During my years of teaching, I have always been a firm believer we need to have a good referral base within our Businesses.
When I owned my Salon, I was always part of a network group which afforded me the opportunity to meet many people from many different fields.
to the outside world (my clients) looking in, I was their “go to” person. I knew someone to refer for just about everything.
Over time, because of my knowledge of others in the community, because of my vast range of contacts, my Business grew. Referral is how my Salon became the primary salon servicing the show host, hand coordinators and models of the Home Shopping Network. Referrals are how I met and serviced stars such as Suzanne Somers. Referrals are how I was able to participate in events at some of our larger known Companies in our area like Tech Data and Jabil Circuit.
However, none of that happened over night. It happened through persistence and perseverance. It happened because I was knowledgeable in my field. I spoke with confidence, I presented with confidence and I always, always shared my knowledge with others.
As our Industry changes and has changed I think since the early 2000’s, building our Business through referrals has not. What has changed however, is where we are seeking our referrals.
We have forgotten about networking. We have forgotten about community events. We now go straight to the referrals in the Medical field. We look for our referrals to come from our local Podiatrist or Medical Professionals. I think, we have forgotten about the basics.
When I teach my class “Oncology Care in the Pedicure room” and others, we talk about the need to establish a networking or referral list. We talk about the many people who we can refer our clients to in an effort to help them with their hair, their nutrition, their mental well being and more. Quite simply, the basics.
Somehow over the past few years, we gotten away from building community trust to building Medical trust. The basics have been forgotten.
With that being said, my advice for building a Medical referral team has always been;
- Persistance
- Perseverance
- Proper introduction
- Wording & terminology
I. still believe the above holds true, yet I also believe their might be a better way for us to build that trust, which will then build referrals.
My discussion about obtaining Dr. referral is to remember it’s more about them and less about you. Dr’s like to have their ego stroked and care less about your abilities (in most cases). What’s in it for them. I still believe this however, instead of approaching them over and over and over again. Instead of fighting to get through the Dr’s administrative team. Instead of giving away services to show how Professional you are. I believe there is a better way.
Research still needs to be done in an effort to find a Dr. you can refer to when needed.
You can ask your clients, you can google search reviews, you can schedule an appointment for first hand experience…..and then you let the rest happen organically.
I now believe the process should go like this;
- Mr. X has been your client for 5 years since his wife passed away. You saw him 4 weeks ago. You trim his toenails and maintain the health of the skin on his feet. Mr. X can’t reach his feet and he is diabetic and suffers from nueropathy.
- You noticed this time, Mr. X has a brown spot on the bottom of his foot. This was not present 4 weeks ago. However, your Professional knowledge tells you, this is not normal and should be looked at.
- If Mr. X has a dermatologist, you would of course recommend he see him/her. If Mr. X does not have a dermatologist, you would recommend he see whomever the Dr. is you are using as a referral.
- A form should be completed. Sent with Mr. X to give to the Dr. It would look something like this;
March 12th, 2024
Dr. Smith
XXXXXXXX
XXXXXXXX
Dear Dr. Smith,
I am referring __________ to your practice for a spot I noticed on the bottom of his/her foot. He/She is a 74 year old diabetic presenting with symptoms of neuropathy. He lives alone and is unable to reach his feet.
He last visited my facility _____________ which at that time, the aforementioned spot was not visible.
It is my Professional opinion, due to the nature of his health and the sudden occurrence, he/she has this spot examined by a Medical Professional.
Thank you,
CJ Murray
Centre for Beauty
8233 Ulmerton Road
Largo, Fl 33771
cj@centreforbeaauty.com
727-249-3917
Sending this note with your client to hand to the Dr. is your first step in obtaining a referral relationship.
- You sound very Professional
- You are sharing with the Dr. you understand the essence of staying within the limits of your license.
- With your information present on the form, you are giving an opening for the Dr. to reach out to you.
- The more you do this, the more apt you are to become a referal source for the Dr.
- Before you know it, you will be servicing clients referred to you by that very same Dr.
As our Industry grows and more DIYer’s are saturating our market, as our licensing education is reduced…we need to adjust fire (as my friend would say), do something different, something unique yet something which will get us to the finishing point.
Dare to be different. Build your referral team. Just do it a little different than what we learned in the past.
Be sure to check out our website education page. Many great classes being offered to build your confidence, become Professional and grow your Business.
CJ Murray, President