How to build relationships with allied health practitioners

November 28, 2016

Whether you’re a new instructor or an instructor well and truly established, it is always a good idea to invest in relationships with your local allied health practitioners (AHP for the purposes of this article).

It has been our experience that these relationships certainly go a long way to establishing a good reputation within the general and medical community. A proactive instructor who communicates diligently and obtains results, is a quality instructor.

So how do you go about investing in these relationships?

Step by step, where do I find them?

The first thing is to take a look at your local community and determine who you may be already servicing. Perhaps you have the local chiropractor attending your classes already and you didn’t even know it?Use the information gained in your client induction screening. What do your clients do for a living? What do their partners do for a living? The best way to extend your referral base is through those clients you already care for.Knowing what your clients do for a living is an important link to understanding their daily movement patterns. And this is important. The upside of this is the possible discovery that you have a fellow allied health professional working with you and this is the perfect foundation to building network relationships. If appropriate, you may need to seek their service, where you can gain an inherent understanding of their style. Who better to start a referral partnership with, than with someone who has already chosen you for your first rate service.
Ask your current clients who their therapists are, what they like about them and try to get an indication as to how they operate. Determine which method they use to communicate and start this line of communication straight away, direct communication indicates due diligence on your behalf. By approaching someone that shares a mutual client with you, gives you and them a sense of relationship already. It’s a half open door versus a cold call. You can honestly say you’ve heard great things and want to see if you can cross refer.

Check out the associations listed below to search for your local therapists. Find the ones that you may like to connect with.Have a think about which therapies and therapists align with you and your philosophy.

Here are 10 AHP categories we think you may want on your referral team.

Doctor
Physiotherapist
Osteopath
Chiropractic practitioner
Kinesiologist/ Psychologist (practitioners dealing with mental or emotional issues that you align with)
Naturopath/ Nutritionist/ Homeopath
Massage therapist
Aromatherapist (great for studio workshops)
Midwifery unit/Obstetricians
Specialist surgeons

(look for recommendations from within your client list and local contacts or search within the directory links at the end of this article)

Start by creating communication links with like-minded practitioners and then allow the relationship to grow from there. Channel your energy into the network you want to be a part of. Keep it simple. You can always rethink and send out more later as needed. By letting all AHPs in your local area know that you exist and are available to assist their clients, you are providing a valuable service. Think about the possible benefits of investing some real time in just a chosen few whose businesses align well with yours.

Consider these two scenarios as an illustration:

Scenario 1. An AHP has your referral pad sitting there (they’ve never met you or had a real intro) but they know you exist and the person in front of them needs Pilates, so he writes it up. Hastily (everyone is busy) he may even say generally “you need Pilates” and give them the referral, he may also add, “I don’t know these people personally, so have a look at their website or look online for someone else, you just need to do Pilates, I’ll leave it up to you who you do it with.” This way the AHP is covering their butt, because really they have no experience of you to put their own reputation on the line by referring to you. Obviously with the PAA letter they can vouch for your legitimate qualification, but really, when it comes right down to it, they don’t know you.

Scenario 2. This time a doctor (who has been to your studio or has clients that have attended with you) says, “you need XYZ Pilates, they are terrific, I’ve seen their results, here’s a referral go see him/her they will take care of what we need to address your issues.” Short, sweet and music to your ears.

It’s pretty obvious which referral scenario has more power.

Ideally you want someone to advocate on your behalf, not just a general Pilates recommendation. Especially when, as often is the case, the client does not understand that they (may) need personalised studio

Pilates and not a generic group matwork class in a gym where their specific needs are not going to be addressed or worse still, their situation may be aggravated. If their referring practitioner doesn’t articulate the difference and the referral wasn’t specific to you, this is a real possibility and this scenario with a potential poor outcome, does none of us any good.

Investing in our local AHP with information and education helps our industry as a whole, and also helps us all within our individual businesses. It’s a win win for everyone.

A personal recommendation is immeasurable.

What you’re getting with a direct referral is a fully qualified, personally recommended, highly motivated client, who is following the direction of a trusted therapist to take you on as their Pilates instructor.

Ok I have my chosen few, what now?

Ok so you’ve found the allied health practitioners from our suggested therapy list (or your own) that resonate with you. What next?

Remember, what we are seeking here is a real relationship, and relationships are based on attraction, faith and trust. You must be attracted to the way these practitioners operate and present themselves and they to you. That’s the only way this will work long term.

So go see them! Meet them, either as a paying client or make an appointment for a quick chat (be concise, don’t waste peoples time!).

For chiro, physio, osteo, massage, (those that involve manual hands-on therapy) make an appointment (as a paying client) to go see them for a treatment. This way you get to know how they work (as you’d want them to know the same about you) and then you’ll know that you can refer to them confidently (if they are not a good match for you, go see someone else).

Once you’ve found a good fit, explain your service and what it has to offer. Reinforce your enthusiasm for open communication. Have your cards and referral pads at hand to give to them or their practice manager directly. This enhances the commitment you hold. This is a relationship that works both ways.

If you don’t have a legitimate reason to see your chosen AHP (for example: the local midwife because you’re not pregnant), simply make an appointment to introduce yourself and take them an ‘intro bundle’ (PAA intro letter, PAA referral pad and PAA brochures*) coupled with a short letter explaining what your personal passions and integrity are and explain that you’d love to cross refer. In a practice, target the Practice Manager or even offer yourself to present at their next in-house professional development session.

In your letter, write something short with a little flavour, a little piece of your own personality and maybe even a photo and link to your website/ instagram/ facebook (whatever sells you). Identify who you are and your personality.

Offer them something that helps them. This goes for all the AHPs you approach personally. Offer them the opportunity to attend a session with you so they can see first hand how and what you do. Or if they don’t have the time (or the inclination) offer them a limited number of discount vouchers to give to a number of clients they think would benefit and make solid use of it. This enables them to offer their clients some rewards and provides the opportunity to see, via those clients, what you can do. It is about developing faith in your service.

Remember, you’re looking for the people that will be attracted to you and who you are. The professionalism is a given, that’s what the PAA letter and brochure does, it acknowledges your level of training, the rest is about building the relationship.

Now go find your kindred people ☺

Good luck, go forth and prosper!

Melissa Barry – Owner & Principal Trainer Hudson Barry Pilates Moorebank & Surry Hills, NSW
& Vera Torbolov – Founder & Principal Trainer at Pilates Naturally Movement Studio, NSW

*Find a tool kit for meeting Allied Health Professionals in the Members Area of the website. Log in, then choose RESOURCES, Document Library from the menu (top left).