Fear Marketing, Plastic Surgery, & Your Medical Practice.

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Fear Marketing in Cosmetic Medicine

scareTactics_b.jpg

I use a number of gmail alerts to keep me informed about what's going on in cosmetic medicine on a weekly basis. (Daily would overwhelm me.)

I see all manner of press releases, including those from the plastic surgery and dermatology boards. 

In reading one of these, I was struck by the pervasive use of fear marketing and scare tactics that the society's use in their PR and marketing campaigns. While there are times when it's spot on to use these tactics, the universal use of them probably speaks to a political leaning rather than an effective one. It seems that board certification is often used as a fear tactic rather than a hook.

While this post may not be politically correct, fear and scare tactics are effective and widespread... especially in medicine (and politics).

So, I got to thinking about the use of fear marketing in medicine and when you should, and should not, use it. 

When to Use Fear Marketing

 
Some products and services lend themselves to fear marketing better than others. Cosmetic medicine is certainly one of these. Your patients wouldn't be coming in if they were not afraid of getting wrinkly and old. You’d skip the malpractice insurance if you weren't afraid of  an unforeseen negative out come or personal liability.

Before firing off your initial salvo of fear marketing consider your potential patient population . Fear marketing can (and is) used to drive patients to action across any number of medical areas. Think of these fears and how they motivate your patients.

  • Fear of aging - the mirror
  • Fear of embarrassment - Weddings, school reunions
  • Fear of loss - youth, personal image

There is an opportunity to leverage fear marketing to your advantage when patients find themselves motivated by fears. While discussion of this may not be popular, I've seen physicians who pray on this to the exclusion of all else and it can be very effective. The physicians who practice this are typically the ones who talk down to their patients. Patients often don't like it and I'm guessing, since I've got no data to back this up, that the satisfaction rate is low.

When Not to Use Fear Marketing

 
For services and products that make people happy, don’t exclusively dwell on the negative! Focus on how positive results can impact your patients life. There's an aspirational quality that works more effectively than fear.

Think of how glamour magazines (aspiration) change behavior and how anti-smoking ads (fear) don't have nearly the effect. 

A balanced strategy will capture a broader, more diverse group of potential customers that fear marketing alone. Better yet, fear derived patients are certainly much less likely to provide positive word of mouth advertising for you.

Fear Marketing Guidelines

Several points to make your fear marketing effective:

  1. Make sure the portrayed consequence of not taking action is severe, but not exaggerated.
  2. Make the patient feel that the problem is relevant to them.
  3. Provide a specific action that the patient can take to prevent the consequence from happening.
  4. Ensure that the patient believes that the proposed solution is effective in preventing the consequence.
  5. Portray the solution as something that the patient can easily do.

Provide the Happy Ending

Paint a picture for your patients that compels them to action. You want them to visualize themselves with a happy ending because they purchased your services and you become a security blanket that helps the customer sleep at night without the fear.

List your medspa on Medical Spa MD for $50.

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satisfactionguaranteedNow don't think I'm getting ornery, but this site takes up a fair amount of time.

And while I started this site out of the profound goodness of my heart and desire to help my fellow man, the bills still have to get paid. (There aren't actually that many.) So, there are a couple of things I'm initiating in order to keep that warm fuzzy feeling I have for all of you.

  • The long awaited medical print on demand solution that I've been working on for the last three months is supposedly almost ready. (Developers are the car mechanics of the web.)
  • There are some company sponsors who have contacted me about becoming sponsors. (Identified of course.) Don't expect the medspa franchises to be among them.
  • I'm going to sell some advertising space to companies, vendors, and... to individual medical spas.

Here's the pitch:

Advertise your Medspa on Medical Spa MD
Cost: $50 /year


If you have a medical spa, the very best thing you can do to drive patients to your web site is to increase your visibility to search engines so that you can be found. Medical Spa MD is the authority in this space with over 100,000 page views a month and 20,000 unique visitors. Purchasing a link to your site means that Google, Yahoo, MSN and the rest of the search engines will increase the importance that give to your site and raise you in their search index. (And you'll feel good knowing that your $50 will go to help pay my hosting bills.)

If you feel that you've gotten some smarts or info that's been of benefit, give a thought to pulling out your card and listing your medspa on this site where it will join the other clinics under: Fantastic Medical Spas.

If you're one of the first ten or so medspas to join I'll show you some special love. If you think that $50 is too much... well, it's less than I've spent on any single type of advertising for any of my clinics, ever. (Hell, it costs $250 for a classified ad.)

To purchase a link to your site, just click the buy now button, follow the directions and send payment via the paypal page (enter $50 in the amount box),  and include your link and 20-30 words about your medical spa or cosmetic practice. That's it.

$50 and your site will appear here under: Fantastic Medical Spas

Podcasts: The American Academy of Anti-Aging Medicine

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headerLeft.gifFrom the Ameraican Academy of Anti-Aging Medicine (A4M) comes this series of podcasts on cosmetic treatments.

Preview or listen to these podcasts at your computer by clicking the 'stream' icons below. podcast icons below. Download or open the MP3 files with the 'podcast' icon.

 

  • Laser Hair Removal, and Intense Pulsed Light

    This show was part of the XIV international Congress on Anti-Aging Medicine 2006, held on July 14-16, in Chicago, Il.

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  • Overview of Aesthetic Lasers

    This show was part of the XIV international Congress on Anti-Aging Medicine 2006, held on July 14-16, in Chicago, Il.

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  • Vascular Laser Treatment Overview

    This show was part of the XIII International Congress on Anti-Aging Medicine 2005, held on December 8-12 in Las Vegas, NV.

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  • Intense Pulsed Light Applications

    This show was part of the XIII International Congress on Anti-Aging Medicine 2005, held on December 8-12 in Las Vegas, NV.

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  • Treating Unwanted Hair, Veins, Facial Rejuvenation, IPL and Erbium Resurfacing

    This show was part of the XIII International Congress on Anti-Aging Medicine 2005, held on December 8-12 in Las Vegas, NV.

      

  • Resurfacing Techniques

    This show was part of the XIV international Congress on Anti-Aging Medicine 2006, held on July 14-16, in Chicago, Il.

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  • "Surgery-Less" Face Lift: Plastic Surgery for "WIMPS" of the Way of the Future

    This show was part of the XIV international Congress on Anti-Aging Medicine 2006, held on April 7-9, in Orlando, Fl.

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  • Adavanced Facial Sculpting with Botulinum A for the Upper Face

    This show was part of the XIII International Congress on Anti-Aging Medicine 2005, held on December 8-12 in Las Vegas, NV.

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  • Restoring Youthful Contours: The Latest in Semi-Permanent and Permanent Facial Fillers

    This show was part of the XIII International Congress on Anti-Aging Medicine 2005, held on December 8-12 in Las Vegas, NV.

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  • The Latest in Collagen and Hyaluronians for Facial Aesthetic Enhancements

    This show was part of the XIII International Congress on Anti-Aging Medicine 2005, held on December 8-12 in Las Vegas, NV.

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Medical Spa MD: Stories & News

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This is the first post of news from around the world on cosmetic Medicine. These posts will not be 'catagorized' but you can search for past posts and links using the search function.

  • Doctors warn agains Lipodissolve but fans say it works.
  • Sundown for Cosmetic Cowboys:
    In response to the government’s recent call for self regulation of cosmetic procedures, The British Association of Cosmetic Doctors (BACD) today announced the appointment of ten regional representatives to provide educational focus, set standards for cosmetic doctors, and provide mentoring for colleagues,
  • Adverse Reactions to cosmetic filler in eye area:
    A study suggests that polylactic acid (PLA) an injectable cosmetic filler previously deemed to be safe and reliable can lead to permanent facial scarring in certain patients.
  • The disturbing world of Back-street Botox:
    Practitioners with no medical training,drugs bought over the internet and disfiguring results. Worse still, it's all legal.
  • Doctors want Botox & Laser Limits:
    as the number of clinics rises, so do the medical problems stemming from those procedures, several dermatologists said. Dr. Nate Trookman of Colorado Springs said he used to see about six people a year with such complications and now it’s about one a week.
  • Plastic Surgery Reality TV Shows Influence Patients To Have Surgery
    According to a study published in July's Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, the official medical journal of the American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS), first-time patients seeking cosmetic plastic surgery are directly influenced ...
  • Plastic surgery on the NHS?
    But the latest study, to be published in the British Journal of     Plastic Surgery, finds that surgeons are turning a blind eye to the rules because of ...

Is ANY Cutera technology worth buying?

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My physicians were underwhelmed with the Cutera Xeo.

0m.jpgWe were using the Cutera Titan & ND Yag. The inexperienced physician in the location where we had it thought it worked well, but my more experienced physicians hated it and, in effect, wouldn't use it.

The 'single do everything platform' is also something I generally don't like since I can only have one treatment room going at a time. I guess that Cutera is trying to target individual physicians with a 'this one device will do everything' approach. While you might originally might think this is a good idea it's hard to grow if you have to invest another $100k for each additional treatment room.

LH comments about Cutera:

"At this time, I have very little respect for Cutera. They have over promised and under delivered on many things (Titan, Genesis, etc). The only time they contact my office is when they want to sell me an upgrade. Their webinars are only geared to the new person getting into aesthetics. Their webinars are only made so they can sell you something. I have watched many webinars and have stopped because they are a waste of time.

I also have issues with a company that will sell you a brand new system and will not back it up if you sell it on the secondary market. They will not sell refurbished Titan heads to anyone other than the original owner. They will not train any non-Cutera laser techs. This is so they can charge more for repairs. They will not send parts to any non-Cutera laser techs. Therefore, Cutera has made my used laser worth much less than it should be.

Unless Cutera changes their ways, I will never purchase a Cutera laser again. I will also never purchase an upgrade for my current sysytem."

And Dermadoc says about Cutera:

"My frustration is two-fold: first, Cutera totally overhyped the Titan, despite a few (very few) providers who seem to be getting what they consider good results. Second, how could this coatrack be marketed without a more consistent technique being identified, along with consistent recommendations for patietn selection, expected results, etc. It was sold on a wing and a prayer and like LH, I will find it very hard to purchase anything from Cutera again."

I'd have to agree with LH. The only time I saw the Cutera rep was during sales calls. Cutera's refusal to support their technology outside of the origional purchaser is a mistake and greatly lowers the value of their entire system. I can't see that investing in a system with such a downside when trying to sell is such a good idea.

I'm curious as to everyone elses experience with Cutera technology or dealing with Cutera as a company. (I'm even interested in what the Cutera reps on this site might have to say.)

Medspa MD Classifieds: Lasers, IPL, Thermage & Jobs

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classified.jpgTake a look at the classified sections of Medical Spa MD.

Current listings include Palomar Starlux, Thermage, Sciton Profile, Palomar Medilux, a 1064 ND Yag, and Zimmer Chiller. You can even subscribe to the used lasers & IPL classifieds feed and get every listing as it goes live.

And I've added a Medical Spa Jobs page for Physicians, PA's, NP's, Nurses, Estheticians & staff directly under the technology listings in the navigation bar to the right.

You can use this to: Post a job for a postion, or post your resume if you're looking for a job. (I think it will work for either.)

The posting of new information is relatively easy. Make sure that you include picures and an accurate, lengthy descripton if you'd like to make a sell or job. One line descriptions don't do well.

Feedback or suggestions are welcome. 

Searching Medical Spa MD: Find what you need to know.

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magnifyingglass Top Searches on Medspa MD: Posts & Comments

Perhaps the coolest thing I've added to Medical Spa MD in the last few months is the search function. (I use squarespace to run this site. Read my review of squarespace blogging software.) So, now you can find any post, article or comment that about or referencing whatever you're looking for.

To search for any posts, article, person, or comment on Medical Spa MD, input your query into the search box at the top of the navigation menu. Here are some of the top searches on Medspa MD.

America's best paying jobs. Guess who's at the top?

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rich_doctor.jpgFrom Forbes.com America's best--and worst--paying jobs.

"When we first looked at America's best- and worst-paying jobs a year back, we asked the question, "Why do financially pushy parents want their children to marry doctors?" Our answer then: Because, as Willie Sutton said of banks, that is where the money is. Still is.

The medical profession continues to dominate the top end of our list of the 25 best- and worst-paying jobs in America. Anesthesiologists have flipped places with surgeons to take the top spot, but the next eight places are firmly in the healing hands of various sorts of specialist practitioners."

  1. Anesthesiologists - $184K
  2. Surgeons - $184k
  3. Obstetricians And Gynecologists - $178k
  4. Orthodontists - $177k
  5. Oral And Maxillofacial Surgeons - $165k
  6. Internists, General - $161k
  7. Prosthodontists - $159k
  8. Psychiatrists - $150k
  9. Family And General Practitioners - $150k
  10. CEO - $145k
  11. Physicians And Surgeons, All Other - $142k
  12. Pediatricians, General - $141k
  13. Dentists, General - $141k
  14. Airline Pilots, Copilots And Flight Engineers - $140k
  15. Podiatrists - $118k
  16. Lawyer - $114k
  17. Air Traffic Controllers - $110K
  18. Engineering Managers - $110k
  19. Dentists, All Other Specialists - $108k
  20. Natural Sciences Managers - $108k
So what are the conclusions? My friend Chris says:
  • Education pays.
  • The medical profession is still where its at.
  • Being a air traffic controller must require more skill than I first thought.
  • Being a pilot seems to be the best paying job with the lowest barrier to entry. They need no advanced degree. Pilots beat out lawyers who didn’t even make the top 15.
  • In my book, net worth is a better measure than income to define wealth. You could make a lot of money but have no net worth. Remember, 40% of all wealth in this country is held by first generation small business owners.
Does anyone else feel the hush in the room? Now what's going to happen? I'm considering opening up an anesthesia spa.

A Plastic Surgeon on Dermatologists & boob jobs.

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RLS posts his thoughts on Dermatologists who perform surgeries while unprepared for the complications from the thread on a Dermatologist who's pissed at medspa FP's and OB's.

fingerprint_definition.jpg"In my opinion (as a plastic surgeon), we as physicians would all like to assume that we are uniquely gifted and qualified to perform the procedures and/or treatments that we do. Are there FPs, derms, ect that can do fillers, lasers, ect. better than me? Most likely.

But the real issue in regard to training and ability is not the difficulty of the procedure- I think someone above alluded to the fact that these treatments are for the most part pretty basic- but are you able, willing, and have the training (and hospital privileges) necessary to handle the complications that can arise from these treatments. If you really feel like you do, great. If not, I think you need to rethink about the disservice you may be providing to your patients.

There is a dermatologist here where I live who does breast augmentations in his office. He advertises heavily and has a pretty busy practice, but when he runs into trouble with his cases (which is not infrequent), he calls the ambulance, tells the driver to take them to the ER of the nearest hospital (of which I am on staff), and tells the patient "good luck!!". The ER doc calls the plastic surgeon on call And now it is our problem to deal with. Now my afternoon is shot because he does not have the ability to deal with the complications. Not fair to me, and certainly not fair to the patients.

just my two cents"

Not having much experience with sending patients to the ER, I'm somewhat surprised by this and would like to hear some thoughts regarding complications that require an anbulance exit.

How to become a Heroic Physician in the eyes of your patients.

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superman.jpgReady to add more to your bottom line from word of mouth patient referrals?

What you need is a hero.

You likely already know that effective marketing is not about blatant self-promotion. (If you don't, well, you should.) Your focus should be building your authority and credibility  that provides true value to your patients. Over the long term, this snowball building strategy will easily convert a good percentage of your patients into active zealots (patients who actively promote your practice).

 It's medical practices with an active zelot-building strategy that are healthy, growing, and profitable.

But there's a catch. (There's always a catch.)

The only really effective way to build this kind of proactive patient population is not through a frontal assault, but with a carefully organized strategy of soft, outside promotion.

Is it ever okay to do some “hard selling”? Absolutely, but your best bet is to do it in a way that doesn't come across as selling. The good news is that the technique you can use is one of the most potent forms of selling around.

Confused? Let’s take a closer look at the bad, better and best approaches.

Bad: Blatant Self-Promotion

See: Physicians get the consultants they deserve. Marketing that focuses on telling people how wonderful you are is bound to be a flop. If it comes across as self aggrandizement, you're shooting yourself in the foot. No one wants to go in and have a consultation of buy something who thinks he's God's gift to mankind. (Note: If you think that you might actually be Gods gift to mankind, there's no need to continue reading this since it obviously won't help.)

All great marketing focuses on the prospect, and all great medical marketing focuses on the patient. You’re wasting your time telling people how great you are, because odds are no one will care enough to decide whether to believe you.

Better: Customer Testimonials and Media Blurbs

As I’ve said a couple times before, what other people say about you is more important than what you say about yourself. This is the foundational aspect of testimonials and third party endorsements. Board certification is a perfect example of this. Plastic surgeons show that they're board certified so that patients will feel a sense of security knowing that this third party has said that this doctor isn't a complete sham.

Testimonials and media mentions are important because of the concept of social proof. We all, to vary degrees, look to others for indications of what to do and how to behave. Social proof is the basis of buzz, word-of-mouth marketing and fashion trends, but it’s also an important aspect of our day-to-day lives. We avoid sensory and information overload by looking to social indicators for judgmental heuristics that help us make decisions.

When patients pull up to your clinic, they don't want to see you driving up and getting out of a beat up VW bug. The fact that you have a BMW, Rolex, a good haircut, and staff wearing jackets with their name are all forms of social proof that show that you've got money because a whole bunch of other patients choose you. So, a patient can fee that they're not stupid choosing a doc who so many others have chosen before.

However, outside of a focused attempt to get someone to take immediate action (like order a product or call you), testimonials are not very compelling. Simply regurgitating what someone has said about you is not nearly as interesting as it is when it’s read somewhere else. In short, testimonials do not make 'great' sales fodder.

Can we do better?

Best: Hero Stories

What’s a hero story?

A hero story is similar to a testimonial, except that it transcends praise and becomes a compelling, engaging narrative that your patients can directly relate to. Instead of you or your business being the center of attention, your patient or client is the “hero” who solves a problem utilizing your solution. Bingo.

Here are some key characteristics of the hero story:

  • The story is not about you or your company
  • The story is about your customer and how they solved their problem
  • First, introduce the hero
  • Next, introduce the problem
  • How did the hero solve the problem?
  • What did the hero learn along the way?
  • What specific results did the hero achieve?

Woven into the story, of course, is you and your solution. But you’re really just an “extra” who supports the hero. You want the hero to speak to your readers and prospective customers in terms they can relate to. Or in other words, a hero makes you look good in ways that are difficult for you to achieve yourself. People will tune out your own horn-blowing, but they’ll love a good story with a protagonist who conquers challenges that are similar to their own.

A Hero Story is Simply a Good Story

The key, of course, is a good story, and a good hero story is just like any good story—it contains drama, obstacles, conflict and resolution. And the key to writing a good hero story is to be engaging in your presentation.

I could use multiple examples but I'll relate one that I've coached some of our physicians to use during consultation training.

We have a before and after picture of a patient we treated who had with a large port wine stain along the right side of her face. The mark, the size of an outstretched hand, covered her from above her hairline, over her ear, down her cheek and neck and to her clavicle. Since she was born, this huge and obvious mark had ruled her interactions with people. Her teen and dating years were marked by peril at what boys and others might think or say.

As a result, she always wore turtlenecks and covered her mark with hairstyle and makeup. It was an onerous, deeply threatening condition that in many ways ruled her life. At her wedding she had had no photographer and had forbidden pictures to be taken.

She became a Surface patient shortly after she was married. During her lifetime there had never been a technology that could treat her condition and when we came on the scene, one of our other patients who was a close friend, recommended that she come in for a consult. 

It took six treatments, but we were able to remove the entire mark to a level that you would never be able to tell that a port wine stain had ever existed. For her, it was a miracle.

For the first time in her life, she dropped the turtlenecks and wore her hair back. In fact, she went further and assembled her entire wedding party and had her wedding pictures taken in her wedding gown. It took her six months to adjust to the new way that people speaking to her looked at her eyes and didn't constantly look at her mark. She loved it.

We were happy to be a part of it. 

Heroes? Sometimes. 

Physicians get the consultants they deserve. Part 1.

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uncool.gifThe following recommendation was made last night on the comment thread of  What's wrong with medical spa franchises & medspa consultants?

"One of the best consulting companies is ____________. The physician who owns the company had his own Medical spa and sold it for a substantial profit and it was very profitable. He has had experience in implementing over 100 medical spas in the last 3 years. His references are very good, his fees are reasonable and customized, not a cookie cutter. Look on his web site, _______ and you can get some information. I had the same trouble with Med Surge trying to load up equipment and their consultants are MBAs who never owned a spa or worked with one. - goldfinger"   72.177.0.186

 Wow. Excellent references, profits, reasonable fees... I want to hire this guy myself. Look at that. 100 Medical Spas in only 3 years. That's 3 medical spas open a month and without any cookie cutting. Better yet, he's a physician and understands how difficult those MBA's at Med Surge can be in trying to pile on the technology they get kickbacks from. Look at that signature.. 'goldfinger'. Where do I sign up?

Unfortunately, I had to remove the comment since it was left by the ' medical spa consultant' it was promoting...  _______, B.A., M.D., FACOG who is _______ and a member of the Republican Presidential Task Force, 1989-present.. Surprise.

How do I know this? Let's say that I'm absolutely sure and wouldn't make an accusation like this unless I was absolutely, positively, 100% certain. (I can see the IP's of all comments.)

So, as with everything, buyer beware. I have no doubt that ___________ will be happy to take your money and give you 1.3 weeks of time on his way to his next 100 medspas. The question is, would you be happy to pay someone who conducts business by subterfuge?

And for those who want to be sneaky on my site, don't.

More family practice doctors switching to aesthetic medicine.

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Guess what? Family practice Doctors are moving to cosmetic medicine in increasing numbers.

 
arrowGraphic2.jpgThis isn't any surprise to me but it's going to make the cosmetic medical market even more crowded and competitive. 

Why? because the normal market conditions don't apply quite as much in medicine as they do in the 'real world'.

In a normal market, if you fail, you go out of business.

In cosmetic medicine, physicians who fail (and there are some), just end up making less money since it's the family practice, OB/GYN, or internal medicine practice that's making the bread and butter. Doctors don't die, they just get older and complain more.

As a result, large numbers of physicians are running pell-mell into this market to make that extra $60k a year, flooding the market with me-too competitors who individually can't compete but as a group add up to a significant portion of the available dollars taken out of the marketplace.

This is why the plastic surgeons and cosmetic dermatologists are pulling their hair out. While they're still making good money, the unwashed hordes of unboarded doctors who are moving in are all pulling a percent or two away from the front end of the funnel. Not much as individuals but as an aggregate it really starts to make an impact.

So when a board certified plastic surgeon or dermatologist sees a burn, blister, or other complication, his predilection is to chalk it up to another one of those 'bargain basement cosmetic practices'  that have opened their doors down the street. (and he might be right since it really is kind of the wild west out there.) 

I do have two predictions here.

Since it's the state medical boards that make oversight and regulatory rules and since those boards are made up of physicians, I think that:

Both of these strategies will fail. While regulations probably should be tightened in most states, the current system is hugely inefficient and natural market forces will force the vast majority of physicians into a commodities market which will shrink physician incomes. Nor will plastic surgeons and dermatologists be able to keep non-boarded physicians out of cosmetic medicine (This recent Florida situation with off site medical spas notwithstanding.)

So if you're running a medical spa or laser clinic or you're a plastic surgeon or derm... it's only just begun.

101 Essential Physician Resources for Business

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101resources.jpgThe web is such a big and wonderful place, packed with tools and resources which you all too often don’t know about. So to help all you doctors out there benefit from these resources, we have compiled a gigantic list of resources, categorized up for your benefit.

This page  going to be accessed through the 'Resource' link above but is worth a bookmark on it's own.

If you know a resource that we’ve missed, let us know as we’re always looking to grow this list!

 

 

Physician Reading

Bone up on the medical spa book learning:

  1. Business MD- Business books for cosmetic practices.
  2. Dermatology- Dermatology books section.
  3. IPL & Lasers- Technology books.
  4. Cosmetic Surgery- Cosmetic surgery.

 

Classified Ads & Auctions

Sell your laser or buy somone elses. You'll have to have some equipment.

  1. Ebay IPL & Laser Auctions - Ebay's IPL's, lasers and cosmetic medical equipment.
  2. Ebay Aesthetic Equipment - Ebay listings for non medical cosmetic equipment.

 

 

Printing

Everyone needs ink. Here are some tools to help:

  1. iPrint - Rubber stamps
  2. Stamps.com - Print stamps from your desktop
  3. 00inkjets.com  - Inkjet cartridges
  4. MyInks.com - Inkjet cartridges

 

Business & Legal Links

Save yourself some time and money.

  1. Logoworks.com - Logos
  2. LegalZoom - Online legal documents
  3. Equifax  - Get your credit report
  4. LifeLock -  Identity theft protection
  5. Skype for Business - Internet phone for business
  6. Newegg.com - Computers and tech stuff.
  7. PayPal - Send and receive money by email.
  8. Faxes to your email - Receive Faxes in Your Email Inbox.
  9. Equifax - Check your credit score.
  10. LifeLock - Identity theft protection.
  11. Skype - Skype for business.

 

Web Tools

If you're not online by now, well, you should be.

  1. Squarespace.com - Easy web site and blog builder (Read my review of Squarespace)
  2. Gmail  - Google your email if you haven't already.
  3. Wordpress.org - Blog software if you're geeky enough to install and use it.
  4. Gmail Alerts - Keep track of what you want to know. (How to use alerts)
  5. eBay Stores - Open your own store on eBay.
  6. MyFax.com - Fax to and from your email.
  7. CallWave - Fax to and from your email.
  8. Constant Contact - Do it yourself email marketing.
  9. Squarespace - Very nice publishing system for websites and blogs
  10. Rackspace - dedicated hosting and customer service that is second to none
  11. Mosso - Advanced hosting at a reasonable price
  12. Dotster.com - Domain registration & hosting.
  13. GoDaddy.com - Domain registration & hosting.
  14. CallWave - Fax to and from your email.
  15. iStock - Images for your blog or web site.
  16. Go to my PC - Access your computer from anywhere.
  17. www.GoDaddy.com - Buy your domain name.
  18. Dotster.com - Another domain name seller.
  19. Mozy - Free, full-featured remote backup service.
  20. LessAccounting - Is your job title Accounting? Probably not. Do less accounting!
  21. MS Office Accounting Express (Free) - Free Microsoft Accounting

 

Advertising and Marketing

A few ways to market and advertise yourself online…

  1. Medical Spa MD - Hey, one shamless plug. If you're looking to reach cosmetic medicine docs.
  2. Spot Runner - Professional TV spots starting at $1500.
  3. Text Link Ads - Text ads to sell your wares and improve your traffic ranking
  4. Review Me - Get your service or Web site reviewed by bloggers
  5. Adbrite - Text and banner ads on over 20,000 sites
  6. AdEngage - Text and Photext ads (image and text ad combined)
  7. Adwords - Text ads on Google searches
  8. Professional On The Web - Get yourself Listed
  9. MerchantCircle.com - List your business locally.


Business Management and Organization

These resources will help you stay organised.

  1. Proposal Kit - Proposal and contract management tools
  2. Ta-Da Lists - a simple (free!) to-do list application that can be shared with the world
  3. Backpack - Service that integrates to-do lists, notes, files, images, and a calendar with reminders that can be sent to your email or cell
  4. Writeboard - Sharable, web-based text documents that save edits, so you can collaborate, roll back and compare
  5. MonkeyOn - Your to-do list for things that you want other people to do

 

Stock Libraries

Templates, Photos, Flash files all to help make you look good

  1. FlashDen - A resource selling stock Flash, audio, video and fonts for as little as 50 cents
  2. Dreamstime - Royalty free stock photography for $1 - $2
  3. Getty Images - When price is no object and quality is essential
  4. iStock Photo - Images for your blog or web site.

 

Business Tools

Resources to help with the business of freelancing.

  1. Campfire - Real-time group chat and file sharing
  2. Google Apps - Communication and collaboration tools from Google
  3. Zoho - Free office tools
  4. MailBuild - More newsletter software
  5. Business-Paper - Easy business cards
  6. Wufoo - Make forms.
  7. CPA Directory - Find an accountant (in the US)
  8. SBA - Small Business Administration, help and advice
  9. Work - How-to guides to running a small business
  10. XE - Quick and easy currency converter for all your international transactions…
  11. Stamps.com - Print postage right from your PC.
  12. ZoneAlarm - Computer security and firewall. 

 

Legal

Because you have to protect yourself and your work…

  1. LegalZoom - Online legal documents
  2. My New Company - Legal and general start-up information
  3. Copyright - Everything you need to know about US copyright
  4. HelpMeWork - US - Services to help you focus on what you know best
  5. CreativeCommons - For licensing…just about anything

 

Medical Spa Associations

All the many things we couldn’t fit anywhere else!

  1. Medical Spa Society - Started by physicians to try and bring some semblance of quality control to the industry.
  2. Medical Spa MD - Hey, Join this site. It's free after all.
Medical Spa Journals

All the many things we couldn’t fit anywhere else!

  1. Medical Spa Report - Official pub of the Medical Spa Society.
  2. Dermatology Times - Same publisher as Medical Spa Report. Some useful content.
  3. Cosmetic Surgery Times - Surgical slant.
  4. Anti-Aging e-Journal - Online newsletter about anti-aging medicine.

 

Medical Refrence Sites

Medical reference sites from general to specific.

  1.  Academy of Anti-Aging Research - The Academy of Anti-Aging Research (A3R) is a society of health care professionals and researchers dedicated to the advancement of anti-aging medicine. 
  2. American Academy of Facial Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery - 2,800 facial plastic and reconstructive surgeons throughout the world.  
  3. American Academy of Dermatology - Represents virtually all practicing dermatologists in the United States.
  4. America's Pharmaceutical Research Companies (PhRMA) - Pharmaceutical news and sources.
  5. BioOnline: Biotechnology on the Net - Comprehensive Internet site for information and services related to biotechnology and pharmaceutical research.
  6. Consumer Health Libraries - Extensive list of medical and health-related libraries.
  7. Healthfinder® - U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
  8. MedExplorer.com - Reviewed health medical sites and medical information center. employment, conferences, discussion forum, classifieds, and more.
  9. MediLexicon.com - A dictionary of medical, pharmaceutical, biomedical & healthcare acronyms and abbreviations.
  10. MedBioWorld - Medical Journals - Access to medical and bioscience journals, associations, databases.
  11. Merck Manual of Diagnosis and Therapy Seventeenth Edition - Free site.
  12. Merriam-Webster Medical Dictionary - Online medical dictionary.
  13. National Library of Medicine - Helpful information when the need arises.
  14. New England Journal of Medicine - The weekly general medical journal.
  15. Nurses PDR Resource Center - Drug Database - Drug Database.
  16. PubMed Central - A free archive of life sciences journal literature managed by the National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI).
  17. PDRnet - Physicians' Desk Reference - Answers about detecting, preventing, and treating a variety of medical conditions.
  18. Quack Watch - Quackery, Health Fraud, and Intelligent Decisions.
  19. WebMD.com - Health and medical news and information.

 

Physician & Other Medical Blogs

 

 Backlinks:


 

Free Press Release

 

Have a resource we missed? Leave a comment and let us know!

Dermacare Laser Centers expand to Asia just in time.

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One of the Dermacaer Laser Center franchisees just sent me this press release from Dermacare corporate about expansion to Asia.

 
PSALOGOSMALL.GIFQuoted from the email: "It's great to see that Carl's put the money I've paid to good use. Now patients in Asia will be flocking to my doors. I've not only got national advertising dollars at work but now I'm international. If only I could get Dermacare to answer their phone or get me some local patients."

I guess you Dermacare franchisees are just a hard crowd to please. I've heard that Carl Mudd is a business genius and now I'm starting to believe it.  (The bolding and underlines are from the email.)

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Dermacare Laser & Skin Care Clinics, the only physician-based laser aesthetic skin-care franchisor in the nation, has awarded an International Master Regional Franchise agreement (IMRF) for several Asian cities to Sylvia Ramirez, M.D., and Gunther Scherz. They will have the exclusive rights to open Dermacare clinics in Singapore; Jakarta, Indonesia; Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia; Manila, Philippines; and Beijing, Shanghai, Hong Kong, China; as well as additional development rights for the Asia Pacific region.

“Dermacare’s expansion into Asia will be led by an eminently qualified team,” says Carl Mudd, Dermacare CEO. “Dr. Ramirez and Gunther Scherz have the unique blend of international business experience and medical credentials that we believe will generate much success in an area that has huge market potential, which remains largely untapped by any American aesthetic skincare company.”

According to Ramirez, “We extensively researched the Pacific Rim and the U.S. for a franchise partner that could serve the Asian skin-care market. Only Dermacare offered the scientific methodology, ethical corporate culture, unequaled safety record and proven results that are critical for success in this competitive marketplace.” In March, Dermacare announced that its first Asian franchised outlet would likely open in the third quarter of 2007 in Singapore. Ramirez and Scherz will run that clinic.

Scherz describes Singapore as a major healthcare hub for Asia, especially for neighboring Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) countries, such as Malaysia, Indonesia and Vietnam. “People travel to Singapore for a variety of premium services, including anti-aging procedures. Establishing Dermacare in Singapore will instantly increase the brand’s visibility on a global level,” Scherz says. “We are proud to offer patients safe, effective and scientifically proven treatments through Dermacare.”

Dr. Ramirez is currently the vice president for global research and development at Arbor Research Collaborative for Health in Ann Arbor, Mich. She trained at Harvard Children’s Hospital in Boston, is board certified from the American Board of Pediatrics and has designed and developed clinical programs, as well as practiced medicine in several settings — from academic clinical practice, to government clinics and the pharmaceutical industry — in both Singapore and the United States. Her experience provides her with unique insights in providing clinical care to various segments of the population. In addition, she holds an Executive M.B.A. from the University of Chicago Graduate School of Business and an M.P.H. in quantitative methods from the Harvard School of Public Health. A frequent contributor to peer-reviewed medical journals, Dr. Ramirez’s background includes extensive concentration in the fields of pediatrics and nephrology.

Scherz, who will focus on the marketing and management side of the business, is uniquely positioned to lead Dermacare’s rapid expansion in Asia. His last position was general manager of Audi Asia Pacific for ASEAN in Singapore, and he holds an Executive M.B.A. from the University of Chicago Graduate School of Business. He has other advanced degrees in international marketing and management from the University of Paris IX Dauphine and the University of Innsbruck in Austria.

Med Spa Marketing with Google Alerts

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Using Google Alerts to keep track of what is being said about you and your clinic or medspa on the net.

 
googlealertsignup.gifWant to know what people are saying about you and yours on the web? Use Google Alerts to set up notifications when bloggers write a post about the specific topic in question. This sends an automated email to your inbox every day or once a week as you choose.

If you're running a business then there are people mentioning you on the web in forums or blogs. Google alerts let you keep track of all this information in one place.

Alerts also have the benefit of allowing you to easily stay in touch with the latest posted information about Botox, Thermage, Sona Medspas, DermaDoc (wink) or whatever else you're interested in. I keep about 30 alerts and have them set to notify me weekly. (I find daily notifications unmanageable.)

The trick here is to specify very carefully exactly the information you're wanting to receive.  My alerts include keywords like: Jeff Barson, Medical Spas, Medspas, Medispas... You'll need to think slightly about possible wording if you're looking to get everything but Google will send you every reference that fits.

Medspa Legal: A dermatologist weighs in on medical directors in spas.

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 Dr. Ly from Aloha Dermatology & Laser Center posted this on Medical Directors in Medspas.

TPH30.jpg"...the medical spa industry often used the term “Medical Director” to lead consumers to believe that a non-physician owned (medspa) is employing a physician to perform medical services in the spa. As stated above. A non-physician owned spa cannot provide aesthetic medical procedures to the public nor can it employ a physician as practitioner. Thus, the use of the term “Medical Director” by a non physician-owned spa to mean a doctor who performs aesthetic medical services on behalf of the spa would be a fraudulent business practice. Only a physician-owned spa can legitimately have a Medical Director.

Consumers need to be aware that a physician who operates a private physician’s office within a non-physician owned spa must ensure that all advertising and marketing materials used by the spa properly disclose the physician’s relationship with the spa.

Many non-physician spa owners believe they can employ a physician to be their “Medical Director” and perform aesthetic medical procedures within their spa. This is incorrect, and any physician who accepts employment by a non-physician spa owner with the intent of performing aesthetic medical procedures as the spa’s medical director is subject to disciplinary action and increased liability."

I wonder what American Laser Centers, Dermacare, Sona, Solana and the rest of the medical spa franchises would say to that.

Dr Ly is right of course in the strictest sense as I've posted before: What's legal in a medical spa? l Why physicians & medical spas are a legal nightmare. l Sona Medspas: Legal structure & revenue sharing. l Medspa Legal: Can a non-physician employ a physician.

However, there are ways in which physicians can deliver services at locations or businesses they don't actually own. (Any hospital is and example of that.)