Whether you are new to hair restoration or a seasoned veteran with a long-standing practice, having a goal and a plan to achieve them is essential to growing your business. Without them, your direction is unclear… and any action is just busy work that can lead to haphazard results and possibly failure.
As the old saying goes, “fail to plan and you plan to fail.” Instead, plan and set realistic hair practice targets to capture the business opportunity with men (and women) who suffer from male pattern baldness.
Three focus points directly contribute to growth in a business: your goals, the action needed to get there, and the results of the action. Track the outcome of the action to understand how to repeat and adjust. Your first step after setting a goal is to determine three to five areas you can act on that will directly impact your objective.
Use the mnemonic S.M.A.R.T. when creating your goals and plan.
• Make it Specific and Simple.
It is important to be specific about your goals. For example: ‘I want to increase my hair restoration revenue by $500,000 in a calendar year’ has greater clarity than ‘I want to make more money in hair restoration.’ Specificity will make it easier to implement your plan of action.
Another aspect is to keep it simple. If the goal is too complicated, you may get lost or deflated in the process.
• Make it Measurable and Meaningful.
Attach numbers to this because – in business – your success is shown in your revenue. By keeping your focus on your numbers, you can both measure your results and calculate your return on investment (ROI).
Answering the questions of ‘How much?’, ‘How many?’, and ‘How will I know when it is accomplished?’ will create tangible answers you can use to build your plan. Answer the questions in relation to how many patients you wish to treat each month, the average revenue, and your actual monthly hair revenue.
• Make it Achievable.
How realistic is the goal? When the goal is too lofty, it sets us up to fail… leaving us feeling defeated. Reevaluate what is actually reasonable and be honest with yourself. The biggest setbacks can come from trying to take on too much.
• Make it Realistic.
The worst thing is to spend a lot of time and money in the wrong direction. Additionally, while you believe in the opportunity for growth that hair restoration provides to your medical practice, does your team?
If there are doubts about success, it will be that much harder to get to your desired result. A great benchmark is understanding the amount of growth in the hair restoration industry and basing your growth on that percentage.
• Make a Timeline for your goal.
Set a realistic and achievable date for your outcome. What is the last item that will indicate you reached your goal? Write that down and visualize those last steps. For example, you can visualize your bank account reflecting the total value. Then work backward to create the timeline.
Create an Action Plan to Reach Your Goals
Chunking down your actions to a manageable number is key to forward movement. For example, create three to five action items that will move you toward your goal. Then break each of those items into smaller steps to make them more achievable and less daunting. Once you have those accomplished, focus on the next three to five.
Below are three action step examples:
1) Focus on your numbers.
On average, it takes 10 leads to get four consultations, and one procedure. Base the leads you want to drive into your business on these numbers, so you produce enough surgeries. For example, if you want to do six procedures a month you would have related goals of 24+ consultations and 60+ leads per month.
2) Write down your goals.
Take time to sit down and describe what you would like to see for yourself as a business for the coming year. The simple act of writing actually triggers the brain to begin working out how you will accomplish the outcome. Place it where you and your team can see it on a regular basis. I have an example goal of an increase in revenue below:
3) Ensure you communicate and get granular.
Communication is huge… and there are other parties in your business that need to understand the hair restoration industry, the type of customer you want to treat, and how to speak about it and treat it.
Team meetings can be beneficial to the flow of information. A hair restoration business without goals is like a ship without a rudder, directionless. Goals motivate you and your organization toward getting results. Results are the only measure of success.
If your practice centers around hair restoration, then selecting a sales and marketing team, and a clinical consultant with experience in the hair restoration industry will be more efficient and effective. They’ll understand industry opportunities, challenges, HIPAA concerns, and more. A clinical consultant trained in hair restoration will also be more effective in converting leads to consultations.
Getting S.M.A.R.T. With Hair Restoration
In the business of hair restoration, either you will achieve your goal… or you won’t. And there are only excuses for what didn’t happen. With a guide like the S.M.A.R.T. acronym, it is easy to set your target. There must be action toward the destination. Without it, all you have is a dream.
I encourage you to set rewards as it improves performance for yourself and those involved for each achievement. It is incredibly important to celebrate you and your wins as it contributes to overall happiness and success!
