4 Tips for Starting Your Own OT Private Practice
Starting
your own occupational therapy, OT practice is a big step in your career. The OT
profession, or any profession for that matter needs those with expertise to
elevate the industry by being entrepreneurs and authorities.
This is especially essential in the healthcare space, since therapy and medical care is perpetually changing. Occupational therapists who strike out on their own need to stay up-to-date on best OT practices in order to grow a private practice into a success.
All
great things aside, starting an OT practice, or any new business in any
industry can be challenging. There are a lot of intricate aspects that business
owners need to understand and employ for growth and success.
To
help you put your best foot forward in starting your new business, we compiled
a list of tips to draw from at those important early stages. Let’s dive in!
1. Find Your Occupational Therapy
Niche
If
you don’t already have an OT niche, like if you are coming from a hospital
setting where anything goes, you may need to do a bit of business soul
searching. Why? Occupational therapists with private practices need to meet the
ever-changing demand of their potential patients.
Some
niche finding questions to ask are:
What is the market for the OT
niche?What type of OT do you like
to practice the most?Who are you ideal patients?Do you have the niche
experience needed?What OTs are already having
success in this niche?
If you need niche help, visit The American Occupational Therapist Association (AOTA) website to get some great niche ideas.
2. Creating Online Visibility For
Your Practice
Once
you have an occupational therapy niche you want to pursue for your private
practice, it’s time to create a space for you to attract online consumers. This
can be very expensive if you outsource, but the good news is that you don’t
have to. With a bit of research and knowledge, you can launch an OT business
website easily.
First start with your theme. You can find a great medical-minded theme using Themeforest for under $100. These themes are already geared toward medical and healthcare services, like an OT business.
Next you’ll need to find a place to host your website and host your blog if you choose to start one. There are several hosting options available based on the type of server, traffic, SSL certificate and more. Starting out you can keep it simple, but a hosting service is a must.
Before
launch, make sure you develop content that resonates with your future target
audience. This means creating a value proposition and mission statement that
you will showcase on your OT private practice website.
3. Marketing Your New OT Practice
Marketing
is very important for growing your OT private practice into a successful one.
Since you are most likely going to serve a specific region and/or community,
you need to leverage local marketing strategies to build your client-base.
Google My Business is the perfect place to start. Google makes it very easy for people looking for specific businesses or services to find them locally. Register your occupational therapist website with Google My Business by adding your business name, phone number, address, hours of operation, and images.
To
really maximize your OT local marketing, include your local community in your
business name. So instead of naming your business, “OT Specialists” you could
leverage local search on Google by using, “OT Specialists of Austin” for
example.
Other
local marketing tactics include, free OT sessions at senior community centers, OT
fitness classes, taking out local ads in newspapers and other local media
outlets, and more. These marketing tactics do depend on your niche and target
clients.
4. Be Easily Accessible
There
may already be a few occupational therapist practices in your area. This makes separating
yourself from the pack a bit more challenging. One way you can ensure you are
unique is to be easily accessible to clients, as well as future clients.
The
personal touch is what consumers want and being able to provide that type of OT
service will move mountains. Not only will your clients love you, they will
also talk about you with their friends, family, coworkers, and even promote
your practice on social media.
In Conclusion . . .
There are a number of ways to launch your private practice, whether it is providing OT for children, or focusing on other niches, like sports or geriatrics. The possibilities are endless, but starting any business takes work. Going for it and having a well-thought out strategy will make a big difference in how fast your practice grows.
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