A prescription for professionals to set up a successful business

Financial Post
January 9, 2014
By Dr. Jeffrey Brown

When I started a family medical practice more than 20 years ago, I expected to be dealing with a wide range of conditions from flu to cardiac issues. What I didn’t bargain for was the sheer number of patients with severe obesity-related complications.

The problem was so bad that I closed my family practice about four years ago and founded Weight-loss Through Wellness, a clinic dedicated to helping patients shed pounds by achieving overall physical and emotional wellness. It has since been rebranded to Your Body Evolution.

What I quickly learned was that I was in uncharted territory. Not from a medical standpoint, but because for the first time I was building a scalable business. When any professional opens a practice, key factors such as location and referrals often help drive near-immediate growth in their patient or client list. And unless they take on partners that growth is typically limited by the number of working hours in a day.

I am no longer just an MD, I am also an entrepreneur with a rapidly-growing staff and patient list and the potential to open multiple clinics. That meant I had to find innovative ways to see more patients in less time, while delivering the same level of service and care. I also had to develop knowledge in areas ranging from IT to marketing and sales. And for the first time in my career, I had to care about competitors — many of whom happen to be major national or multinational brands.

To complicate matters, some of those rivals have built businesses on fad diets or flat-out ineffective weight-loss programs, which brings into question the credibility of all physicians specializing in weight loss. From the outset, that posed a unique business challenge.

It’s been an exciting ride, and I have learned a few key lessons along the way that I think are worth sharing. Here’s my prescription for professionals such as doctors, lawyers, accountants or architects to succeed in building scalable, growth-driven businesses:

Do your research Understanding who your competitors are and what makes their brands and services unique is critical. So, too, is defining your target clientele and understanding how to differentiate your services. Being competitive and competent may not be enough to make your company stand out.

Build a business plan It isn’t taught in medical school, but having a business plan that covers everything from how you plan to finance your endeavour to how you’re going to build and manage a good website (online marketing is where many professional entrepreneurs fall woefully flat), is a must.

There are some questions you need to ask yourself, such as: “Who are my ideal target clients? Why should they trust me over another professional service provider? How do I plan to maximize bottom-line results, especially if I’m used to operating within a provincial health insurance plan or have attracted new business exclusively through referrals in the past?”

Also, think about what kind of brand you want to build and how you want it to be perceived in the marketplace. Is it Google or Microsoft? Coke or Pepsi? For me, it was about delivering a system that focused on both wellness and weight loss as a means to change peoples’ lives. The discussion is an important one for any entrepreneur.

Allocate a marketing budget — then double it Most professionals I’ve met lack marketing and branding skills. Some might have great ideas, but finding time to realize them is nearly impossible. If your business is in a highly competitive industry, be prepared to dedicate the time and funds needed to build and execute a comprehensive marketing campaign — everything from logo and website design, to advertising — and be prepared to make significant investments to marketing regularly.

That expenditure can easily creep into the low-six figures in your first year, but stay focused on the end goal. You’re building a brand from scratch, a task that requires the help of seasoned professionals who can make that brand stand out from the pack. Be sure to track returns on those investments and set benchmarks you can use to make strategic adjustments to your plan in future years.

Build the right team I’m an ideas guy, but I’m the first to admit branding and marketing aren’t my forte. Neither is IT, nor accounting. While most independent professionals are accustomed to calling the shots in their practices or collaborating with partners to make decisions, building a growth-driven business requires a team with very diverse skills.

It’s the reason I have built relationships with key service providers from marketers to lawyers. I found them by soliciting referrals from colleagues and patients with strong business connections, then did as much research into specialized areas as possible to ensure I was hiring competent people. Cultural fit and whether or not they understood my entrepreneurial vision were key considerations.

Those same methods were applied to hire internal staff who not only had the right skills, but also the potential to develop in their roles as my business grows and operational needs change.

Be patient, yet persistent We all want to build successful businesses in as little time as possible. But with few exceptions, sustainable, profitable organizations take years to develop into going concerns. Impatience has helped destroy countless startups in the past.

Make constant strides toward achieving the goals set out in your business plan, keep your team motivated and insist on innovating wherever possible. That could mean introducing new digital record-keeping technologies or simply reducing client wait times. Small steps forward will help drive bottom-line growth and make you wonder why you hadn’t gone the entrepreneurial route sooner.

Dr. Jeffrey Brown, MD, is the founder of Your Body Evolution. The Vaughan, Ont.-based clinic specializes in helping patients achieve fast and sustainable weight-loss results, while promoting dramatic improvements to their overall physical well-being. Visit www.ybevolution.com to learn more.