#163: How Smart Practices Increase Profits During Uncertain Times

PODCAST TRANSCRIPT

Patients don't negotiate with perceived leaders. They negotiate with perceived equals. So when you lower your posture to match fear in the marketplace, you increase your prospective patient's uncertainty.

Hi everyone, and welcome back to OMD TV and the OMD Podcast, where we talk about how to grow your clinic with predictable, high-quality patient enquiries. And I’m your host Huyen Truong.

Now, today's episode is one of the most important conversations we can have right now, and it's entitled How Smart Practices Increase Profits During Uncertain Times.

Because we all know we are living in uncertain times economically, politically, technologically. There is volatility everywhere. Markets move sharply, interest rates fluctuate. Headlines amplify fear. AI is replacing white collar jobs at a pace no one predicted. And even if your practice is stable right now, you can feel something different in the air.

Because let’s be honest…

You can feel it.

• Patients are more cautious
• Decisions are taking longer
• Consultations are more analytical
• And people are asking more questions before committing

So this episode is not about fear.

It’s about strategy.

It's about how the smartest practices survive. Uncertainty, for example, while most practises tighten, the best practises optimise. Now to explain this, I'll use a simple structure of pain, agitation, and solution. So here's the pain, the reality that's happening right now.

The Reality (Pain)

So here's the pain, let’s start with what’s actually happening right now.

Even patients who have the money…Are hesitating. They’re not broke. They’re uncertain. And uncertainty does something very specific psychologically… It delays commitment.

Patients:

• Hold onto their options
• Preserve cash
• Wait and see
• Delay big decisions

Especially when it comes to elective procedures.

Now layer this on top…The number of clinics hasn’t changed.

But the number of patients ready to commit… has softened.

So what happens? Competition increases.

Patients:

• Shop around more
• Book multiple consultations
• Read more reviews
• Compare pricing
• Negotiate more
• Slow their decision timeline

And here's what many practises don't see. Consumers know they have leverage.

They know you want their business. They know practices feel pressure too. So they push. They ask for discounts, they ask for extras. They ask for bundle add-ons. They ask you to match competitor quotes. Not always aggressively, but they're asking strategically. Now, if your team feels unsure, if your messages feel reactive, if your systems feel inconsistent, patients are feeling that and that uncertainty is contagious.

What Most Clinics Do (Agitation)

Now when clinics feel this pressure…

They react.

They:

• Cut marketing
• Pause campaigns
• Delay improvements
• Reduce training
• Focus heavily on cost cutting
• Renegotiate vendors
• Obsess over overhead expenses

And that's totally understandable. It feels responsible, but here's the problem. Expense reduction is defensive revenue optimisation is strategic. And in uncertain times, defensive businesses stall.

The Dangerous Shift – Cutting Marketing

Yes, it’s very common. In fact, it’s one of the most predictable patterns you’ll see across clinics. They want to turn off the growth engine when it comes to uncertainty.

When uncertainty hits, whether it’s economic pressure, seasonal dips, or internal performance issues, the instinct for many clinic owners is to cut marketing spend first. It feels like a controllable cost, unlike payroll or rent.

However, this is where the split happens between average clinics and high-performing clinics.

Most clinics:

• Reduce ad spend
• Pause campaigns
• Pull back on investment

But what often follows is:

• Immediate drop in enquiries
• Lower pipeline in 30–60 days
• Increased pressure on revenue

Because marketing isn’t just a cost, it’s the engine that feeds future bookings.

“During uncertain times, most clinics cut marketing. But the clinics that continue to grow do the opposite — they become more strategic, not more silent.”

Smart clinics don’t necessarily spend more, but they:

• Reallocate budget to highest ROI channels
• Double down on conversion (website, follow-up, booking systems)
• Focus on one core procedure instead of spreading budget thin
• Improve lead handling (speed to contact, nurturing, call handling)

“Clinics don’t usually have a traffic problem during uncertain times — they have a conversion and strategy problem.”

The Strategic Shift (Solution)

So please hear this, uncertain markets do not require lower pricing. They require stronger positioning. They require tighter systems.

They require higher clarity. Now, let's move into the solution and the strategic shift to consider. The most resilient practices do something different. They do not ignore expenses, but they focus equally or more on income growth.

They ask a different question. So instead of asking where can we cut, they ask, where are we underperforming? That question changes everything because in most practices, revenue is constantly leaking through missed calls, unstructured consultations, poor financial conversations with patients, weak follow-up, inactive past patients.

The 1 Case Rule

You do not need a dramatic overhaul. You need precise optimisation. So to explain what I mean, let's walk through the one case rule.

Let’s say your procedure is worth $5,000.

If you generate:

• 1 extra booking per month

That’s:

• $5,000/month
• $60,000/year

From ONE additional case.

Not more ads.

Not more hours.

Just better conversion.

That’s the game.

Conversion Over Volume

In uncertain markets…

Conversion matters more than volume.

Because:

• Volume costs money
• Conversion creates money

So instead of chasing more traffic…

Look at:

• Lead → consult rate
• Show rate
• Consult structure
• Close rate
• Follow-up process

They design for consistency. They don't hope for it. The smartest practices know a big part of their practice growth comes from retention, referrals and repeat treatments, not just from new internet Stranger leads.

So let's go deeper on consult conversions. In uncertain markets, conversion matters more than volume because volume costs money. Conversion creates money. So for example, if your caller to booked consultation is only 30%, can you increase it by 40%?

Of course you can with better phone scripts. If your console conversion rate is 40%, can you move it to 55%? Absolutely. You do that through professional training for your coordinator. These shifts don't require more leads. They require better pre-framing. So smart practices confirm appointments personally. They use reminder systems to make sure the patient shows up and on time. They send educational information beforehand. They professionally train coordinators to get to a yes and strategically follow up. When they don't, they do not leave conversion to personality. They build systems.

Patient Lifetime Value

Now let's talk about patient lifetime value. This is one of the most underutilised profit drivers in practises you already paid to acquire your patients. Are you maximising them? The easiest way to give yourself a huge raise is to increase how often your patients return, refer, review, and share you on social media. Increasing lifetime value stabilises revenue during uncertain times because existing patients know, like and trust you.

And trust reduces hesitation. So if each surgical patient adds one non-surgical visit annually. If each injectable patient adds one additional treatment, and if a bigger number of those patients refer to just one friend, your revenue grows without new acquisition costs. This is why loyalty systems structure properly become powerful during uncertain times. Retention will always be faster, easier, and cheaper than new patient acquisition.

Systems & Efficiency

When demand is high…

Inefficiencies are hidden.

When demand tightens…

They become obvious.

Things like:

• Missed calls
• Slow callbacks
• Inconsistent follow-up
• Unclear financial conversations
• Lack of accountability

Smart practices, on the other hand, audit everything. They listen to call recordings. They role play consultations. They clarify the coordinator roles. They track KPIs weekly. They eliminate friction so they're easier to do business with. Efficiency equals profit without stress. I highly recommend you do a complete A to Z patient experience walkthrough to determine how to better the journey with you.

Team Confidence

And then we need to address the confidence of your team. Your team transmits emotion one way or the other. If they feel fear and uncertainty, patients feel hesitation. If your staff feels clarity, patients feel safety during uncertain times. Leadership matters more than ever. So I urge you to increase communication with your staff to make them feel safe. Clarify expectations, reinforce the standards you expect, train them consistently and celebrate wins. So it's more fun because a confident team converts more because patients buy certainty.

Authority Positioning

And lastly, let's talk about authority positioning. When consumers hesitate, they look for leaders. So answer this, are you visible? Are reviews recent? Are you educating publicly? Are you posting before and afters consistently? Are you publishing your insights? Authority reduces negotiation authority. Shortens decision cycles and authority stabilises revenue. This is why cutting visibility during uncertain times is often a big mistake.

Final Mindset Shift

You don’t need more scattered advertising. What you need is stronger, more deliberate authority in the market.

And this is important to understand… uncertain markets don’t affect everyone equally. They expose the difference between clinics that are built on structure and those that are not. Clinics that rely purely on ads struggle. Clinics without clear systems struggle. Clinics without a strong team culture struggle. But the clinics that are well-structured actually gain market share.

This is where the opportunity is.

While others pull back, you refine.

While others react emotionally, you become more precise.

While others start discounting, you reinforce your value.

Uncertainty isn’t the problem. It’s the filter.

So if we summarise this properly, growth in times like this doesn’t come from panic. It comes from clarity. From making intentional decisions instead of reactive ones. From improving how you convert patients rather than just cutting costs. From getting more value out of the patients you already have. From strengthening your team, your systems, and your positioning.

Because the reality is, you can’t control the economy. You can’t control AI, and you can’t control external conditions. But you can control how your clinic communicates, how your team handles patients, how your systems perform, how consistently you follow up, and how clearly you position your value.

And those are the things that create stability, even when everything else feels uncertain.

If you’d like an objective view on where your clinic may be underperforming, you can request a practice growth review on our website.

Because uncertainty doesn’t remove opportunity, it reveals it. And the clinics that continue to grow during uncertain times are not lucky. They are simply more intentional.

That's the wrap for today’s episode, now if you want to us to review your patient generation system and identify areas to accelerate, tighten and restructure, please reach out for a discovery call or simply email us at marketing@onlinemarketingfordoctors.com

Thanks for tuning in to OMD TV and the OMD Podcast.

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