Episode 56: The 3 Biggest Mistakes of a Spinal Screen
I hope you can hear me perfectly with the wind blowing through. But this is what happens a lot when we go on and do a spinal screen. We’re outdoors. We’re in an environment — whether in a market or an expo. You are really out of your element because you are used to being in your own practice. You are used to be indoors and patients come to you. In an Expo environment or in a spinal screen or in a gym setting, you are outdoors and you are outside your environment. You are outside your home field advantage, and one of the key things is that there are 3 BIG mistakes that a lot of chiropractors make because I met a lot of chiropractors and they say “Yes, I’ve done spinal screens before and I only get few clients from them”.
If you are not getting 80% of the people you talk to and actually get an appointment, then you are doing something wrong. And I want to share to you the 3 biggest mistakes that people make when they do spinal screens.
Mistake 1
They are uncomfortable.
Let’s face it you look uncomfortable when you are out there and when you look uncomfortable, no one will approach you. You need to put your shoes unto your prospect. They’re walking around and they see something in the stall and they see this guy/girl who is really uncomfortable being there and they’re not going to feel like they are going to sell you something. That’s a really bad thing because they are going to walk around you. They’re going to turn away and then walk around you. The key thing is that you need to stop doing that because it’s a mindset thing.
Is it going to be uncomfortable? Yes, it is definitely uncomfortable being out there outside your element because you’re not on your home field advantage. You are in an uncontrolled environment and so you really got to change your state. You got to be immensely prepared and be able to embody something just being comfortable in an environment.
Is it hard? Yes, it is but you have to be prepared for it because you need to look at yourself in the mirror and have someone tell you what you look like. If you are not approachable, people are not going to come to you. People don’t wake up in the morning thinking “I hope to get a chiropractor and get screened today in a mall”. They don’t think that way. They are just going to go on with their day. You just try to capture people’s attention. And you being sort of like “I don’t know what I’m doing here and I look uncomfortable looking around staring at people”. That is not a great way to attract people into yourself. If you’re not that person, you might need someone to actually go out there who is personal, bubbly and has the energy to attract people.
Mistake 2
People try to solve other people’s problems all the time. You are in a spinal screen. You are in a mall. Why are you trying to solve everybody’s problems? Why? Because we’re chiropractors and as Chiropractors or Doctors, we solve people’s problem. But you don’t have their problems immediately right there on the spot. Why are you trying to solve all their problems that took several years of history, which you need to take a whole initial consultation? You need to take whole report of findings to actually discuss it and then you still got time to actually solve their problem? Why do you think that a 5 minute consult with you outside your own environment can actually solve all the issue? You can’t, so stop doing that. Stop trying to solve people’s problems, rather try and give them insights. Try to think about other issues and get them to be more intriguing in terms of getting them to see it in a different aspect. Their symptoms might be symptoms of bigger problems. That might be something to think about.
Mistake 3
Trying to sell Chiropractic.
Don’t try to do that because you are not on your home field advantage. Remember in sports we have this thing called home field advantage. Playing in your own ground is way more advantageous than playing on away ground because you have everybody that supports you. In your practice, you are in your home field advantage. When you are outside the mall, you have no advantage. You have no fan support, and you are in an environment that you can’t control and that’s very difficult.
My suggestion is rather than selling them chiropractic, you should sell them what the next step is. The next step is to get them interested enough to basically come to your office. That’s where you will have your full advantage.
Get them to come to your office. That is your goal and your only goal you need to have when you’re dealing with your spinal screen. You don’t have to sell chiropractic. You just have to try to get them to the next step. Not the entire staircase. Not the entire step. Just the next step. The next step is giving you a call to contact you so that they can book an appointment with you so that they can come into your office and in that point you can have your magical thing to try and get them understand what chiropractic is. But before that, in a mall situation, outside a spinal screen it’s all about getting them take the next step with you. Think of it like dating. It’s not trying get them to marry you, It’s getting take them a next date with you. That’s the key thing.