As 2020 wraps up, it is time to review your year-end goals and to start planning for the upcoming year. As a dental, medical, or veterinary practice owner, now is the time to sit down with your business consultants to write down and establish your vision for the future. The following practice planning strategies can help you prepare your business for 2021.
Reflect Upon Your Year-to-Date
Before moving forward, you need to reflect on the past year. Did you meet your year-end goals? Did you need to make changes to your schedule or your practice? How did your team adapt and perform? Reviewing your past year can help you plan for the coming year by knowing what changes to make for future success.
Make a LIst of Your Competitors
As you prepare to move forward, take a look at the competitors around you. What value do they bring to your professional field? What strengths and weaknesses do they have? Make a list of current practices or organizations in your area as well as those that may be entering your market. Highlight those that may be the biggest challenge to your practice.
A good analysis helps you navigate your future to determine your own needs and to help your dental, medical, or veterinary practice stand out moving forward.
Analyze Their Strengths and Weaknesses
No matter how old (or new) your practice is, it is important to know your competition. Understanding your competition is a crucial part of running any business. Not only can you learn from their successes but also from their mistakes.
Envision yourself as the competition. What do they do well? Where could they improve? If the practice is growing, what strategies are they employing? What services are they offering and how are they attracting patients?
Determine Marketing Strategies
Part of practice growth for the future involves patients, gaining new patients but also keeping current patients. Proper marketing is a necessary, ongoing process to boost your dental, medical, or veterinary practice’s presence.
Marketing isn’t advertising, although that may be part of your strategy. Your practice will grow from your clinical excellence and expertise, but determining effective marketing strategies is an investment in the future of your business.
What marketing strategies do other practices use? Do they have a better website or social media presence? Could your practice benefit from new marketing strategies?
Plan for the Future
Now that you have an analysis of your competition, your own practice, and ways to win part of the market, it is time to make a plan for what you want to accomplish in 2021.
Set a Vision for Your Practice’s Future
Without trying to dictate the exact details of the future, create a vision for your practice. When you started your practice, you had to develop a vision or business plan. Take time to review your vision and see how it lays out against your plan for the upcoming year. Consider your program, resources, relationships, and the development of your practice.
Identify Problems and Develop a Plan to Solve Them
During your review of 2020, you may have noted potential issues. Perhaps your schedule needs to be addressed to increase productivity. Do you need new equipment? Is your staff properly trained?
Part of planning includes developing strategies to remove inefficiencies, to improve productivity, and to provide safe operating practices. Review any potential problems that are holding your practice back and create a plan to tackle those issues in the coming year.
Remain Flexible
While strategic planning gives you a framework for your practice’s future, there is danger in taking that to the extreme and being too rigid. Try to avoid planning too far into the future or being too detailed.
As 2020 has shown us, the unexpected can happen at any time to throw us for a loop. In order for businesses to survive, they have to be open to changes and be able to adapt if a plan isn’t working.
Plan for the future, but keep an open mind as you move into the new year.
Choose LenDRgroup Consulting
Whether you are establishing goals, planning for the new year, or trying to launch or grow your dental, medical, or veterinary practice, consult the business and financial experts at LenDRgroup Consulting.
Experienced, Certified Practice Consultants
LenDRgroup Consulting is a team of experienced practice consultants who specialize in working with dental, medical, and veterinary practice owners. We can help you with financing, managing, planning, and setting goals for your business.
Let us help you review your year-end goals and establish appropriate strategies to meet your 2021 goals.
We want your practice to succeed! We understand the ins and outs of running a healthcare practice. Whether you need practice financing or business consulting, we can help create a customized plan for your practice’s unique needs.
Financially, we offer a lending platform of 300+ healthcare-specific lenders to help dental, medical, and veterinary professionals achieve their dreams of practice ownership while eliminating the typical obstacles.
To date, we have helped hundreds of professionals launch, expand, and grow their practices. We get to know you so we can listen to and understand your practice’s needs while helping you avoid costly mistakes. So, let’s get started.
Contact LenDRgroup Consulting today and start planning for the future of your practice!
