Last week, we shared how to build your own patient personas. We’ve gone through this process many times with our doctor-clients, and often times, their initial reaction is usually one of skepticism.
They wonder, “How is this exercise going to add value to my practice, and benefit me?”
(Learn more about Patient Personas.)
The Patient Persona Process
After walking through the process with us, however, their dubiousness quickly turns to excitement. Why? Because patient personas brings clarity to their own understanding of their practice’s patient population, and sheds light onto who their typical patient archetypes actually are. Many times, they think they already know, but once they finish the process with us, they’re left scratching their head, thinking, “Interesting.”, “Wow!”, or “Really?”
Common Patient Personas for Doctors
Today, we share some of the common patient personas seen by orthopedic surgeons and chiropractors! This includes both those patient personas you are trying to attract (target patient personas) and those you are not trying to attract (negative patient personas). Additionally, it’s important to determine approximately what percentage of your current patients are represented by each patient persona. All of this adds up to one thing: facilitating better communication with current patients and target patients, which augments both retention and acquisition!
Examples for Orthopedic Surgeons & Chiropractors
(1) Matt the Ladder Climber (~15% of patients – want to increase)
- 25 years old (typically 20-30)
- Lives in NYC, or surrounding areas
- Works out regularly (wants to get back to skiing, CrossFit, and Tough
Mudder training) - Type A personality
- Prefers to be contacted via email or text
(2) Jessica the Professional (~15% of patients – want to increase)
- 30 years old (typically 25-35)
- Lives in Manhattan
- Focused on her career, getting married, and starting a family
- Likes to exercise, but has limited time (wants to increase her Yoga/jogging
from once/week to a few times/week - Prefers to be contacted via email
(3) Jack the Middle-Aged Executive (~25% of patients – want to increase)
- 50 years old (typically 45-55)
- Upper middle class to upper class (money is no object)
- Suffers from common aging changes to bones, joints, and muscles
(such as early arthritis) - Can’t be sidelined from work (wants fast, pain-free recovery)
- Prefers to be contacted via mobile phone or email
(4) Fred the Grandfather (~45% of patients – want to decrease)
- 70 years old (typically 65-75)
- Limited budget from Social Security, Medicare, and family
- Suffers from degenerative aging changes (inflammation, pain, stiffness,
fractures, joint problems, etc.) - Desire to remain active (wants to play with grandchildren)
- Prefers to be contacted at his home phone
Conclusion
These patient personas serve as a glimpse into the possible segmentation of a practice’s patient population. More granular representations of your patients can help you target and communicate your marketing even better.
Check back next week to learn why patient persona incorporation is paramount for new chiropractors, orthopedic surgeons and other healthcare professionals!
