Retailing 101: How to Be Effective

It may be overly simplistic, but determining the "right fit" for products offered by a chiropractor usually can be discovered by answering one simple question: does the product offer wellness or pain relief without the need for surgery or drugs? By no means are we saying that there is no need for allopathic medicine; if my daughter breaks her arm, she is going to need care by a medical doctor, may require surgery and will need some form of drugs. That being said, the chiropractic profession generally believes many of the ailments that people suffer from could be prevented and/or treated with non-drug protocols.

The typical products offered by DCs for in-home rehab or nutrition address the "core" of wellness, as opposed to allopathic medicine, which generally only treat the symptom. Also, these products generally offered by DCs have no dangerous side effects or other health complications. For instance, many complications occur from losing the cervical curve. Taking a pain pill can alleviate some of the pain caused from the lack of a correct curve, but the root cause of the condition will not be improved at all. However, sleeping in a supportive pillow can lead to actually addressing the root cause of the pain and not expose the patient to drugs with side effects.

You Don't Have to Be "Pushy"

A study my MPA Media found that even when DCs believe in a product, more than 80% of the time they will not suggest the product to the patient, even when their condition would improve with said product. That is somewhat incredible.

What this tells us is that DCs feel sheepish about appearing to be "selling" as they feel they are "healers" and not salesman. Several articles could be written on this subject alone. But, bottom line, DCs should realize that MDs pitch product sales many times, every day: it's called "writing a prescription." And yet, they don't feel hesitation in directing the patient to drugs. Then why should a doctor of chiropractic feel any reservations in suggesting a wellness product, which are usually less expensive and more in accordance to "wellness" than their drug counterparts?

So what's the solution? It all depends on the personality of the doctor. It's easy to say, "Snap out of it. Recommend the appropriate products to patients and don't feel sheepish about it!" But, for the more analytical DC, who just doesn't feel comfortable with suggesting product options verbally, there are alternatives to being "pushy" that are quite effective:

1. Ensure your staff believes in your product offerings. This is critical. If it requires you give products away so your CA's "Grandma Smith" feels the benefit of your product, then do it. No matter what, you must have your staff familiar with the benefits of the products you carry, either personally, or via family and/or friends. The sale occurs – the majority of the time – with the patient asking a staff member, "So what do you know about this?" If the staff member robotically parrots a sales slick, that sale "ain't happening." But if they have personal experience of good outcomes from the product, it's a natural progression towards the sale.
   


2. Provide promotional material, period. The most common traits of practices having products but not moving anything is that they "keep the product a secret." DCs who have no brochures, posters or displays are the ones who have no retail sales. Most vendors will provide you with free pamphlets. Use them. Hand them out at patient sign in. Products that are kept a secret remain unsold at the benefit of NO ONE. Most vendors will give you hand out literature if they know you want them. If you don't have any, just ask for them.
   


3. Use smart retail game plans. The basics are to keep best-selling items at eye level, making sure products are physically visible – and not in some drawer or back closet. You can readily learn more details on retail tricks by Googling it.
   


4. Use a prescription pad. Hey, we know MDs use pads to direct patients what drugs to buy; what is wrong with the DC doing the same to prescribe the best pillow, topical, wrist support, belt, etc.?

It Is More Than Just Sales

Selling products to your patients does more than just improve the condition of your patient and increase your gross revenues. Products that the patient takes home, such as support pillows, act as a steady salesman reminding them of you and your practice. Let's say they bought a pillow that has greatly improved their sleep and reduced their neck pain. That pillow is a constant reminder that you were the one to help their condition. Perhaps the patient does not come in for weekly adjustments. But if they are enjoying products you sold them, they will surely not forget about you when they do need treated. Also, if your patients love a product(s) you provided, they are far more likely to bring up this great pillow, topical, etc. that you provided. And when their friends ask where they got it, it creates some more traffic through your office.

[pb]Making It Work

The percentage of patients who will purchase products from DCs is dependent on a few factors:

1. How well does the DC market them? (In-house and outside.)
2. How effective is their retail effort?
3. What is the demographic of their patients, including percentages of each, etc? For instance, if a DC is heavily involved in sports, training and performance enhancement, that particular practice would not likely be selling a lot of support pillows and things of that nature since the bulk of their patients would be young people in great shape who have not lost any of their natural cervical curve. That same DC, however, may be heavily involved in the supplement market, as their athletic patients are looking for various supplement products that would help boost their recovery and performance.

So, how much profit does a DC stand to make offering retail products?"

Like other elements in this article, there is a real spread when it comes to results of this and the outcomes are heavily influenced by several factors. But just as a baseline understanding, some things to keep in mind:

1. The typical gross, margin and profit today is different than it was three years ago. And by "different" I mean generally "less."
2. The DCs who just barely display retail health care products, and certainly don't promote them, will have virtually non-existent sales. I don't think it's accurate to include those "efforts" into the overall spectrum.
3. The location of a practice also is part of the overall retail market, whether it be the size of the city, the demographics of the people living there, etc. Some areas and towns have a populace who can afford an $80 pillow, while other areas just don't have many folks who can afford such a product. Each area is different.

Down to Brass Tacks

So, bottom line: How much can a DC expect to make retailing products, if they take the basic effort to promote their well-selected product line? First off, it needs stated that the old rule of thumb no longer applies; a few years ago, a DC could expect to sell their products for twice what they paid for them. In certain areas, with a certain demographic of patients, with certain products, that rule of thumb can still exist. But it can no longer be assumed that doctors can double their price across the board. As with most every business, what was assumed a few years ago is no longer the case. That being said, what can a DC expect, even in these times? In order to "ball park" what a DC can make in retail efforts, we are going to have to take averages, in terms of average town size, average affluence in the area, average profile of patient, average number of patients, etc. Below is a realistic sales and return on investment in a real-life, slightly above average DC in terms of all the elements that would influence total sales. The most common, highest volume sales come from supplement, pillow, topical and lumbar cushion sales.

An Example of Financial Assumptions

All of the estimates below assume 52 weeks of sales, but average monthly numbers use totals divided by 12.

Orthopedic Pillows: 3 per week @$65 avg. price = $845 avg. per month/$10,140 year

Massager Units: 1 per week @$214 avg. price = $927 avg. per month/$11,128 per year

Back Packs: 2 per week @46 avg. price = $399 per month/$4,784 per year

Vitamins: 10 per week @$24 avg. price = $1040 per month/$12,480 per year

Analgesics: 10 per week @13.65 avg. price = $591 per month/$7,098 year

Gross Sales: $3802 avg. per month/$45,630 per year

Gross Outlays: $1722 avg. per month/$20664 per year

Profit: $2080 avg. per month/$24966 per year

Some DCs value the above benefits so much, that they sell product to their patients at cost. It is up to the individual doctor to determine what price point makes sense for them, their area, their patient base and their practice philosophy. All that being said, if you do decide to include retail products, please give the program a chance by incorporating the proper protocol that gives your sales efforts a chance. Loading up a closet with products that no one sees simply will never work. That is akin to "winking in the dark." Make sure you do the proper due diligence to ensure patients understand what products you offer and how they can benefit from them.