How do I look at a chiropractic clinic’s community talks and event marketing?

Start by listing each event: the workshop at a community centre, the talk at a workplace, the booth at a local fair. For each, ask who ran it, how people heard about it and what the clinic offered afterward.

Next, follow the results. Did attendees book a first visit, and did they come back? Ask how the clinic tracks this. If the answer is memory, treat any claim with caution. Compare what the events cost in supplies, fees and staff time with what they brought in.

Read the promotional material. Check that what the clinic says in flyers, posts and talks can be supported, and ask your lawyer how health claims in promotion should be handled. Then ask about the speaker. If the owner is the face of these events, a buyer must either take over the role or find a replacement. Ask whether the local contacts who book the venues would continue with a new owner. Ask for copies of slides, handouts and photos so you can see what the clinic actually said. Also ask whether any partner, such as a gym or a workplace, hosts these events, and whether that partner would continue to do so with a new owner.

Key takeaways

• Track each event from attendance to first visit and return visits.
• Compare event costs with the patients actually gained.
• Find out who the face of the events is and whether they stay.