I got this in my email today. It’s a great example of the dangers of using a template for your emails. Also, do you think the marketing assistant (I hope–and not someone higher ranking!) bothered to run a test before s/he sent this to the masses? Nope, no way.
Don’t make mistakes like this very expensive LaJolla medical spa did.
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😉
rocksteady,
danno~
Megatrends Martha here with some insight as to what is going on…
During the past few years, there has been quite a push to add cosmetic treatments to the menu at dermatologists offices. The reasons for this boil down to the fact that cosmetic patients are generally self-pay, and they’re willing to pay good money for these services.
Think of it: No messing around with seeking reimbursement from insurance companies and the patients are paying you more than those people from the PPO. So, what’s not to like?
Well, for one thing, a lot of this cosmetic stuff is discretionary. Meaning that when push comes to shove, you can live without that wrinkle smoother-outer procedure. And these days, there’s a lot of push that’s coming to shove. Just listen to the economic news.
Furthermore, a lot of these procedures were paid for via home equity. Remember those ads urging you to “liberate your home equity”? Well, some people liberated it at the dermatologist’s office.
And, unfortunately, a lot of these folks are finding that they just don’t have the home equity that they once did. But they do have some whopping big home equity loans that need to be repaid. And that comes before any more cosmetic adventures at the dermatologist’s office. (Now, that’s a wrinkle-causing situation, isn’t it?)
So, here I am, closing in on The Point of All of This: Many cosmetically-oriented practices aren’t doing as well as they were a few years ago. Which means that they really have to kick it up on the promotions. Unfortunately, this often leads to stupid marketing mistakes. Such as the one that Leslie just got in her e-mail.