Help! I’m Losing Patients To Clinics That Are Cheaper - How Can I Compete?
TL;DR: You Don’t.
How The Patients Think
Before we talk about the costs of treatments, let’s take a moment to look at the scene through the lens of a patient.
The majority of patients won’t consider themselves a patient. They’ll consider themselves a customer or client and treatments like Botox and lip fillers are beauty and cosmetic treatments, not medical procedures for cosmetic purposes. We’re not saying this is right or how it should be, but it’s how it is, largely thanks to the Government failing the public through lack of education and regulation.
Patients aren’t aware the non-surgical aesthetics industry is unregulated. They will assume that if someone is offering Botox and fillers, they have been properly trained and assessed, that providers are beholden to laws and regulations and that they use superior products. They assume it wouldn’t be allowed otherwise. We live in a country with many laws and safeguards - restaurants get closed down if they are not hygienic enough - so there’s no way there isn’t some kind of licensing for aesthetics treatments!
You and I know this is not the case.
It’s Not As Important To Patients
You live and breathe the aesthetics world. It consumes your mind. You read a lot about the industry, all of your social media is taken up with content relating to non-surgical aesthetics. You think about it a lot, you talk about it a lot, you train, you learn, you treat - a lot.
Patients don’t. Patients think about their face. They think about the things that bother them - their forehead lines, their crows feet, their thin lips… but they don’t think about the industry. They don’t care what’s happening in the market or how it’s policed. They don’t feel as passionate about medicalising the industry as you and I do - it’s not even on their radar. Fixing their issue is a fleeting thought when they do their makeup in the morning - until it becomes more than a fleeting thought and they decide to do something about it.
And Then The Market Divides
Once patients have made up their mind to finally do something about the issue that’s bothering them - whether it’s their acne, their saggy jowls or their hollow eyes they will then, in very blunt terms, divide into two types of shoppers. Bargain Bettys or Value Victorias.
Bettys will start shopping around by price and price alone (and maybe a few before and after photos to help). They’ll look for a bargain and good deal. They’ll compare prices before they compare anything else. They’ll like the look of a big lip or a frozen forehead and ‘that’ll do’ for them. They don’t have much money, really, and they just want to fix the thing that’s bothering them. They don’t think about how qualified the person is or they just assume they must be qualified - they saw the certificate on the wall.
Victorias will start researching what treatment is good for their issue and thinking about who they should see. They will ask friends and Mums at the school gates who they go to, they’ll get on Google, they’ll start reading about types of treatment they think they need. They’ll read the press and get worried about complications. They’re worried how much it will hurt. They’ll panic about look fake. They’ll become a bit more invested in the cause and the underlying no-brainer for them is that they must go to someone who is good and qualified and experienced - and someone who won’t mess up their face.
You’re There For The Victorias
You don’t want the Bettys. You want the Victorias. Once Victoria starts researching she soon realises that she certainly wants to see someone who is safe and insured, she wants to go to someone who is well trained and has lots of experience. Victoria might not yet appreciate the vast differences between a medical professional and lay injector. It may not occur to her that you’re governed by a statutory body, that you’ve completed far superior training than a lay injector has, that you’re also a prescriber who is au fait with complication management. That you’ve spent thousands of pounds on getting to where you are.
The nuances of the attributes that make you better won’t be processed - but the fact you’re a doctor, dentist, pharmacist or nurse will be the reassuring factor that gives Victoria confidence she’ll be in safe hands. She knows now she needs to see someone qualified and trustworthy - she might not acknowledge exactly what that means but your pricing doesn’t put her off. The fact you’re ‘expensive’ is reassuring for Victoria, Victoria thinks; ‘She must be good.’ Indeed Victoria won’t consider it expensive, even if you’re concerned it is, Victoria will process it as VALUE. Victoria thinks; ‘you pay for what you get’.
Betty? Betty doesn’t care. She hasn’t looked into it that much, it hasn’t occurred to her that not all injectors are equal, Betty just wants her lips and she wants them now and for as little money as possible so she books the first person she sees in her area offering cheap lip fillers.
Don’t Be Embarrassed About Your Prices
You need to be proud of your prices. You have spent years getting to this point, you’ve completed a degree, hours of hard work, weeks of training and learning. You have invested in your clinical space, your website, your equipment, your products. Your patients aren’t just paying for 1m of filler. They’re paying for your knowledge, experience and skills. They’re paying for your time and effort and your utter commitment to safety and only acting in their best interests. They’re paying for the fact you’ll struggle to get to sleep that night because you’re not sure if that lip looked a little compromised, that you’re keen to see them as soon as you can in the morning and that you’re thinking about what steps you will take if you need to dissolve that lip filler. They’re paying for your care, your accountability and your responsibility. They’re paying because you’re good at what you do - don’t be coy about trumpeting this.
You Are A Business - Not A Charity
There are enough Victorias in this world to take you to retirement. Forget the Bettys. Let them go to the beauty salon next door. You’re not losing them because you never wanted them. They’re not your tribe. They never will be. John Lewis doesn’t get worried or frustrated because some people buy their sofas from IKEA. They know they can charge more because their customers get a better product and a better service with guarantees and a commitment to quality. John Lewis doesn’t apologise for being costlier than Home Bargains.
You want patients who respect you for what you’re charging. And they will. There are enough of them. Even if they think ‘ooo that’s punchy’ it’s not because you’re too expensive, it’s because they recognise they have to pay good money for good work. Quite frankly, there’s enough Victorias who won’t give it a second thought - they might even think your charges are very reasonable!
Don’t Waste Your Time Comparing
It’s easy to convince yourself you’re failing when you know people are going to the cheaper competitor. Perhaps you’ve even lost a few patients to cheaper clinics? After the Victorias have had a few treatments and feel more brazen to try someone else to save a bit of money? Don’t focus on them. Focus on the Victorias you have. It’s likely they’ll come back to you anyway. Also, it’s worth remembering that other practitioners are thinking about you too. Wondering why you get so many patients, why you’re able to charge what you do, how they can be as good as you. They might feel envious about your perceived success. They could be struggling too but nobody admits that on Instagram do they? It’s pointless to compare.
Keeping Your Victorias.
Once you’ve nabbed a patient, who is happy to pay your prices and loves the service they receive, don’t become complacent about it. Don’t assume Victoria is yours forever. Loyalty takes time to achieve and can’t be taken for granted. However, once you’ve achieved it, you’re a lot less likely to lose Victoria, even if THE NEWEST FANCIEST BEST CLINIC IN THE WORLD EVER sets up in your town.
Make it too easy for them: Send them appointment reminders and tell them when treatment is due. For Profhilo, Botox and fillers, GlowdayPRO automatically alerts patients that it’s been x months since their last treatment and it’s time to get booked in for their next one. This works a treat as it means they don’t bother looking elsewhere and just click on the link to make their appointment.
Keep chatting to them: Send them a WhatsApp or a DM a couple of weeks after their treatment, check they’re happy with the results, ask them if they feel good, check there are no concerns. If you follow them on social media give their posts the odd like or comment on how great they look in a selfie.
Make them feel special: Send them special offers, position it as a thank you VIP deal. It’s different from offering all and sundry cut-price-bargain-bin-treatments. This is rewarding your loyal patients, it’s a way of recognising and loving them. They’ll feel special and want to stay with you.
Newsletters: If you’re confident with words and enjoy a bit of creative writing, send out a newsletter to your patients. Tell them about new treatments, or training you’ve been doing. Share a celebrity story you’ve seen about aesthetic treatments, give them some tips for glowing skin, remind them to put their SPF on. You can find some lovely templates for free on the internet but a simple email works just as well!
Essentially you simply want Victoria to feel cherished and special. By doing these things you’re offering extra value and subtly staying top-of-mind for Victoria. You are making sure that when Victoria’s friends decide to have a treatment, that Victoria recommends you - tells them how good you are, how nice you are. You want Victoria to become an advocate for you and all of these little gestures will contribute to ensuring that happens and Victoria will become a rich source of more Victorias for you.
The Bottom Line
You don’t need to compete with cheaper clinics. Don’t fret about your prices. There are plenty of other things to consider to make sure Victoria chooses you. Once you’ve caught the eye of a Victoria, your price won’t be the reason she doesn’t choose you (it was the reason Betty discounted you, but you don’t want Betty anyway.)
All things being equal, you’ll be overlooked due to emotional reasons, not rational decisions. Victorias may prefer someone else’s clinic space - (it’s painted purple, they love purple). They might prefer the ‘sound’ of the other practitioner, because they have a nice accent. Perhaps the other practitioner has more reviews than you and more before and after photos on their Instagram (you can do something about this one!). Maybe the other practitioner is more serious than you are or funnier than you are. Perhaps they like their hair, or the font they use on their website. Who knows? These are all brand choices and emotional decisions. Your brand will attract some Victorias, others will go to another clinic. But it won’t be because they are cheaper. Your price is irrelevant for Victorias.
For more articles, tips and guides related to running your aesthetics clinic, head to the GlowdayPRO blog.