Renee Matlock, the owner of The Private Practice Coach, shares with clients her wealth of experience, gained over 30 years of building a profitable, multi-disciplinary private practice.
BLOG: Nurturing Referral Sources & Employee Recognition
Expressing Gratitude to Referral Sources and Staff
November is a perfect time to practice gratitude for two of the most vital parts of your practice - referral sources and staff.
Referral Sources
Sources of new referrals are your current clients and other professionals (physicians, OTs, etc). You should put the same level of attention into nurturing your referral sources as you do for any other marketing. A valuable referral source sees your service as either complementary to theirs or valuable to their friends, family, clients.
Cultivate contacts - if these individuals know you, respect you, and understand what your practice is about, they will send clients your way.
5 Tips for Nurturing Your Referral Sources
- Keep an updated referral source list to track how many clients they have referred and whether these referrals became clients.
- Make an effort to consistently communicate with your referral sources. Add them to your eNewsletter list, send physician’s copies of reports on referred patients (with appropriate permission), drop off information about your services, send a pertinent article, etc.
- For professionals, send a personal note thanking them for the referral of their patient. For current or former clients, you can send a personal note and small thank you gift such as a small Starbuck’s giftcard.
- Share your knowledge in your area of expertise. Doing so further establishes you as an expert, and adds an element of service to your referral source.
- Every November send a gift basket to your top referral sources with a personalized thank you for entrusting their patients/clients/friends to your care.
Staff Recognition
Your staff is the backbone of your practice. Today’s employees are looking for meaning and purpose, not just a compensation package. Recognizing your employee’s achievements demonstrates your appreciation and fosters a sense of belonging.
Research from Workhuman shows that seven to 10 recognition moments throughout the year will result in employees being two times less likely to leave the organization.
Recognition should be customized – what makes one person feel appreciated is not necessarily what works for another. Private recognition is sometimes perceived as more sincere than public recognition, which can feel like it is more about the supervisor than the employee.
Recognition ideas:
- Say “thank you” regularly – people want to be recognized for more than just the big things. Validate what people do on a day-to-day basis, even for the tasks that aren’t particularly fulfilling to them. Don’t save up all of your appreciation for event.
- Offer sincere compliments that show you recognize their hard work and expertise. The dominant groups in the workforce (Millennials and Gen Zers) don't value recognition unless it's genuine and memorable.
- Wall of recognition – A growing trend in the workplace is a wall where employees display their appreciation to their coworkers. This idea fosters team building in addition to recognition for individual staff members.
- Employee wish lists – They might not say it, but your staff doesn't want a gift of a t-shirt with your company logo on it. Start staff wish lists (personal or professional) and ensure material gifts are meaningful.
- Team Appreciation events - Bringing in bagels/donuts, having lunch brought in, a team adventure, and hosting staff holiday parties are all great team appreciation events.
- Celebrate anniversaries - flowers and a card on a team member's anniversary with your practice go a long way to making them feel appreciated.
- One-on-Ones – Whether an informal sit-down, or annual review, these meetings are important for making staff feel valued and for recognition of good performance.
- Opportunities for growth – whether part of your benefit package or as an earned reward, employees value opportunities that invest in their professional growth.
Everyone likes to feel appreciated. November is a perfect time to practice gratitude and let your referral sources and staff know how much you value and appreciate them.
Do you need help developing a recognition program for your practice? Contact Renee Matlock to schedule a complimentary, no-strings-attached, “Talk with Renee” session to discuss your practice, your goals and your dreams. Renee, the owner of The Private Practice Coach shares with clients her knowledge and expertise gained over 30 thirty years of building a profitable, multi-disciplinary private practice.
www.theprivatepracticecoach.com
