A “close” in regards to patient referrals is defined as the point where you have asked for the patient’s help, and he or she has agreed to refer someone to your practice.
One of the primary reasons salespeople fail at their job is they fear rejection and don’t ask for the business.
You’ll probably have heared the phrase “ask for the business” many times in your career. Many misunderstand this advice and ask such questions as, “So, does this sound like something you want to do?” or “Does this sound interesting to you?” or “What do you think of this?”
While these questions may sound reasonable, the problem is that they are weak and give control over to the patient. Many times the answers will be indecisive or negative.
The phrase ask for the business communicates the concept of recognizing the patient is ready to be closed and simply closing him to refer a friend or family member.
Better questions would be questions like, “You do agree that your mother could use some physical therapy, right? Great, then let’s work out how to get her in for an eval.” Or, “Considering everything you’ve handled with physical therapy, you do agree that your father’s condition could be improved, don’t you? Great, then let’s get him in here.”
These questions lead the patient to the answer you want. If the patient does agree that he or she has a friend or family member with a condition that could worsen, then the logical thing is to help them, right?
Once you feel you have enough agreement that the patient will close, don’t hesitate to ask for the business by asking for a referral.
Speaking of closing, I want to close you to attend my Attracting New Patients webinar that I think will help you greatly. I cover some things you may not have considered regarding new patients. Click the link below. (notice I didn’t ask if you think it would be a nice thing to do 🙂
Link to webinar --> https://ghl.ptpracticesuccess.