Your Strategy for Success in 2013 – guest post by Geoffrey Cooling

Success in life requires planning and the necessary knowledge to make good decisions; this applies not only our personal life, but to our professional life as well.  With the beginning of every new year, it is important to reflect on past business performance in order to effectively anticipate and plan for the future of the business.  When we clearly understand where we are, only then can we plan to move forward. What things do we need to assess in order to get a better idea of where the business stands?  Within your own business, key performance indicators or KPI’s should be monitored and analyzed so that the best decisions as to how to move forward can be made.  The KPIs that I routinely analyze are as follows:

• Referral route of new business
• Marketing Return on Investment (ROI)
• Gross and net conversion rates on initial tests
• Retained patient sales
• Average sales prices
• Cancellation rate

The data associated with the above KPIs will provide an indication as to the current status of your business.  They will assist in enabling you to figure out what is working versus what is not working.  For example, if you have seen a slip in net conversion rates, perhaps it’s time to evaluate practice or consultation procedures.  If retained patient sales are in the toilet, look at the data more closely to figure out why this is the case.  Critically analyzing KPIs will not only indicate what is happening within your business, but will facilitate the decision-making process so that the best choices can be made in terms of setting a clear strategy for the future.  Only then can you plan for any real growth within your practice.

The other thing that should be done is identifying and considering new opportunities for revenue and referrals. Revenue from non-core products including hearing aid care solutions (cleaners, dehumidifiers) and resale accessories (batteries) are ideal sources of ancillary revenue. They also provide the benefit of reduced service calls when used regularly by your patients.  Similarly, consider opportunities for new referral channels. Are there associated businesses that you may approach to organize mutually beneficial referral channels?

This is a fantastic time of year, a time for family, for joy, for turkey. Enjoy your free time, and enjoy the warmth of your family and friends. Comeback from your break re-vitalized and set out clear plans for moving forward. Best wishes for a happy and prosperous New Year.

Geoffrey Cooling is the writer of the hearing healthcare blog, Just Audiology Stuff. He also contributes to several other hearing healthcare blogs.  He currently works for a large hearing aid manufacturer as a Sales Manager and has been in the position since 2009.  He has a great interest in strategic commercial planning and tactical implementation of those strategies. He also has a great interest in the psychology of Customer engagement in health practice situations and the implementation of commercial strategies in practice management.  All of his opinions and views are his own and do not reflect on the company he works for. Geoff can be contacted at geoff @ Gmail