to discourage out of network referrals, because their thinking is, if there's another podiatrist in the network, why bother? Aren't they all the same? So that's where I want to stop you there is that no, you have to find a way to make yourself different to make this work as a specialist as a podiatrist. 

So I still do have my base referral referred to me on some conditions. Number one, they know that what I offer is completely different than what's available. Number two, they know that what's available doesn't even offer what I have, I think I'm saying it the same different way. But listen, my competition, my competition is not real competition, but what's available in my network in my community. Not all the services I provide are paid by insurance anyway, like preventive care, wellness, foot care, more of a laser, not laser, shockwave therapy, you know, a lot of these things that are not covered by insurance, I adopted really quick because that's what people were asking for. So I would tell my referring my referral sources, this is what I have I have this solution. It's non invasive. Should your parents should your patients need a nother opinion, I'm more than happy to see them. Number three people refer to me because I see them quickly, or they self refer. So now I'm working directly to consumers, which is a benefit. So if you can get people seeing sooner, you can be on top list of people to refer to. So that's just something to consider. You're referring your established referral source that is insurance base may either refer less to you, or if you offer something unique, they may continue to refer to you. So that's just one way of finding your patients.

So here's the I think it's five or six. Stick with me here where you can find your patients number one, friends, friends, your friends, friends who support you friends who follow you, friends who like you and are willing to pay for you. Friends. This is why the MLM MLM System works. Multilevel marketing works like the Tupperware parties, or what is the makeup one and there's like the Rodan and Fields like they know how strong women In women's network is we buy from people we like and trust. And that's why these programs work really well. And they gain traction really fast. Because you're, you're kind of selling to your friends your service. But if you don't like the MLM concept, this is not what I'm saying that it is, it's just the concept behind people who know you and like, you will go to you for your expertise. So number one friends, so the more friends you have, we call that social capital, the more friends you have, the more your net worth. So the more you can branch out and make more friends are people know of you. They can become your patients. And oftentimes I meet people, and they ask casually, what do you do? I used to shy away and say, I don't do anything. Or, oh, you know, I'm just the wife of Paul, which is my husband. You know, I would kind of dance around it. But now I'm like, No, I'm the owner of a podiatry practice. And, you know, oftentimes we're like, honestly, you take care of feet. And sure enough, somebody decides to take off their socks and shoes in the middle of nowhere in the middle of a grocery store, and, and they're like, Hey, can you look at this bomb? Can you tell me what that is? So knowing people want your stuff, you just have to figure out how to package it. And you know, they're gonna want to show you their feet, because everyone has foot problems. So your friends, is number one. 

Now you might be thinking about, like, I don't want to sell it to my friends, like that feels really weird. Or I would just do it for free. Or I feel very funny taking money from friends, you know, they've done stuff for me, I want to do stuff for them, that's fine. Like you. You do what feels right for you. But I want to tell you, this, your friends who love you support you and know what you do, are more than willing to pay you they want to pay you because you are a good person because you have expertise. Because you're accessible and they trust you. Those are the people who want to pay you. So keep those friends. Now, you might start sorting out your friends at this age. I know I am. People who just want to take take take and aren't are unwilling to pay or reciprocate, or you know, at least like show up as her friend, like, maybe it's time to like, move on and find another circle of friends to be around because friends who know you, like you trust you and want to support you will pay you your price. So number one, friends, people you know, there you go. Number two falls in line with number one, your family. So think about it. 

Your family knows how much you've struggled in medical school and residency, like they've seen how much it takes to become a doctor, it's, it's painful, they probably cried with you, right? You've gone through a lot, so they understand the hardships you had to go through to get to where you are. So family, even if even if your family members don't become your patients, or you're more than willing to do things for them for free. Great. But you want to extend the invitation through your family members and friends and say, I would really love to build my practice. Do you have any friends or family members who you can refer to my business? So you're not really selling to them? It's kind of like a secondary sell, like you know me, you know the quality of care I provide? I really need your support. Do you have somebody to refer to me, you have to actively ask. Otherwise, they're gonna forget, people are kind of crazy like that. They're so constantly distracted by the smallest thing. They may not even think of you as a referral option until you ask them. So I've had to ask many times, even my husband, I say, don't you have patients that you can refer to me for preventive care? Because he doesn't know everything that I do. So it's my job to tell them what I do. Of course, it doesn't have to be down in your throat like, I need a patient. I need a patient you know, you don't do that every day. But casually say, You know what I am building my business do? 

Do you see an opportunity where I can speak to people or speak to your patients and so on. So friends and family number two, number three, but don't skip one and two, they're gonna be there to support you. Okay, number three places to find your people in your community see where people gather. Are they in a running club? Are they a part of the Rotary Club? There's Leeds l e a d s, which is a woman support group for business small businesses. There's a chamber of commerce now they can do ribbon cutting. They have access to other business owners who have access to your patients. So think about that. So these are gatherings of people, of your people. And just getting to know in network, all of these different types of people within your community is extremely powerful. You just never know, when they'll be like, oh, you know what I did meet that one podiatrist, here's your website. Here's her card, whatever. 

So that is where community gathers right. Another one that I thought about, as when I was thinking about how I was building my practice, I put a lot of money into Google ads. Here's the thing about Google ads, is the return on investment is way better than a radio ad, Facebook ads, even like Instagram, icon patients from all variety of ways, or paper ads, even by Google Ads makes sense? And here's why. When you have a problem, or a question you're trying to solve, where do you go? Do you go to the radio? Do you go to Facebook? Or do you go to Google. So when a person has a pressing problem, and they're wanting a list of results, they're going to usually go to Google. And so that's why I say Google ads are really important. They shouldn't be your only means of marketing, but it's an important part. And, you know, Google ads is when you pay money into it, so that your ad shows up at the very top, and it'll say ads, and then whatever you put in there. And that's really cool what they offer. Because if somebody's looking up like flicked doctor, then you're gonna pull up a whole list, but maybe yours comes up first. And people are impulsive. So they're going to click on the first one or two, if you exist on page two or three, then you basically don't exist in the internet land. So paying money to be on top is the financially reasonable thing to do. Now, here's what may vary from systems or cities to cities is that maybe you're in a town that has a lot of competition. So everyone's fighting for ad space, that might mean that you have to put in more dollars to exist more often in the search engine. So if you put in like $500, but your competitor puts in $1,500, that just means that that $1,500 gets shown more than yours. So that's something to study and understand. If you want to learn that on your own you can, I prefer to pay somebody else who has expertise in that. And so my marketer gives me the feedback on where my money is going. Also, in a Google ad, there is a phone number attached to that ad that connects to your office, that's not your number. 

And that's important, because that number that they click on to call, can track where they're coming from where they're calling from, so they call through your ad, then you can start keeping track of how many people clicked on your ad and called. And that way, you know, the return on investment, what that dollar amount is, so if you're paying, if you pay like $500 for an ad, you know, for the month, but your office visit, like I charge $450 an hour for my time. And if I just get one patient, and I sell them maybe something or have a follow up appointment that has already paid itself. So that's how you want to look at ads, when you put money in how much of that comes out. I was doing Facebook ads, that works for different things. But in the beginning, I think you know, just focusing on these areas of where to find your clients or patients is going to be worth your money. So what do I have friends, family, community groups, Google ads? Oh, yes. Really important. One should be on the top of the list anyway. So number five, where are your people? So you want to think about your ideal client, like who are they? For me, my ideal client are people who are willing to spend money. They're not rich, always. They're not always rich. I serve a lot of low income.

So I'm going to where they go. Where do they go? They go to natural paths, osteopaths, they go to nail salons. They're paying for many manicures and pedicures. They're going to acupuncture, chiropractor, physical therapy. A lot of these services are not covered by insurance or they already chose not to take insurance because they pay so low or they give such a high. What do you call it? They just they're not giving what they want to provide. So go to where they're already paying cash and use. Use that as a way to market to that population. So you know how many ingredients with chiropractors they don't know what we know. Vice Versa, can we refer to them partner in the in with them, do community events together, you know, offer free screenings or whatever packages you have decided to put together, collaborate with them. So those are the five top ways to find your ideal clients in the direct care space, there is a lot more. But I wanted to share with you where I found my people, those five places were where my people live. And that's kind of where I spend all my money and my energy at. 

So I hope that was helpful. I think that was concise enough, right. Of course, if you want to have one on one conversations, I'm available to talk with you, if you want an in depth conversation, and you're very serious about just moving into a direct care practice where you're either fully cash or you want like you want to be some kind of a hybrid, where you take, maybe I select insurance, and then mostly cash everything else, I would love to have this conversation with you one on one. So I can tailor exactly what you need to do to create number one, the perfect package where people will actually want to buy from you. And then number two, just the logistics on how that's going to look in a realistic point of view. Because I've had a lot of consultants who told me stuff. And it's like, well, it worked for so and so in this different state. But I don't know if it's going to work for you, or they gave me a lot of empty promises. And it was very frustrating that I wasn't prepared for the actual changes that we're going to happen. Maybe one person I've talked to who did a cash practice was very realistic and said, and told me, you know, who you're marketing to is going to be drastically different if you're moving out of insurance into a cash practice. So I want to be able to provide that information to to so you're not surprised or stunned of the change, because there is a little bit of mindset involved in doing something different doing something that nobody else is doing. So I hope that information was helpful. I have a few more of these lined up. So today is four out of seven webinars that I'm doing to promote my coaching business. I have a group coaching business, you can click on the link that I put below to learn more, or you can just hang out here and get some free information. 

My podcast is also free as well. So let's see you next week submit your questions, I will do my best to answer them in detail. Oh, you know what? I also want to share some stories with you about the patients that I've seen. Okay, maybe I'll do that for next week. Who exactly comes to see me and for what right, that sounds like a good one. If you think that sounds good, put it in the comments. See you next week. And I'll catch you then have a great week. 

Thank you so much for being here with me today. If you enjoyed this episode and want to hear more, please like, share and subscribe. So more people like you can have access to another way of practicing medicine, that direct care way. Let's connect by my info in the show notes and send me your questions. It might be the topic for future episodes. 

And lastly, if you remember nothing else, remember this. You are in control of your life. See you next time.