While many people may be lamenting the "last round-up" of the "dot-com cowboys," I, for one, am not. Many of these "cowboys" were involved in industries and professions they didn't understand or care much about. In their quest for riches, they sold "discounted" products at premium prices; claimed to provide customer service, which was really nonexistent; and flooded the internet with millions of web pages of flawed information. Their ignorance of chiropractic and other forms of "alternative care" rivaled their lack of business acumen, and created a volatile combination that led to their quick demise.
As you will note in the latest news reports, the number of pure dot-com failures is still going strong, with 54 companies closing their doors in May and 269 going out of business since the beginning of last year.1 There is a website dedicated to tracking these failures.2 Among those formerly in the health information/commerce business were:
PlanetRX.com
IEmily.com
Gazoontite.com
Clickmango.com
Healthshop.com
MotherNature.com
More.com
It was last year at this time that I noted three prominent health websites that generally ignored chiropractic or presented misinformation.3 A review of these same sites notes little positive change:
Included in the list of failed businesses are a number of good-intentioned online chiropractic companies that have also gone under. But most would have to agree that they probably would have failed eventually, based on their limited funding.
This now leaves just a few chiropractic websites, of which ChiroWeb.com is easily the one most often visited. ChiroWeb.com enjoys almost 300,000 unique visits each month, approximately 80 percent of which are from consumers. With over 10,000 pages of information and a complete directory of DCs around the world, ChiroWeb is educating and referring a great number of consumers to their local doctors of chiropractic.
In addition, our patient/consumer e-mail newsletter (To Your Health) now has over 51,000 subscribers. (Please see "Consumers Demanding Reliable Information about Chiropractic".) This number is increasing by almost 1,500 each week. Consumers that subscribe to the e-mail newsletter are referred to participating DCs in their areas. Then, their local DCs are featured at the beginning of each newsletter every two weeks. (For more information on how to participate, please call 888-352-8180.)
As the "dot-com cowboys" are learning, the internet is not about getting rich. It is about providing solid information and good customer service. In our case, it is about three things:
References
When sports chiropractors first appeared at the Olympic Games in the 1980s, it was alongside individual athletes who had experienced the benefits of chiropractic care in their training and recovery processes at home. Fast forward to Paris 2024, where chiropractic care was available in the polyclinic for all athletes, and the attitude has now evolved to recognize that “every athlete deserves access to sports chiropractic."
It is estimated that 61% of patients with CTS avoid taking surgical options due to postoperative complications and costly surgical procedures. Chiropractic care offers a comprehensive and effective treatment for carpal tunnel syndrome, addressing the condition from multiple angles. Recent studies also have unveiled a game-changing adjunct to chiropractic treatments for CTS: nerve flossing.
Some doctors thrive in a personality-based clinic and have a loyal following no matter what services or equipment they offer, but for most chiropractic offices who are trying to grow and expand, new equipment purchases help us stay relevant and continue to service our client base in the best, most up-to-date manner possible. So, regarding equipment purchasing: should you lease, get a bank loan, or pay cash?
