9 Insider Secrets to Running an Effective and Profitable Weight Management Center
Who would know better than Robard’s own Business Development and Territory Sales Managers exactly what makes a weight management center successful? After all, between them, there are over 100 years of experience, as these are the same professionals who help our customers successfully operate their weight management businesses every day.
And with that vast experience also comes wisdom, so we recently polled the aforementioned Robard team to pass along the following “insider tips” to those thinking about starting a weight management program. These tips can also serve as best practices reminders to seasoned weight management program operators, too.
The 9 Insider Secrets
1. The center is recognized as a business and is managed from a well-defined business plan.
2. The center operates within parameters of a well-defined and measurable mission, goals and objectives, it knows why it exists, what it is going to accomplish and how it is going to accomplish it.
3. The center knows its market niche, competition, and customers; what they offer and where they are located.
4. The center tracks treatment outcomes and uses this data to market the program.
5. The staff is extremely customer-oriented, which sets it apart from their competition and makes it fun and enjoyable for the customer to spend time and money at your center.
6. The cost for treating each patient is calculated.
7. The center markets the program and develops corporate programs to assist employers to create a healthier workforce.
8. A strong referral network exists from current patients to include an incentive program for word of mouth referrals.
9. As a credible treatment center for obesity management, partnerships are developed with bariatric surgeons, family practice physicians and specialists helping to generate referrals. It is important to establish a follow-up system with each referrer so they are aware of their patient’s progress which helps to enhance relationships and build future referrals.
Bonus Tip: The center believes in and actively uses meal replacement and protein supplement products as part of their program philosophy. The products should be positioned as part of the program versus being an option.