To Groupon Or Not?

Groupon. The craze that swept the nation.

With so many businesses using Groupon as a marketing strategy, it can appear to be a lucrative strategy to increase traffic in your practice or spa, increasing the number of patients and clients that come through your door. After all, you’d think that quantity wins, right?

Let’s just pump the brakes for a moment, shall we?

Before offering a dramatic discount on your services, there are a few factors that can play a role in determining whether using Groupon (or other competing daily deal sites) is the best route for you.

• Can your practice handle a flurry of new clients and patients that the campaign will draw in?
• Do you have enough staff to handle the increase?
• Do you have the space in your schedule?
• Are you prepared for patients to see the decrease in your pricing as the “new normal”?

This rush could potentially cause a scheduling nightmare, and that doesn’t even factor in whether or not your new patients or clients will return to your practice once they have to pay your standard price for your services.

Finally, Groupon can be considered fee-splitting in some states. According to Jay Shorr, founder and managing partner of Shorr Solutions, it’s important to call your state medical board and find out where they stand on daily deals.

Click here to learn more about how Groupon will influence your business from our very own father-daughter duo, Jay Shorr and Mara Shorr, from the article, “To Groupon or Not Groupon?” in Modern Aesthetics magazine.

Click here to read Jay Shorr’s article in Plastic Surgery Practice, “Just Say No To Fee Splitting,” as he shares his secrets on how to avoid fee splitting ranging by examining whether to pay employees hourly or salary to thinking twice about daily deals on social media.

Have any questions? Contact us and we’ll be happy to help.