Stop selling single sessions: Offer Programs & Packages

Stop selling single sessions: Offer Programs (NOT Packages!)

Many of you have designed your practice around selling ONLY single sessions….

Am I right?

Single sessions are needed in almost every practice, as stand-alone offerings, but I advise my coaching clients to create 6 individual service offering. (We call them the 6 Pillars of Service Offerings”!)

I will share with you a second Pillar, which is a Program.

This success strategy you’ll read about here, now, is one that will make a huge improvement in your business, because it fills up your appointment book very quickly AND your clients will really start to feel the benefits of your work with more consistent sessions. Another benefit is you can actually charge more for your programs, so it benefits your bank account, too!

This strategy actually begins when you have your very first booking conversation with a client.

When you are speaking with your new client for the first time, you’ll want to first be sure you understand what their goal is for coming to see you.

(example: Are they coming for pain in their neck relief, to reduce their high stress, or to improve their flexibility for a 5k running event coming up.)

Brilliant Diamond Tip:
On the phone PRIOR to their very first session get information from them on what they are looking for.

Find out if this client is interested in just addressing this specific pressing issue (usually a symptom they are experiencing), or are they looking to ‘really take care of it’ through a series of sessions that will address not only the symptoms, but also the cause of the symptom.

Hopefully in the initial conversation, you will discover that they are interested in an on-going wellness program too.

(Until you have asked these questions… there is no way for you to know what they are thinking, so you are not sure how to support them to achieve anything.)

Imagine how disappointed both of you would be if they only came in for a single session, and their problem never really went away. In fact, that means they lost out on relief and you lost out on a bunch of sessions!

Big Bummer!

Brilliant Diamond Tip:

If they tell you the problem has been bothering them for a while and you feel qualified to help them, you will simply explain how one session with you is great, and they will feel results, but that it actually may take more than one or two sessions to help them get the highest level of change. Let them know that you have programs set up and you are happy to speak with them to see which program would be the best for them.

(I always say, “The Bigger the Problem, The Bigger the Solution!”)

If they want to know how many sessions they’ll need, it is completely appropriate to say you won’t know until they come in and you begin to work with them. (If you have an idea, you can give them an estimate of sessions needed.)

Explaining in advance that there may be a need for more than a single session, prior to them coming in to see you, positions you as a responsible provider rather than a pushy sales person.

It also begins the process of them recognizing that one session may not do it, and it is common to schedule a few sessions in a row or to enroll in a program, based on what you find in their first evaluative session.

Also, if they have considered receiving therapy on a regular basis, you will know in advance that they will be receptive to you asking them to reschedule.

Now, here is the secret magic sauce:

It works best to have your programs already established that you can offer your clients when appropriate.

The best way to create your program is to consider what are the core therapy-needs and how can you put it together in the best manner so your typical clients will get the most benefit from purchasing your program.

Here is my example so you can see what I mean:
In my practice and for the therapists who study Active Myofascial Therapy under my mentorship, we offer patients and clients an “Accelerated Pain Relief Program”.

This AMT Accelerated Program includes an initial evaluation, therapy plan design, binder of material, 4 therapy sessions, and on-going email or phone support, plus a bunch of other goodies from being in my AMT program.

(My rates are high but Active Myofascial Therapy works fast, so I find for most people with orthopedic issues, this program works great, people get stellar results and they are happy to pay for it. Rates range from $1600 to $3000, based on the level of support they want and need.)

What You Can Do Now:

1. Create your initial program which can include similar offerings to mine, or it can be a longer or shorter program, or any combination of length, offerings, or services.
2. Once you know what to include in your program, you need to price it. You want to give people an incentive to say yes to your package:
   
3. Once you have met with your client for the first visit, you just confirm they would be a good candidate for your program and away you go.

With re-booking clients into programs, you will begin to see they get better results, you get a happy client with more consistent appointments & income, and many more referrals!

Once again, I suggest — don’t only sell single sessions, create your programs and everyone wins.

If you want me to help you create and price your programs, you can apply for a complimentary Business Diagnostic with me and we can go over the details of designing the most effective (lucrative) program that suits your practice perfectly!